HP Pavilion dv6 - Slow boot up compared with older laptop?

[TheLongBoarder]

Hello,

I recently bought a new Pavilion dv6 but noticed that it has a much slower boot up time compared with my older Toshiba Portege R705-P35. I am just curious why this is since the Portege has much lower specs than my Pavilion.

Thanks,

TheLongBoarder

[kabwebdev · Accepted solution]

Hi TheLongBoarder,

The slow boot could be caused by a few different things. The first thing you want to do when diagnosing an issue with a computer is if it's a hardware issue or a software issue. In your case, I wouldn't think it would be a hardware issue. You shouldn't have an issue with memory or speed of your hard drive. That model should be running at least 4GB or 6GB or RAM. 

It also depends on what "boot" you're speaking of. 

1. If it is the boot from when you press the power button to the Windows login screen (post), it could be an issue with the BIOS. It may not have the most up-to-date version, or the settings in the BIOS may not be set to optimize speed and startup of Windows.

If the BIOS version is the problem you can find the most up-to-date version by going to the HP drivers and downloads page, select the correct model number of your laptop (i.e.. dv6-6c35dx), select your operating system, then navigate to the section labeled "BIOS". To check if the version currently installed is newer or older than the version online follow the directions below.

1. Click on Start and then Run.

2. In the text box in the Run window, type regedit and click OK. This will open the Registry Editor program.

   Note: Do not make any changes to any entry anywhere in Registry Editor to avoid causing serious system issues. These steps only direct you to view a registry entry, not to make changes.

3. Locate the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE folder under My Computer and click on the (+) sign next the folder name to expand the folder.

4. In the resulting folders, locate and click on the (+) sign next to HARDWARE to expand this folder.

5. In the resulting folders, locate and click on the (+) sign next to DESCRIPTION to expand this folder.

6. In the resulting folders, locate and click on the System folder.

7. In the results that appear in the window on the right, locate the SystemBiosVersion andSystemBiosDate entries.

8. The data in the SystemBiosVersion field contains the BIOS version for your motherboard. This field may also contain additional information such as the chipset manufacturer and BIOS manufacturer.

9. The data in the SystemBiosDate field contains the calendar date associated with the current BIOS version on your motherboard. The BIOS date can be useful in determining the current BIOS version from a motherboard manufacturer's website if the version is not clear in the SystemBiosVersion field.

10. Close Registry Editor without making any changes.

BIOS Settings: If the problem is with the settings in BIOS, there are a couple of tweeks you can make to optimize the speed. When you turn on the computer, BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) runs a bunch of tests on devices and configures the devices connected to your computer. If some of the settings are not configured properly, your PC startup speed can be decreased. Enter the BIOS setup and look for commands or settings that may not look correct. To be sure run a Google search to be sure. Make sure your first boot device is set to your primary hard drive. Make sure the motherboard logo display is turned off. And make sure the quick boot/fast boot feature is enabled.

2. If your speaking of boot as the Windows loading process from Windows login to complete loading of Windows into the desktop, you may have an issue with too many programs being set to load with windows. In that case you can easily check and disable any unwanted programs set to startup with Windows that may be causing speed issues. You can do this by:

1. Click "Start" and type "msconfig" into the search bar and press "enter".

2. This will open the "System Configuration Utility".

3. On the right of the window, navigate to the tab labeled "startup".

4. You will see a list of all programs set to load with Windows. Here you can decide what you do or do not want to load with Windows. Some of the programs are required to load with Windows in order for Windows to load and run properly, so be careful which ones you disable. If you are unsure if it's required for Windows, you can do a quick google search to be sure. Look for title labeled "startup item". Copy and paste that into Google and type "is 'EXAMPLE' required in Windows startup"? You will typically find your answer rather quickly. 

Slow startup could be caused by a couple of other reasons as well.

1.  Fragmented Registry- Windows registry is the most vital component of the Windows operating system. When there begins to be issues with the registry, the speed and functionality of Windows becomes drastically slower. I doubt that could be the issue with your computer. It's possible, but it is new and unless you've applied heavy use in a short period of time, it's not the likely culprit. If it it, though, it's worth a check. You can find a good registry cleaner online and give it a check.

2. Virus or Spyware infections- Once infections get on the computer, they can cause immediate damage to the functionality of Windows. If you've been online a lot, even with an anti-virus program, you could have a virus of some sort. You should run a full scan just to be certain. You can also download the free version of Malwarebytes and run that as well. It works very well and is pretty powerful.

Hope this helped you out and you got this issue resolved. If you have any more questions feel free to message me. I actually have a dv6 model so I may be able to help in any future issues you might have.

Later,

kabwebdev

[TheLongBoarder]

Wow. Thanks for the detailed post. I will try it out. 

[kabwebdev]

No problem. It was my pleasure. Good luck!

kabwebdev