Bluescreen(s) INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE and DRIVER_PNP_WATCHDOG on Spectre x360 with Intel Optane SSD

[ejaku]

At the morning of 09.07.25 I found my Spectre x360 crashing and booting over and over again, I guess some nightly Windows update failed.
It alternates two crashes:
- after quite a long time of showing only the logo and the running circle it crashes with stop code INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE
- then it shows an additional message that automatic repair is prepared, and after a while a bluesreen DRIVER_PNP_WATCHDOG
When I start Windows recovery (F11), also the bluescreen DRIVER_PNP_WATCHDOG appears after a while.

When I boot with an USB stick instead of from the builtin drive I get the following behavior:
- with the system created by the HP Cloud Recovery tool (today), it shows a dotted running circle and then crashes with a DRIVER_PNP_WATCHDOG bluescreen after a while (without automatic restart).
- with a Windows 11 22H2 PE the computer freezes late in the startup process, finally showing the DRIVER_PNP_WATCHDOG bluescreen (or directly and silently crashes with another Windows PE live USB version; the former comes with drivers exported from the laptop several months before, the latter with some kind of vanilla drivers).
- a live SuSE Linux is booting and the OS can be used (same holds for Ubuntu), but the laptop hard disk is not made available automatically, fsblk shows nvme0n1 isw_raid_member 953,9G live and nvme1n1 isw_raid_member 27,3G live - I don't know how to mount that manually.

The BIOS shows for the storage (hidden in the UEFI Human Interface Infrastructure) an Intel Optane volume with 953.9GB (Intel RST 18.1.1.5201 RST VMD Driver, a Disable mode Safe, I have not tried yet to Disable it, only reset BIOS to defaults), and two volume member disks, one with 953.8GB in Status Non-RAID and one with 27.2GB in Status Cache.
The Extensive System Test from the HP PC Hardware Diagnostics UEFI has all tests PASSED (Battery OK), also the Storage Component Advanced Test(s) are shown as PASSED (DST checks have a 2: N/A appended).
Note: the wear levels are reported to be widely different, the one of the 953GB NVMe SSD (FV:HPS2) is 9%, the one of the 27.2GB NVMe SSD (FV:HPS3) is 97%.

I'd like to update the BIOS, maybe this helps, its quite old at revision F.24.
But the available mainboard ids from the BIOS update package (version F.36 Rev.A for 14-ea0378ng) are 087F6, 089DA, 0885A, while my machine has a system board id 87F7.
Should I try the off-by-one BIOS version?

Besides this specific question, you maybe have some hints on how to cope with this issue in general (I'd try the BIOS update but I don't think chances are that great that the machine will run fine afterwards)...

[Max3Aj]

@ejaku, Welcome to HP Support Community. 

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you. 
Based on the symptoms and diagnostics, this issue appears to stem from a combination of:

• Intel Optane + RST RAID configuration,
• Windows Update corruption, and
• Driver/BIOS incompatibility.

Here’s a structured approach to resolve this issue:

Do Not Flash a Mismatched BIOS

Your board ID is 87F7, and the BIOS update you found is for 087F6, 089DA, and 0885A. Flashing a BIOS not meant for your board can brick the system. Only update BIOS if the version explicitly supports your board ID.

Check for BIOS updates specific to your model here: Official HP® Support

Disable Intel Optane Acceleration in BIOS (Safe Mode)

Since Linux boots but Windows fails, the issue likely lies in the Intel RST/Optane RAID configuration.

• Reboot and enter BIOS (usually Esc or F10 at startup).
• Navigate to Advanced > Intel Rapid Storage Technology.
• Locate the Optane volume and choose "Disable" or "Deconcatenate" (this won’t delete data but breaks the RAID).
• Save and exit BIOS.

This will disable Optane caching and revert to AHCI or NVMe mode, which is more compatible with recovery tools.

Boot into Windows PE or Recovery USB

Now that Optane is disabled:

• Boot using the HP Cloud Recovery USB or a Windows 11 PE USB.
• If it boots successfully, try Startup Repair or System Restore.
• If not, open Command Prompt from recovery and run:

chkdsk c: /f /r sfc /scannow

Backup Data via Linux (if needed)

Since Linux boots and sees the drives as isw_raid_member, you can:

• Use mdadm to assemble the RAID:

sudo mdadm --assemble --scan

• Then mount the volume:

sudo mkdir /mnt/recovery sudo mount /dev/md0 /mnt/recovery

Copy your data to an external drive before proceeding with any OS reinstall.

Reinstall Windows (if repair fails)

If recovery fails:

• Use the HP Cloud Recovery Tool to create a fresh USB.
• Boot from it and perform a clean install.
• During install, delete all partitions on the internal drive and let Windows recreate them.

Additional Tips

• After reinstall, do not re-enable Optane unless absolutely necessary.
• Keep BIOS and Intel RST drivers updated from the Official HP® Support.
• Consider switching to AHCI mode permanently for better compatibility.

I hope this helps. 

Take care and have a good day. 

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Select "Yes" on the bottom left to say “Thanks” for helping! 

Max3Aj

HP Support 

[ejaku]

Thanks for your suggestions, unfortunately they don't work.

Your entry link leads me to the very same mismatching BIOS images that I downloaded originally (from the german language version of the official HP website).

So where can I find images for HP Spectre x360 Convertible 14-ea0378ng (2N2A1EA) that include board id 87F7?

Now I used the disable menu of the Optane volume in the BIOS - with preserve user data enabled (and left the BIOS with save changes).
A normal boot from the drive failed, as well as the repair boot, with the very same symptoms.
A boot of the HP recovery stick failed with the very same symptoms, the boot of a Windows 11 PE stick failed with the very same symptoms.

Note: the RST state in BIOS looks the same as before I disabled (maybe it was disabled before automatically causing the current situation...)

When I boot with a Linux USB stick:
- lsblk tells the same as before
- when I enter your proposed
sudo mdadm --assemble --scan
I get as response(s)
Unsupported attributes : 3000000
Unsupported attributes in IMSM metadata.Arrays activation is blocked
Cannot activate member /md127/1 in /dev/md/umsm0
Cannot activate member /md127/0 in /dev/md/umsm0
Cannot activate member /md126/0 in /dev/md/umsm0
No arrays found in config file or automatically
- mdadm --detail-platform tells it's an Intel(R) Rapid Storage Technology Version 18.1.1.5201

The only option left in BIOS is to disable the Optane volume with Preserve user data set to Disabled, I guess this means my (current) data is lost and I have to revert to a backup for sure.
I'd try this later on... (unless I read an advice in another direction).

[Max3Aj]

@ejaku, Thank you for your response,  

I'm sending a private message to assist you with the next action. 

  

Please check your Private message icon on the upper right corner of your HP Community profile Next, to your profile Name, you should see a little blue envelope, please click on it or simply click on this link. 

  

I hope this helps! Keep me posted. 

  

Max3Aj

HP Support