From: Jeff Strickland on
The machine is looking to the USB drive for bootable information. You must
physically remove that drive, or prevent the machine from looking for it.




"Joe J." <joejak(a)prodigy.net> wrote in message
news:hgc6gk$9ok$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>
> "Jeff Strickland" <crwlrjeff(a)yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:hgc69u$8t3$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>> Then you have to remove the USB device that the machine is finding.
>>
>> The external drive is not the problem. The machine is looking to it for
>> bootable information that does not exist. You have to either make the
>> machine stop looking, or remove what it finds so that it looks elsewhere
>> for what it needs.
>>
> There are no other USB devices.
>
> Joe
>
>
>>
>>
>> "Joe J." <joejak(a)prodigy.net> wrote in message
>> news:hgc2f2$bbr$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>>> There is no way to remove the USB from the boot sequence. My two
>>> options are to enable it, or disable it. It is disabled and fourth in
>>> the sequence list. The list is numbered. Items 1-3 are the devices I
>>> listed. If I enable the USB it is automatically assigned #4 and becomes
>>> 4th in the boot sequence. If I disable it, the assigned number goes
>>> away but it still remains in the list. I can move the devices up and
>>> down in the list and the numbers change accordingly. If I disable it
>>> and also move it up in the list, the list numbering just skips it.
>>>
>>> Joe
>>>
>>>
>>> "Jeff Strickland" <crwlrjeff(a)yahoo.com> wrote in message
>>> news:hgbvru$mb9$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>>>> It probably doesn't make a difference having the floppy in the mix, but
>>>> there's no benefit of having it there.
>>>>
>>>> But the USB is there, but it's not bootable, you need to move it down
>>>> the list so the bootable devices come first. MY BAD, I did not read
>>>> that properly.
>>>>
>>>> You said, "onboard or USB <device>" where you listed two different USB
>>>> devices that are not the USB external drive, but are USB drives --
>>>> potentially. If you have an option for the two drives to be onboard
>>>> only, then you should see if selecting that option (onboard only) fixes
>>>> the problem.
>>>>
>>>> We had a discussion a few days ago about a guy that had USB external
>>>> drives that he didn't want to unplug because the cable was in the back
>>>> of the tower and difficult to get to. My suggestion was to leave the
>>>> cable in the back of the PC and unplug it from the external drive when
>>>> not in use.
>>>>
>>>> I can't help but think you could do this also.
>>>>
>>>> My wife uses an external 500G Maxtor that has it's own power supply,
>>>> and she leaves it plugged in all of the time and never has a problem
>>>> with the boot sequence or the wake-up sequence that comes from moving
>>>> the mouse or hitting the keyboard. She also has a FreeAgent (250G
>>>> Seagate drive) that runs off of the USB power. I don't recall her
>>>> complaining that it causes her any problems with coming out of
>>>> hibernation or boot problems.
>>>>
>>>> From what you've said here, I think you have USB included in the boot
>>>> order ahead of the actual bootable device, and this is causing you
>>>> problems because the USB drive is present but not a bootable device. My
>>>> wife runs, more or less, the same stuff you are running, but does not
>>>> have the trouble you are having. She's using XP Pro, SP3, and has a
>>>> pretty new motherboard that allows USB to boot. I set that option off
>>>> or put it after the HDD so it doesn't get in the way.
>>>>
>>>> The Mrs. uses a USB extension cord from the back of her machine to her
>>>> desktop, then plugs in the device she wants -- camera, external drive,
>>>> iPod, etc. -- when she wants them. She does not have to pull her
>>>> machine out to unplug anything from the back because she moved one of
>>>> the ports from the back of the PC up to her desk. The machine doesn't
>>>> care that the cord is connected at the back if the load on the other
>>>> end of the cable is taken away then the port is unused and the machine
>>>> is happy. A friend of mine bought a 7-port USB hub last week. She plugs
>>>> it into her laptop that she uses as a desktop machine -- external
>>>> monitor and keyboard -- that she can separate from everything and take
>>>> to school. The hub lets her plug her stuff into the laptop at a single
>>>> port, which makes disconnecting the laptop quick and easy.
>>>>
>>>> It sounds as if you could use such a device so that your USB devices
>>>> can be added and taken away more easily than you can do this now.
>>>>
>>>> The hub my friend bought has it's own power supply so the power draw on
>>>> the machine isn't an issue.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Joe J." <joejak(a)prodigy.net> wrote in message
>>>> news:hgbsp2$oel$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>>>>> My USB is not enabled on boot. I don't see how having the floppy in
>>>>> the sequence would make a difference since there is no disk in it.
>>>>>
>>>>> Joe
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> "Jeff Strickland" <crwlrjeff(a)yahoo.com> wrote in message
>>>>> news:hgbs88$jk7$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>>>>>> You need to change the boot priority to boot from the HDD first, or
>>>>>> the CD first and the HDD second. If these sources are not bootable,
>>>>>> then look to the USB. You do not need the floppy drive in the mix at
>>>>>> all because as a practical matter, there is no such thing as a
>>>>>> bootable floppy anymore. In theory, there could be a few people out
>>>>>> there running a very old OS that can boot from a floppy, but if you
>>>>>> have a machine that supports a SATA drive, then booting from a floop
>>>>>> isn't realisticaly going to happen.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> First Boot -- CD
>>>>>> Second Boot -- HDD
>>>>>> Third Boot -- USB
>>>>>>
>>>>>> If the USB is a boot device ahead of the HDD, but hasn't got a boot
>>>>>> sector, then the machine will hang looking for something it will
>>>>>> never be able to find. I'm not certain, but if the CD is not bootable
>>>>>> and is in front of the HDD, you might have trouble waking the machine
>>>>>> from Hibernation too -- if the CD is occupied but the disc is not
>>>>>> bootable. You can eject the CD tray if the machine is trying to boot
>>>>>> from it, and then it will go to the HDD for boot information.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> My machine is set to boot in the following order, CD, HDD, USB. You
>>>>>> can drop the USB device from the boot order if you haven't got any
>>>>>> bootable USB devices -- which covers the majority of the populatiion.
>>>>>> The vast majority of users will only boot to the HDD, unless the HDD
>>>>>> goes into failure mode. If this happens, we will boot to a CD so that
>>>>>> we can make repairs to the OS. It is a specialty user that will boot
>>>>>> to a USB drive.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> "Joe J." <joejak(a)prodigy.net> wrote in message
>>>>>> news:hgbr8s$c5j$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>>>>>>>I purchased a 300G USB drive. After hibernating, if I don't
>>>>>>>disconnect the USB, the computer won't boot. Once I reboot, it sits
>>>>>>>there with a flashing cursor in the top left corner. My boot options
>>>>>>>are set to this, in this order:
>>>>>>> Onboard or USB CD-Rom
>>>>>>> Onboard or USB Floppy
>>>>>>> Onboard SATA.
>>>>>>> USB Device not present. I tried toggling between on and off for
>>>>>>> this and leaving it off but it still hangs on the boot-up.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Any thoughts because it's a pain to have to keep plugging and
>>>>>>> unplugging the USB. The tower sits on the floor and the USB
>>>>>>> connector is at the bottom of the tower.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>
>


From: Paul on
Joe J. wrote:
> "Jeff Strickland" <crwlrjeff(a)yahoo.com> wrote in message
> news:hgc69u$8t3$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>> Then you have to remove the USB device that the machine is finding.
>>
>> The external drive is not the problem. The machine is looking to it for
>> bootable information that does not exist. You have to either make the
>> machine stop looking, or remove what it finds so that it looks elsewhere
>> for what it needs.
>>
> There are no other USB devices.
>
> Joe
>

This is just a curiosity question. Does the external USB happen to
have the boot flag set on a data only partition ?

You can use this tool, to check the partition table on your drives.
I think it works on USB drives, so while you're in Windows, run
this and see whether the boot flag is set. Maybe the BIOS is
"more interested", if it checks the partition and finds a
boot flag.

PTEDIT32 for Windows
ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/tools/pq/utilities/PTEDIT32.zip

PTEDIT32 screenshot
http://www.vistax64.com/attachments/vista-installation-setup/7308d1224108918-hidden-partiton-recovery-dell-xps-420-dell-tbl.gif

HTH,
Paul
From: Joe J. on

"Paul" <nospam(a)needed.com> wrote in message
news:hgcp71$uk2$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
> Joe J. wrote:
>> "Jeff Strickland" <crwlrjeff(a)yahoo.com> wrote in message
>> news:hgc69u$8t3$1(a)news.eternal-september.org...
>>> Then you have to remove the USB device that the machine is finding.
>>>
>>> The external drive is not the problem. The machine is looking to it for
>>> bootable information that does not exist. You have to either make the
>>> machine stop looking, or remove what it finds so that it looks elsewhere
>>> for what it needs.
>>>
>> There are no other USB devices.
>>
>> Joe
>>
>
> This is just a curiosity question. Does the external USB happen to
> have the boot flag set on a data only partition ?
>
> You can use this tool, to check the partition table on your drives.
> I think it works on USB drives, so while you're in Windows, run
> this and see whether the boot flag is set. Maybe the BIOS is
> "more interested", if it checks the partition and finds a
> boot flag.
>
> PTEDIT32 for Windows
>
> ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/tools/pq/utilities/PTEDIT32.zip
>
> PTEDIT32 screenshot
>
> http://www.vistax64.com/attachments/vista-installation-setup/7308d1224108918-hidden-partiton-recovery-dell-xps-420-dell-tbl.gif
>
> HTH,
> Paul

Were getting a bit over my head now but running PTEDIT it shows
Type Boot
1. 07 00
2. 00 00
3. 00 00
4. 00 00

The drive is not partitioned.

Joe


From: JD on
Joe J. wrote:
> "JD" <No.Reply(a)Sorry.com> wrote in message
> news:4b2973a1$0$2492$db0fefd9(a)news.zen.co.uk...
>> Joe J. wrote:
>>> I purchased a 300G USB drive. After hibernating, if I don't disconnect
>>> the USB, the computer won't boot. Once I reboot, it sits there with a
>>> flashing cursor in the top left corner. My boot options are set to this,
>>> in this order:
>>> Onboard or USB CD-Rom
>>> Onboard or USB Floppy
>>> Onboard SATA.
>>> USB Device not present. I tried toggling between on and off for this and
>>> leaving it off but it still hangs on the boot-up.
>>>
>>> Any thoughts because it's a pain to have to keep plugging and unplugging
>>> the USB. The tower sits on the floor and the USB connector is at the
>>> bottom of the tower.
>> Hi Joe
>>
>> Does your PC have the same issue when you do a standard shutdown and
>> restart?, I've sen some USB devices that cause the POST to hang, for
>> instance I had the same issue with a Razer Copperhead USB mouse, to fix it
>> I had to flash my Board with the latest Firmware (BIOS)
>>
>> Check whether or not your PC does the same thing on a normal shutdown if
>> it does, try Disabling Boot from other devices, also check your
>> Motherboard manufacturer's website for an update (WARNING flashing your
>> mainboard can be hazardous for its health, if you do it wrong!!)
>>
>> Its also helpful to know the make of your USB device, type of mainboard
>> and the operating system.
>>
>> JD
>
> Tried a full shutdown and get the same thing, it hangs.
> USB is a Simpletech 320G
> Where would I find disable boot from other devices? It's not an option in
> the boot sequence language.
> It's a Dell 4700, running XP. Bios is AO5 I have no idea where to find
> type of mainboard.
>
> Joe
>
>

Hi again Joe

Did a quick search on the dell website there is a BIOS update for your
computer, Dimension 4700 and on the info it does mention improved USB
support.

http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&releaseid=R115122&SystemID=DIM_P4_4700&servicetag=&os=WW1&osl=en&deviceid=308&devlib=0&typecnt=0&vercnt=8&catid=-1&impid=-1&formatcnt=1&libid=1&typeid=-1&dateid=-1&formatid=-1&fileid=151799

You mentioned that your older computer does not have the same problem,
its one of those strange hardware configuration things I suspect, with
the example I gave The usb mouse; it worked fine on every other computer
except my main machine, which was a bios issue.

if you decide to upgrade your BIOS read the documentation properly
before you start, as you can turn your pc into a brick if you do it wrong.

JD
From: Joe J. on

"JD" <No.Reply(a)Sorry.com> wrote in message
news:4b2a7f37$0$2491$db0fefd9(a)news.zen.co.uk...
> Joe J. wrote:
>> "JD" <No.Reply(a)Sorry.com> wrote in message
>> news:4b2973a1$0$2492$db0fefd9(a)news.zen.co.uk...
>>> Joe J. wrote:
>>>> I purchased a 300G USB drive. After hibernating, if I don't disconnect
>>>> the USB, the computer won't boot. Once I reboot, it sits there with a
>>>> flashing cursor in the top left corner. My boot options are set to
>>>> this, in this order:
>>>> Onboard or USB CD-Rom
>>>> Onboard or USB Floppy
>>>> Onboard SATA.
>>>> USB Device not present. I tried toggling between on and off for this
>>>> and leaving it off but it still hangs on the boot-up.
>>>>
>>>> Any thoughts because it's a pain to have to keep plugging and
>>>> unplugging the USB. The tower sits on the floor and the USB connector
>>>> is at the bottom of the tower.
>>> Hi Joe
>>>
>>> Does your PC have the same issue when you do a standard shutdown and
>>> restart?, I've sen some USB devices that cause the POST to hang, for
>>> instance I had the same issue with a Razer Copperhead USB mouse, to fix
>>> it I had to flash my Board with the latest Firmware (BIOS)
>>>
>>> Check whether or not your PC does the same thing on a normal shutdown if
>>> it does, try Disabling Boot from other devices, also check your
>>> Motherboard manufacturer's website for an update (WARNING flashing your
>>> mainboard can be hazardous for its health, if you do it wrong!!)
>>>
>>> Its also helpful to know the make of your USB device, type of mainboard
>>> and the operating system.
>>>
>>> JD
>>
>> Tried a full shutdown and get the same thing, it hangs.
>> USB is a Simpletech 320G
>> Where would I find disable boot from other devices? It's not an option
>> in the boot sequence language.
>> It's a Dell 4700, running XP. Bios is AO5 I have no idea where to find
>> type of mainboard.
>>
>> Joe
>
> Hi again Joe
>
> Did a quick search on the dell website there is a BIOS update for your
> computer, Dimension 4700 and on the info it does mention improved USB
> support.
>
> http://support.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=gen&releaseid=R115122&SystemID=DIM_P4_4700&servicetag=&os=WW1&osl=en&deviceid=308&devlib=0&typecnt=0&vercnt=8&catid=-1&impid=-1&formatcnt=1&libid=1&typeid=-1&dateid=-1&formatid=-1&fileid=151799
>
> You mentioned that your older computer does not have the same problem, its
> one of those strange hardware configuration things I suspect, with the
> example I gave The usb mouse; it worked fine on every other computer
> except my main machine, which was a bios issue.
>
> if you decide to upgrade your BIOS read the documentation properly before
> you start, as you can turn your pc into a brick if you do it wrong.
>
> JD

Thank you very much JD!!

Joe