System diagnostics on Pavalion

[BobwBSGS]

Bringing up a new desktop.  I want to run the BOM-based system diagnostics.  I get to the Startup Menu OK, and F1 (system info) and F10 (BIOS setup) do as expected, but F2 does nothing (just a blank screen).  What do I need to do to get the system diagnostics to run?  Or, did HP decide to delete that package?

Thanks & Cheers, Bob

[A4Apollo]

Hey there! @BobwBSGS, Welcome to HP forums.

I understand you have issues running system diagnostics on your PC.

Don't worry I'd like to help you out.

Did you make any software or hardware changes to your PC?

Do you have HP_TOOLS partition on your PC listed?

Please try the steps recommended below.

On the HP Hardware Diagnostics website, click Download, then select Run.
The InstallShield Wizard opens.
Click Next.
Click Next to choose where to save the files.
   NOTE:
The InstallShield Wizard automatically saves the files on the computer hard drive.
Select the language for the installation. Then click OK.
The wizard begins to extract the files necessary to install the UEFI program.
Click Next
The UEFI Setup Wizard opens.
Select the install location for the UEFI program, then click Next.
If you are downloading UEFI on the computer being tested, select UEFI Partition on Hard Drive.
If you are installing UEFI on a USB drive, select USB Flash Drive.
Click Install.
Click Yes to create the HP_TOOLS partition.
Wait while the software is installed. Click Finish to close the wizard.

Please download the Hardware Diagnostics on your PC using this link.

Refer this article to know more information about testing for Hardware Failures.

I'll keep an eye out for your response.  

I hope you have a great day! 🙂

[BobwBSGS]

The saga continues:  I have tried several things to no avail; changing the display to 800x600, reloading the UEFI diagnostics via the HP Support Assistant, hitting F2 directly from power-up (to bypass the Startup Menu); no difference.

In particular, I invoked sp79421.exe to copy the diag.pkg to a USB flash drive and booted up to use it instead of the one on the HD.  Same result (nothing useful), but it does add a multi-line entry to the SystemDiags.log file on that flash drive, like this:

2017-05-11 09:02:02  ================================================
2017-05-11 09:02:03  EFI System Diagnostic 6.3.2.0 Started
2017-05-11 09:02:03  Load Options =
2017-05-11 09:02:03  HP Battery Control Protocol 2010 not found.
2017-05-11 09:02:03  2009 HP Battery Control Protocol not found.
2017-05-11 09:02:03  SysDiagsBiosData2011 Configuration Variable Acquired
2017-05-11 09:02:03  Found HP Thermal Diagnostic Protocol
2017-05-11 09:02:03  [L]> System ID: 81B3
2017-05-11 09:02:03  HP BIOS Image Interface Protocol Version 2.0
2017-05-11 09:02:03  [L]> Found 4 Processors 4 Enabled, Max 4 Processors
2017-05-11 09:02:03  [L]> Absolute Pointer Protocol Not Available
2017-05-11 09:02:04  [L]> 0 UART device path node found.
2017-05-11 09:02:04  System Family: = 4
2017-05-11 09:02:04  [L]> Locate IsaIoProtocol HandleCount = 0. (Not Found)
2017-05-11 09:02:04  [L]> Failed to locate handle buff for serial IO protocol - Not Found
2017-05-11 09:02:05  [L]> Failed to bind serial io protocol - Not Found
2017-05-11 09:02:05  [L]> Locate IsaIoProtocol HandleCount = 0. (Not Found)
2017-05-11 09:02:05  [L]> PlatformLang reported as en-US.
2017-05-11 09:02:05  [L]> Language Selected is currently (eng).

After making an entry like the above, I expect to see the UEFI Diagnostics Menu on the screen, but the screen remains dark forever (>1 hour):  no menu, no error message, nada.  And, the only way out of this darkness is to power down and then cold-start, as no keys or mouse-clicks have any effect.

My HD (Disk 0) does have a (Simple, Basic) EFI partition, but I can't tell what is in it:  no drive letter is assigned and all of the commands (on the Disk Management page) are greyed-out for that part., so I can't assign a drive letter or even format it.  For sure, no sign of a HP_TOOLS folder.

I don't currently have speakers attached, but I can't believe that matters.  Other than no speakers, my environment is pretty vanilla.

I did DL the UEFI diag.pkg (sp78614.exe) from the link you supplied, but the installer would not run it, reporting that a newer version was already installed.  Presumably, that newer version is the sp79421.exe that I had DL'ed via the HP Support Assistant.  I confess, FWIW, that I did not try to use the diag.pkg on the as-delivered ROM; I got the sp79421.exe before trying the F2 stuff.

I do not see any indication that the hardware is sick, but I'd like to get the diag.pkg to run before I commission this box.  I did run MemTest86 for a few hours; error-free.  Win10, including the apps I've installed, all seem OK.  And, the Event Viewer does not show anything that looks wrong to me.

I did change the BIOS params a bit:  Legacy Support is Enabled, Secure Boot is Disabled, Fast Boot is Disabled, and the Boot Sources are re-ordered; these changes are needed to boot from my MemTest86 CD.  I don't think any of these changes would matter and, in fact, the BIOS responds the same way before and after I made these changes.

So, thanks for your help, but I'm getting nowhere.  Any ideas?

Thanks & Cheers, Bob

[A4Apollo]

@BobwBSGS, Thanks for your response and time.

I appreciate your efforts for trying out the steps.

As you mentioned you are still unable to install UEFI diagnostics on your PC.

I would suggest try restoring the BIOS to default and check if it helps.

To restore BIOS turn on your PC keep tapping the F10 key, you will boot into BIOS.

From the main or file menu select restore defaults.

Select yes to confirm changes, press F10 to save changes and exit.

If the issue still persists please update the drivers using HP support assistant and check if it helps.

Refer this article to know how to use HP support assistant.

Let me know how it goes!

Have a beautiful day ahead! 🙂

[BobwBSGS]

Solved at last:  with my new Pavilion 510-a010, the ROM-based UEFI diagnostics would not run with the monitor connected via a VGA (HD15) cable - even though WIN10 and the other BIOS functions worked fine.  I replaced the VGA cable with a HDMI cable; now, all is well.

I feel that this is a bug, and I'm somewhat honked.  I wasted a *lot* of time before guessing; time spent trying lots of other stuff.  Maybe this note will help somebody else.

Cheers, Bob

[A4Apollo]

@BobwBSGS, It's great to hear from you again.

I appreciate your efforts for trying out the steps.

I'm glad that your issue got resolved.

If you have any queries in future related to any HP products, you can always reach out to us.

We will try our best to help you out.

Take care,            

Have a great day!