Disk checking at every boot.

[NS360]

Hi since a couple days I'm getting the "To skip disk checking, press any key within X seconds(s)" at every single boot. All I see is a countdown from 8 to 5 seconds, without pressing any key the disk checking gets skipped.

I installed the Windows 10 Creators Update about 2 weeks ago, but didn't have the issue till I installed BIOS F.45 Rev.A a couple days ago. I asked some other x360 owners if they had the same issue and got a couple confirmations, also from people who hadn't install the newest BIOS yet. 

I tried many possible sollutions that I found by googling the issue, but non of them worked. Sheduling chkdsk by hand doesn't work, again at 5 second countdown the screen get skipped automaticly. 

Auto Repair fails, when I check the log I see "Boot status indicates that the OS booted successfully." as the main cause. 

I also did a chkdsk /f /r /x , every step seems to find no problems, but on the end it gives me the error "Failed to transfer logged messages to the event log wiht status 50."

Even tough it's just 3 extra seconds on the boot time, it's freaking annoying. It's also not the first time I get this. Last time was after installing the Aniversary update, that time it frustrated me so much, that I did a clean install..

Another thing that caught my attention is, that when I google these errors, most of the results are from people with a HP laptop! I even read reports from people who got this error out of the box with their brand new Spectre x360's. 

[Marley24]

I don't have a solution, but I also have this issue.  At every boot I get the message "To skip disk checking press any key within  X seconds.  "X" starts at "8", then at "6" or "5" the countdown stops and the boot completes normally without doing a "chkdsk".  I get this message whether doing a full restart or a fast startup.

The issue started on the restart that took place when installing the Windows Creators Update, and has continued ever since.  The Creators Update was installed on 5/10/2017 through Windows Update.

The disk checks out as clean.  I tried to doing a "fsutil dirty set C:" which sets the dirty bit.  This caused the chkdsk to actually run at next startup.  Subsequent startups returned to the behavior described above.

On 5/17/2017 I updated the BIOS to F.45Ap1.  I thought this might fix the issue, but it did not.

Interestingly, my wife and I both have x360s.  Mine exhibits the problem and hers does not.  (Hers was updated to W.C.U. on 5/11/2017).  The models are slightly different.  Mine is a 13-4118nr and hers is a 13-4100dx.

[Marley24]

I thought I would check back to describe my additional experiences with this issue.

First of all, rereading NS360's original post, I realize that I have an additional, but possibly related, problem.  Besides getting the aborted autochk countdowns on every boot, the 'chkdsk' command also does not work right for me.  If I do a "chkdsk /f /r /x" I got two aborted countdowns on the following restart with no actual scan/repair.  The only way I could force autochk to actually run on restart is to flag the drive as dirty, using the "fsutil dirty set C:" command.

As an experiment, I tried to roll back the Creators Update but it didn't work and left me in a state where I could not boot or repair the system.  At that point, I first tried returning to the out-of-the box state using HP's recovery tool.  This got rid of the problem of the aborted autocheck on every boot, but the chkdsk problem persisted.  I checked this out immediately without doing any updates, so that the machine was in it's original state (except for the bios which wouldn't have rolled back - that might be a factor).

I then downloaded Windows 10 install media from another machine and did a clean install of Creators Update.  The results were the same.  I don't get the aborted autochk countdowns on every boot, but still get one if I try to do a "chkdsk /f /r /x".  I checked this out both before and after installing the May cumulative update for Creators Update (KB4016871).  (I know that this update included a chkdsk fix that worked for some people.)

I did find another way to get the "chkdsk" done.  I can boot into UEFI, then go to "Troubleshooting" and "Advanced options".  From there I can bring up a command shell and do a "chkdsk /f /r /x C:".  I get no errors (other than the log file error).

[NS360]

Reading your comment, I realize I didn't wrote down every step I tried. I havn't tried the recovery tool or clean install, but besides that, everyting is the same on my machine. 

Also, I know we are not the only one. I asked it one a Dutch forum and multiple persons had the exact same issue. 

[ROLANDUS]

I am also having this issue on my 4110nd. Seems something related to this exact model, and have also not found a solution for this issue.

[NS360]

Unfortunately, I still havn't found a sollution. I know we are not the only one with this issue, so I'm still waiting for a fix.

[Jeet_singh]

Hi @NS360,

Thank you for posting on HP Support Forums. It is a great place to find the help you need, from other users, HP experts, and other support personnel. I came across your post and wanted to assist you. I see from the post that you are getting Disk checking at every boot. Don't worry as I have a few suggestions which should help you resolve this issue.

To provide you with an accurate solution, I'll need a few more details:

What is the product number of your product? Use this link to find it: http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c03754824 

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

Was there any update/reset interrupted recently?

Is it trying to check the C: Drive or the 😧 Drive?

In the meantime, let's try these steps here:

Perform a Hard reset on the notebook: A power reset (or hard restart) clears all information from the computer's memory without erasing any personal data. Performing a power reset might fix conditions such as Windows not responding, a blank display, software freezing, the keyboard stops responding, or other external devices locking up.

Next thing, I would suggest here is to Run the CHKDSK 

1. Open File Explorer (Former known as Windows Explorer).

2. Click on This PC.

3. Right-click the Hard Disk you wish to run CHKDSK on.

4. Click on Properties

5. Click on Tools in the Properties window.

6. Under Error-Checking, click on Check.

CHKDSK Will now start to run on Windows 10.

Next thing, I would suggest here is to perform a Startup repair by following the steps below and check if it helps.

1. In the Lock screen, press/hold the shift key and click on power icon>restart.
2. Click on Troubleshoot>Advanced Options>Startup Repair and follow the prompts to start the Startup Repair.

Please respond to this post with the result of your troubleshooting. I look forward to hearing from you. 

If you wish to help others looking for the same solution as you've found, mark the post as Accepted Solution.

If you wish to show appreciation for my effort, please click the Thumbs up icon at the bottom of my comment.

And I Hope you have a good day, Ahead.

Regards,

[NS360]

Hi @Jeet_singh,

Good to see a HP employee noticing this topic. I had already tried most of the steps you suggested, but still did evertyhing you asked. 

What is the product number of your product?
(Your link doesn’t work, but I can answer the question)
Product: P1E17EA#ABH
Model: 13-4110nd

Did you make any software or hardware changes on your PC?
Yes, I did. But the same exact issue occurred before after installing the Window 10 Aniversary update, at that time both soft- and hardware where stock. After this happened I did a clean Install with Windows 10 Education and upgraded later the SSD to a Samsung 960 EVO. This worked perfectly, until I installed the Creators Update. So, both time’s the issue occurred after a big Windows 10 update.

Was there any update/reset interrupted recently?
It has been quite a time since the problem started. But I don’t remember having any trouble in the update process.

Is it trying to check the C: Drive or the 😧 Drive?
It’s doesn’t show, but I did find this in the log:
“Volume C: (\ Device \ HarddiskVolume4) is intact. You do not need to do anything.”

Perform a Hard reset on the notebook (………)
I couldn’t find instructions for the Spectre x360, so I tried it by holding the power button for 15 seconds. This didn’t help, so then I tried ~60 seconds and still nothing has changed.

Next thing, I would suggest here is to Run the CHKDSK
I followed the instructions. CHKDSK completed, but didn’t found any errors and didn’t fix the issue.

Next thing, I would suggest here is to perform a Startup repair (………)
For some reason shift+restart just restarts by laptop, so that doesn’t work. But it does work when I open Settings > Recovery > Advanced Startup and click Restart now.

However Automatic Repair fails. It says “Automatic Repair couldn’t repair your PC”. The SrtTrail logfile it refers to, also doesn’t make much sense. On every step, it gives the error code “0x0” and "Boot status indicates that the OS booted successfully." as the main cause.

[Jeet_singh]

Hi @NS360,

Thank you for replying,

Appreciate your troubleshooting efforts. They were spot on. 

As I understand you have followed the steps suggested and still having the issue, don't worry as I have a few other steps which should help you resolve this issue.

Let's run System diagnostics test as well as an extensive test on the Hard drive from F2 (Please remember to capture the failure ID for further assistance).

Depending on the test results, if all the test passes, I would suggest you perform a system recovery. Doing this will wipe off everything and set the computer back to the original factory conditions. So, please remember to back up your data before initiating system recovery. If for some reason the recovery fails. The only other way to install Windows would be to order the recovery media for your laptop and using the recovery media you can install Windows. You can check if the recovery media is available online on www.hp.com/drivers by entering the exact model no. of your laptop. To find the exact model no. click here: http://hp.care/2bygf7l

HP PCs - Performing an HP System Recovery (Windows 10)

To know more about recovery media, please follow this link: HP PCs - Obtaining HP Recovery Discs or an HP USB Recovery Drive

Otherwise, you could also reach HP phone support to order the recovery media. If your product is out of warranty, please choose paid options to get the tech support number.

HP Technical Support can be reached by clicking on the following link: http://h22207.www2.hp.com/us-en/?openCLC=true

(1) Once the support page opens please select the country in which you're located. Next, enter your HP model number on the right.

(2) Next, choose the 'Contact Support' tab at the top and scroll down to the bottom of the 'HP Support- Contact' page to fill out the form provided with your contact information.

(3) Once completed click the 'Show Options' icon on the bottom right.

(4) Lastly, scroll down to the bottom of the page and select 'Get the phone number.' A case number and phone number will now populate for you.

If you have any troubles, let me know and I will do my best to help!

Keep me posted,

If the information I've provided was helpful,

give us some reinforcement by clicking the solution and kudos buttons,

that'll help us and others see that we've got the answers!

Good Luck.

[NS360]

Hello @Jeet_singh, 

Let's run System diagnostics test as well as an extensive test on the Hard drive from F2

Here I get two options: Memory Test and Hard Drive Check.

-The Memory Quick Check: PASSED (took about 15 minutes)

-The Hard Drive Check gives me:

                Smart Check: PASSED

                Short DTS: NOT AVAILABLE (1: NOT AVAILABLE)

This check just takes a second, it doesn’t matter if I choose the Quick or extensive test.

I know a System Recovery or even a full format will solve the issue (the countdown at every boot will be gone). Because Marley24 confirmed the Recovery Tool fixed it for him and I fixed the same exact issue before by doing a clean install. But this should not be "the sollution". I'm not going to do a clean install/system recovery every time Microsoft brings out a big-update.

To me it's very clear thay something is wrong with the (at least) the HP Spectre x360 Skylake gen. I got two people with the same issue in this topic and found more on a Dutch forum (I could ask them to post here aswell if you want so). 

In case you have other possible solutions or need more information, I'll willing to help. 

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EDIT: I just found out what causes this issue! 

With the Creators Update Microsoft updated "autochk.exe" (C:\Windows\System32) to version "10.0.15063.296". From what I rember the issue didn't immediatly start on my x360. So after some more searching I noticed that after the Creators Update Microsoft came with KB4016871 that should have fixed the following issue:

• Addressed issue where autochk.exe can randomly skip drive checks and not fix corruptions, which may lead to data loss. 

This made me thinking and I replaced autochk.exe with the previous version "10.0.14393.0" and now the problem is gone 🙂 So it's either the Creators update that causes it or the KB4016871, but the by replacing autochk.exe with the version before the Creators update, the issue is gone. 

--

Just to be sure I did a "sfc /scannow" after the issue was gone. I checked the log to see what it did, it updated autochk.exe to the new one and the issue came back. Then I replaced it again with the previous version and it's gone again. 

So I think I have the cause confirmed for the biggest part. And now I'm also unsure if a repair/reinstall would have fixed my problem. I hope you guys at HP can reproduce my findings with all the info I gave.