Re: I’m not sure how I can go about recovering my system if BIOS Connect won’t work.
flashing bios is inherently risky even when following best advice. so make the actual flash steps as simple as possible if you absolutely have to do it. The traditional method still in good standing is to prepare a bootable usb then download and copy/paste the official Dell bios.exe on the usb. keep the usb separately and do not use it for anything else. If one day you have to flash bios, take out that usb n boot the pc from it. Run the bios.exe in command prompt mode. This procedure is less prone to error than relying on pc to run an app to download bios image which can have unforeseen glitches.
My issue has nothing to do with BIOS updates. My system is already updated with the latest BIOS (2.1.17)
My issue is with BIOSConnect.
"BIOSConnect helps you recover your computer's recovery partition in case of hard drive failure or corruption of the original partition. BIOSConnect provides a foundation platform allowing BIOS to connect to a Dell HTTPs backend and load an image via https method. BIOSConnect feature offers network-based SOS boot recovery capability by performing HTTP(s) download from the cloud to a local RAMDisk and transfers control to the downloaded Service OS image to perform the necessary corrective action. This enables the user to recover when the local HDD image is corrupted, replaced, or absent."
When I do an F12 Selective Startup to BIOSConnect, it recognizes the Ethernet network connection and begins downloading the service OS image. However, the computer then completely powers itself when the download reaches 1%, which is certainly not the expected behavior.
The original 1tb hard drive failed a few months after purchase. Since I use the NVME SSD to boot, I asked Dell to please, please send me a blank drive as a replacement. RMA dept assured me it would be blank. The replacement drive came instead with a factory image, and installing it messed confused the heck out of me when it booted into OOBE. So I reinstalled Win10 from a usb I'd made from the Microsoft creation tool. An impulsive action which admittedly was unnecessary had I thought it through more. Mea culpa. Reinstalling Win10 caused the factory recovery partitions to be deleted
The computer boots fine into any option I choose in F12, whether it's the SSD, a USB stick, Dell Diagnostics, BIOSConnect, etc .
The problem arises when I boot into BIOSConnect. It starts downloading the rescue boot image but, as I've mentioned, the computer just powers itself off when the download reaches 1%. It's supposed to download the entire image, create a RAM disk from that image, then boot the computer from that RAM disk.
I'm doing this because I want the original recovery partitions to be functioning again before I donate the computer to a family member.
I understand your issue now. your biosconnect crashes repeatedly during download. this YouTube shows what a normal biosconnect process looks like.
By your report your pc is otherwise functioning normally, implying memory and motherboard do not crash randomly. So the biosconnect crash is not d/t hardware instability. Then the crash has to be d/t a bug in bios. one thing you may try is to reset your bios by clear CMOs settings. Then try biosconnect again. No promise it will fix the problem.
if still not good, may consider taking risk to reflash bios to same version.
@stevenc66 I wouldn't worry at all about recreating the factory recovery partitions. Dell's factory image is likely out of date so there's really no point in having those partitions.
You can always go directly to the Microsoft site to create a bootable USB stick with the most recent version of Win 10 whenever you need to reinstall, for free.
If you have to use that Win 10 file to reinstall again, it will -for the most part- install all the drivers you need. Otherwise you can always download and install them from the Dell support site, here. And you can also download Dell's factory software (eg, SupportAssist) again for free too from that same page.
Or, you can always image the drive before you give it away, using Macrium Reflect (free) and store that image on the internal 1T HDD, or on an external USB HDD or on DVDs. That image will restore the SSD to the way it was on the date you created it. So always good to create a new image every so often. Note: To restore a Macrium image, you'll need to use Macrium to create a USB stick to boot the PC and copy the image from wherever it's stored back onto the SSD. Make that USB stick at same time you image the drive, so you're prepared, just in case...
RoHe
10 Elder
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45.2K Posts
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April 25th, 2021 12:00
Might help if you explain why you're trying to use BIOS Connect Recovery.
Why did you reinstall Windows? Did you disconnect the 1TB HDD before you reinstalled Win 10 on the SSD?
If you're getting a boot failure error, exactly what does it say?
Have you tried powering PC on and tapping F12 until that menu opens and selecting the option to boot from your SSD?
redxps630
9 Legend
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15.4K Posts
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April 25th, 2021 13:00
Re: I’m not sure how I can go about recovering my system if BIOS Connect won’t work.
flashing bios is inherently risky even when following best advice. so make the actual flash steps as simple as possible if you absolutely have to do it. The traditional method still in good standing is to prepare a bootable usb then download and copy/paste the official Dell bios.exe on the usb. keep the usb separately and do not use it for anything else. If one day you have to flash bios, take out that usb n boot the pc from it. Run the bios.exe in command prompt mode. This procedure is less prone to error than relying on pc to run an app to download bios image which can have unforeseen glitches.
stevenc66
1 Rookie
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8 Posts
0
April 25th, 2021 15:00
My issue has nothing to do with BIOS updates. My system is already updated with the latest BIOS (2.1.17)
My issue is with BIOSConnect.
"BIOSConnect helps you recover your computer's recovery partition in case of hard drive failure or corruption of the original partition. BIOSConnect provides a foundation platform allowing BIOS to connect to a Dell HTTPs backend and load an image via https method. BIOSConnect feature offers network-based SOS boot recovery capability by performing HTTP(s) download from the cloud to a local RAMDisk and transfers control to the downloaded Service OS image to perform the necessary corrective action. This enables the user to recover when the local HDD image is corrupted, replaced, or absent."
bios connect
When I do an F12 Selective Startup to BIOSConnect, it recognizes the Ethernet network connection and begins downloading the service OS image. However, the computer then completely powers itself when the download reaches 1%, which is certainly not the expected behavior.
RoHe
10 Elder
•
45.2K Posts
0
April 25th, 2021 16:00
@stevenc66 - You didn't answer any of my questions...
stevenc66
1 Rookie
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8 Posts
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April 25th, 2021 16:00
The original 1tb hard drive failed a few months after purchase. Since I use the NVME SSD to boot, I asked Dell to please, please send me a blank drive as a replacement. RMA dept assured me it would be blank. The replacement drive came instead with a factory image, and installing it messed confused the heck out of me when it booted into OOBE. So I reinstalled Win10 from a usb I'd made from the Microsoft creation tool. An impulsive action which admittedly was unnecessary had I thought it through more. Mea culpa. Reinstalling Win10 caused the factory recovery partitions to be deleted
The computer boots fine into any option I choose in F12, whether it's the SSD, a USB stick, Dell Diagnostics, BIOSConnect, etc .
The problem arises when I boot into BIOSConnect. It starts downloading the rescue boot image but, as I've mentioned, the computer just powers itself off when the download reaches 1%. It's supposed to download the entire image, create a RAM disk from that image, then boot the computer from that RAM disk.
I'm doing this because I want the original recovery partitions to be functioning again before I donate the computer to a family member.
redxps630
9 Legend
•
15.4K Posts
0
April 25th, 2021 17:00
I understand your issue now. your biosconnect crashes repeatedly during download.
this YouTube shows what a normal biosconnect process looks like.
By your report your pc is otherwise functioning normally, implying memory and motherboard do not crash randomly. So the biosconnect crash is not d/t hardware instability. Then the crash has to be d/t a bug in bios. one thing you may try is to reset your bios by clear CMOs settings. Then try biosconnect again. No promise it will fix the problem.
if still not good, may consider taking risk to reflash bios to same version.
RoHe
10 Elder
•
45.2K Posts
0
April 26th, 2021 11:00
@stevenc66 I wouldn't worry at all about recreating the factory recovery partitions. Dell's factory image is likely out of date so there's really no point in having those partitions.
You can always go directly to the Microsoft site to create a bootable USB stick with the most recent version of Win 10 whenever you need to reinstall, for free.
If you have to use that Win 10 file to reinstall again, it will -for the most part- install all the drivers you need. Otherwise you can always download and install them from the Dell support site, here. And you can also download Dell's factory software (eg, SupportAssist) again for free too from that same page.
Or, you can always image the drive before you give it away, using Macrium Reflect (free) and store that image on the internal 1T HDD, or on an external USB HDD or on DVDs. That image will restore the SSD to the way it was on the date you created it. So always good to create a new image every so often. Note: To restore a Macrium image, you'll need to use Macrium to create a USB stick to boot the PC and copy the image from wherever it's stored back onto the SSD. Make that USB stick at same time you image the drive, so you're prepared, just in case...