Probook 455 G3 won't start, CD player flashes 4 times, I can hear the fan running...

[winston3338]

Hello, I usually spend hours and days hitting forum sites but I'm 65 years old and running out of time. Both of my laptops are beat to hell from HP and Microsoft updates. One of them is a HP ProBook 455 G3 Notebook.16 gig memory and different size hard drives. My OS is Windows 10 64 bit Pro. 

The last thing I remember doing was updating my bios from the HP support email and link below. For weeks my laptop won't start. The only flashing light I have is in the CD player and that light blinks/flashes four times. I can hear my fan running. 

I've tried everything everyone else has, we all sem to have the same problems one time or another. I've tried disconnecting the battery or power supply but my batterys been dead for years or won't register and I think that's as much a HP problem as their WiFi problems. Outside of that, I have road this ProBook hard and put it away wet 1000's of times for years and it has taken it like a pro.

I've tried holding the power button and pressing windows and B key but nothing happens. I think the windows and V key used to do something but I can't remember.  

Is there someone who knows if this update below that HP sent me is the right Bios update for a Probook 455 G3 Thanks in advance, John M.  

Critical BIOS Update - Feb 25 2019 

HP Notebook System BIOS Update (N79, N80) (ver 01.37 Rev.A) Products: HP ProBook 455 G3 Notebook PC OS: Windows Description: This package creates files that contain an image of the System BIOS (ROM) for the supported notebook models with a N79 or N80 family ROM.

[CherylG]

Hi John. Welcome to the froum.

It is listed on your Support page in the list of updates- but another set is too. Thinking it was just divided in sets I started looking for similarities and found a version 1.15 Rev A in both sets -but (once again) they each have a different Sp number. Not a lot of help. Only suggestion I can think is to make a usb flash drive recovery from various versions and try Windows key plus B or V with it.

https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/hp-probook-455-g3-notebook-pc/7834637

[winston3338]

Mods please forgive me if I'm posting out of specs... 

Hello CherylG, thank you for the nice welcome, at age 65, it's nice to be anywhere, anytime. I'm afraid I've outlived my ability to  work and buy a new laptop every few years. About the bios update,,, I started collecting and mailing myself HP Bios tips around Mar 1, 2019 so I was bricked  and on my spare Acer by Mar 1st

Once in awhile I use Speccy or Belarc Advisor for a system snapshot and I found a Speccy report from 11/7/2018 that has the Bios update I first posted as already updated (if I'm reading it right) 

From my Speccy Report 11/17/2019  BIOS Brand HP *  Version N79 Ver. 01.19  *  Date 3/23/2018 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1K1R8zsz_cEBUJH6X91DN6nrIuO1B1Xfqtn-7LeCyLZU/edit?usp=sharing   

 But then I also found the update below that would have arrived the same week as the bios update so I'm not sure where I was because I had a idea that after I retired, I would sit around and dig deeper and deeper into the computer brain to see what makes it tick. After 3 years, I still have no idea what makes computers tick, but I can reload windows blindfolded and I have about 9 bad harddrives that refuae to start because (I think they know) I'll put them right back into my laptop and start all over again. nuk nuk nuk . 

Here's the second update and I will let you know if the flash drives work.  I've been loading Windows Pro  ISO on to flash drives and disks with Rufus but I'm not sure if I'm right becaue I've been trying to flash an android tv box with out any luck yet. I think the HP is history but I appreacte you takig a look. Thanks, John M. 

HP Support <alerts@alerts.hp.com> Mar 3 at 6:48 AM Critical Security Bulletin - Mar 01 2019

HPSBHF03581 rev. 3 - AMD Secure Processor and Promontory Chipset Exploits (c05950716)

Products: Laptops and Hybrids, Desktops & Workstations

Description: HPSBHF03581 rev. 3 - AMD Secure Processor and Promontory Chipset Exploits

[CherylG]

I have seen some have success by unhooking the hdd and starting up the laptop-for some odd reason it will "sometimes"allow the BIOS update to complete. Not always.

So, the BIOS you installed that did the bricking is V.1.37 Rev A which is listed on your Support page. The Speccy report says you had V.1.19 which is also listed on your Support page. You can see it by clicking on the tab Previous versions.

What I would try is downloading V1.19 from the list and save it on the Acer. When you click to run it should offer an option to Update BIOS or Create a flash drive. You will need only a small capacity flash drive anything 4-8gb or larger should work. Format it Fat 32 and then run the BIOS file you saved and choose to make a usb drive. Once it is created insert it into usb port of the HP. While holding the Windows key and B key (may also be V) press the power button for 3-4 seconds and release it- continue holding Win and B (or V) for another 5-10 seconds until a BIOS recovery screen appears or you hear beeping and "hopefully" it will begin reading the usb BIOS recovery.

2 videos here show the process of creating and using BIOS usb recovery:

http://supportvideos.ext.hp.com/detail/videos/all-videos/video/4881674920001/creating-a-bios-recover...
http://supportvideos.ext.hp.com/detail/videos/all-videos/video/4930367937001/restoring-the-bios-with...

[winston3338]

Hi Cheryl, I saw your post and it all looked so right I didn't want to repost to soon.and jinx myself. I have all the toys,  flash drives, hard drives, hard drive cables, connectors and enclosures.  I had a flash drive loaded with programs, software and HP bios updates I'd been collecting but I always avoided the Fat 32 format because (I thought I read) it was outdated so  every flash drive and all the hard drives I seemrd to have bricked are NTFS formated.

So I pluged in a flash drive, Fat 32 formated it, downloaded V1.19 according to everything we know plus your vidio tips and when that completed, I put in another flash drive and repeated all the steps again.  So I had two freshly loaded Fat 32 flash drives, one everything but the kitchen sink, NTFS flash drive. Two hard drives I hoped coukd/would start and two hard drives with USB connectors. My plan was to just keep trying to restart to a bios (or any) screen over and over and switching things up, with/without battery, power supply, switch flash and hard drives, I spent hours starting, changing, pushing, pulling, swearing, begging forgiveness and, and....

and....and..... (is this freaking exciting or what)....

and....

and.....

the envolope please!!!.....

drum roll please!!!....

I'm so excited I think I just peed a little!!!.... 

come on you moron, type it, type it old man before you kick the bucket!!!! 

No signs of life!!!! I have all the the same solid lights, no flashing, not even the cd light. I'm thinking of 

of trying V.1.37 Rev A but I'll keep at it. 

[CherylG]

Well, that was exciting- until I got to the last lines. 😂

No cigar yet-keep plugging away at it. Try a different BIOS version. Btw, you didn't mention what,if anything,occured when you released power button and kept holding the other 2 keys. Any reaction at all-no response at all? Maybe try holding the power button an extra second or two.Try Windows key plus V if B isn't doing anything. 

Did you try starting up with  hdd unplugged ?

[winston3338]

Hi, yeah I was out of my mind by the time I posted above. I tried all the combinations with the flash and hard drives for about 7 weeks and I've tried all these things and more. I thought your format Fat 32 answer was going to do it yesterday. The lights that are on are power, WiFi and I think it;s volume (I never touch them) 

The power supply jack blinks steady and it's amber, I think it used to be white and only flashed with internet use. I have no hard drive (white light). The CD light stays dark until I load a windows 10 home or pro ISO then it flashes 4 times and clicks once in every 4 flashes, the CD is spinning and the fan is running but the exhaust feels warmer than normal. 

All ports 2 X's 2.0 and 2 X's 3.0 light up spare USB lights I have.. When I try the USB hard drives, I get a solid light and I feel the disk spinning but no flashing/response. When I try flash drives, I don't see the normal red light. I hold the windows & B keys about 5 times and I power it of and wait (you know) Then I hold the Windows & V keys 5 times while trying everything. I try all key combinations F2, F8,  F10 (I do reg hacks for F8 & F10) F12 (I enable F12 when ever I'm in Bios) 

I also try alt & F8, F10, F12. Ctrl, alt delete. FN & all key combos. I get no signs/vibrations/hard drive flashes of life. The hard drive that was in when I bricked it is reformatted and I just seem to destroy hard drives. There always telling me not to load windows cause it's corrupt and I've forced window to load over and over. They work fine but I never know when I'm going to restart and there bricked (sort of) again. I just go into craigslist and buy cheap used ones

Unlike the Acer, I can't remove the bottom cover to check the board without prying the keyboard out and I know nothing about main boards and plenty about prying things I know nothing about and it's never pretty 

[winston3338]

Hi Cheryl, You're not a HP employee, are you?

[CherylG]

Not an employee. Just a pc enthusiast who enjoys trying to help people. There are a few HP Agents who help out too that might pop in if we ask nicely.😊

[winston3338]

Hi Cheryl, The reason I asked, the people need you on our sites. HP, Acer, Microsoft (you get the idea) are the corporations that sold us their products and moved on, leaving us (the people) with the same old problems. Take HP, they dumped their half built computers on us and left us with phone support (we can't understand)  in another country and employees (like you mentioned) who pop on these threads, take a couple computer 101 guesses at the answer and then move on. Like company, like employees. 

Phone support is the last ones to know anything. I called HP for the last couple updates that were bricking peoples computers, including the HP bios update that wiped out my computer, and they asked me if theres a problem with the updates. I used to blame HP for pushing their employees but my post shows it's the "agents" who leave customer questions and problems unanswered. Just scroll through ANY thread, click an employees name and look at their numbers. They have threads that go up to 5 pages without a answerand HP archived them. It's fun to waste time reading through posts and pages to get to the NO ANSWER END. 

Take the clown Fossette, below,  heres his numbers...

The_Fossette

HP Support Agent

15344 1015 1660 

and here's your numbers,  

CherylG

Provost

44510   3319  13903

He, like all their "support" people (click threads and employees names)  just try to build numbers and just like their forien phone support who like to make you think you were disconnected, when they do it on purpose making one call, into two calls. notice they take your phone number first,  but they never call you back because they need numbers to BS HP. 

What we need is class action lawsuits, between Microsoft forcing their half assed windows 10 on use when their own sites are stuck in windows 8 and HP bricking computers like mine (I'm 65, it's over) The people need you honey, don't do their job Cheryl. You can run circles around the people they call techs and there's not a thing any one of the HP phonies can tell us, we blew them out of the water just passing ideas in my post and thats why they never answered. I'm going to send this to HP corporate and they won't care either. I see that people are filling BBB complaints and everyone I read, ended with HP sending a gift card so the people can buy more of their products. 

https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Boot-and-Lockup/Probook-455-G3-won-t-start-CD-player-flashes-...