Windows 11 slow boot when USB 3 hard drive is attached


Mario Montes

Member
Local time
10:56 AM
Posts
1
OS
Windows 11
Hi,

This is my first post in this forum and I thank you in advance for all the help you can provide.
I am running Windows 11 Pro Insider Preview OS buikd 22543.1000.
My issue consists of a black screen with a mouse cursor on top left of the screen for more than 10 seconds before Windows login screen appears.
I have tried to troubleshoot unplugging all usb devices and I came to the conclusion that the issue is caused by a Imation 500 gb USB 3.0 harddrive.
If I remove this hard drive boot time is significantly reduced
I tried to format the drive but to no luck.
I also followed your tip of a FarBar scan so I also attach a copy of the log

Any suggestions from your side would be appreciated

Thank you and have a nice Sunday
 

Attachments

  • Addition.txt
    67.9 KB · Views: 1
  • FRST.txt
    120.3 KB · Views: 2

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Ryzen 7 3700X
    Motherboard
    MSI MAG Tomahawk x570
    Memory
    16 Gb (2x8) Crucial Ballistix 3600 Mhz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon hd 5770
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMAster B2430
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080p
    PSU
    Kolink 700W
    Cooling
    Air
I had a similar problem. Uninstalling the drive via Device Manager then rebooting solved it for me.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Stormforce Prism RTX 3070
    CPU
    Ryzen 9 5900X
    Motherboard
    Asus AMD TUF Gaming X570-Plus ATX Motherboard – Aura Sync RGB
    Memory
    16GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    RTX 3070
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung U32H850UMU 32 inch 4K
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    1 x M2.2
    1x M2.1
    5 x HDD
    Cooling
    Cooler Master 120L AIO Watercooler
    Keyboard
    Rii wireless
    Mouse
    Generic cable
    Internet Speed
    320Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox & Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton
Use CrystalDiskInfo utility to view SMART health result.

Also execute Chkdsk X: /r command.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 7 5700G
    Motherboard
    Erica6
    Memory
    Micron Technology DDR4-3200 16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC671
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster U28E590
    Screen Resolution
    3840 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    SAMSUNG MZVLQ1T0HALB-000H1
I'm not sure what you mean is significant in your case, but I can agree it is also a noticeable difference for me. With my external drive plugged in, from the time I see the Dell logo until my desktop loads a cold boot takes 42 sec as opposed to 30 sec. with the drive unplugged.
A restart is 85 sec with it plugged in and 45 sec. with it unplugged. As I have hibernate disabled, I have no fast startup.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
The only real issue I see with boot times when having external drives attached is the reading of the drives by the BIOS boot process to determine where the boot files are located. Have seen where the boot time with a Thumb drive plugged in was faster after that drive had been cleaned of factory-included software and formatted as FAT32 [which is how they usually come].
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Pro RTM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 3400
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 11th Gen. 2.40GHz
    Memory
    12GB
    Hard Drives
    256GB SSD NVMe
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro RTM x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 5890
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 10th Gen. 2.90GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Onboard, no VGA, using a DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Dell
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD NVMe, 2TB WDC HDD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender/Microsoft Security
It is normal during POST. The system detects all the attached peripherals and look for the boot file after. Hence, the boot up delay.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 9 3900X
    Motherboard
    MSI MPG Gaming Edge Wifi (X570)
    Memory
    32GB Adata XPG DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GTX 1070 8GB ROG
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG Ultrawide 34"
    Screen Resolution
    3440x1440
    Hard Drives
    Main Boot Drive : 512GB Adata XPG RGB Gen3x4 NVMe M.2 SSD
    PSU
    EVGA 600 Watts Gold
    Case
    Deepcool Genome II
    Cooling
    Deepcool Fryzen
    Internet Speed
    1Gbps
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    "Moderna"
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i7-4790K
    Motherboard
    ASRock Xtreme6 Z97
    Memory
    16GB Corsair Vengeance Pro
    Graphics card(s)
    MSI R9 290
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG Ultrawide 34"
    Screen Resolution
    3440x1440
    Hard Drives
    Samsung M.2
    PSU
    Thermaltake 475 Watts 80 Bronze
    Case
    Thermaltake Commander I Snow Edition
    Cooling
    Deep Cool Archer Air Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech G402
    Keyboard
    Armageddon MKA-5R RGB-Hornet
    Internet Speed
    1Gbps
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Moderna :)
Created an account just to share this on this thread:

This solved the issue for me.

My use case is an external 5-bay hard drive case connected by USB 3.2. Boot was taking 112s when the Windows OS is installed on a 1tb M2 directly on the motherboard. When I looked in Boot under BIOS, sure enough, I found mention of an external USB as the second boot option, with the correct drive as the first boot option. Switching the second boot option to "Disabled" then saving changes & restarting - Boot time is now 16s.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS
There will be little to NO question about it, if you'll research Windows Boot Sequence.
During the boot sequence, the OS will read every drive attached to the PC, to create a master directory of all files on the PC.
This is necessary, for Windows Explorer to be able to show you those files.
That's the short version. So, the more drives you have installed on your motherboard, the slower your boot up will be.
Since USB drives are way slower than real Hard Drives, a USB drive connected to your PC can really slow things down.

I have at least one USB Flash Drive that always wants to boot up the PC, and it does not have an OS on it. So with it installed in a USB port, my PC will not boot at all. It just keeps trying to find the OS.

So the short answer is, Remove all USB drives, before you try to boot up your PC.

Merry Christmas!
TM :cool:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win-11/Pro/64, Optimum 11 V3, 23H2 22631.3085
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Made w/Gigabyte mobo/DX-10
    CPU
    AMD FX 6350 Six Core
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte, DX-10, GA-78LMT-USB3
    Memory
    Crucial, 16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Onboard, ATI Radeon HD 3000; NVIDEA GeForce 210, 1GB DDR3 Ram.
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Acer
    Screen Resolution
    1280x800
    Hard Drives
    Crucial SSD 500GB, SanDisk 126GB SSD, Toshiba 1TB HD
    PSU
    EVGA 500 W.
    Case
    Pac Man, Mid Tower
    Cooling
    AMD/OEM
    Keyboard
    101 key, Backlit/ Mechanical Switches/
    Mouse
    Logitech USB Wireless M310
    Internet Speed
    Hughes Net speed varies with the weather
    Browser
    Firefox 64x
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, Super Anti Spyware
    Other Info
    Given to me as DEAD, and irreparable.
    Rebuilt with Gigabyte mobo, AMD cpu, 16GB ram and 500GB Crucial SSD.
That's normal during POST. It detects all the ports and anything connected to it. If it senses a bootable HDD or flashdtive it will take a few seconds longer than usual. I don't really mind as long it doesn't give a BSOD. A few seconds doesn't cost anything.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 9 3900X
    Motherboard
    MSI MPG Gaming Edge Wifi (X570)
    Memory
    32GB Adata XPG DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GTX 1070 8GB ROG
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG Ultrawide 34"
    Screen Resolution
    3440x1440
    Hard Drives
    Main Boot Drive : 512GB Adata XPG RGB Gen3x4 NVMe M.2 SSD
    PSU
    EVGA 600 Watts Gold
    Case
    Deepcool Genome II
    Cooling
    Deepcool Fryzen
    Internet Speed
    1Gbps
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    "Moderna"
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i7-4790K
    Motherboard
    ASRock Xtreme6 Z97
    Memory
    16GB Corsair Vengeance Pro
    Graphics card(s)
    MSI R9 290
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG Ultrawide 34"
    Screen Resolution
    3440x1440
    Hard Drives
    Samsung M.2
    PSU
    Thermaltake 475 Watts 80 Bronze
    Case
    Thermaltake Commander I Snow Edition
    Cooling
    Deep Cool Archer Air Cooler
    Mouse
    Logitech G402
    Keyboard
    Armageddon MKA-5R RGB-Hornet
    Internet Speed
    1Gbps
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Moderna :)

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