Tried yesterday to install and boot Windows 8 preview on my desktop (MB, Asus Sabretooth 990FX + AMD Bulldozer).

I ran the compatibilty test program before downloading and it said everything was fine, with the exception of secure load and playing DVDs.

I found the secure load report odd as the BIOS is UEFI capable.

Anyway, i pressed on and dowmloaded 8 off the net.

But it won't boot (It tried twice) as there's an error and it automatically re-instated my previous installation of Win 7 (64). It gave no clue as to what the error was.

Is there a way i can find out what the error is ?

Nick

I tried yesterday evening to install Windows 8 preview on my desktop (Asus Sabretooth 990Fx + AMD Bulldozer). however it wouldn't boot and the Win 8 installer gave up and automatically re-instated my previous OS Win 7 without giving any indication of what the problem was . I had run the conmpatibility checker before attempting the instal and it said everything was fine with the exception of secure boot and playing DVDs - I find the report about secure boot odd as the Sabretooth BIOS is UEFI capable,

Any ideas where I can find a record of the error that occured ?

Nick

Edited 7 June, 201214 yr by Clunkclick

You could just install win8 into a vm.... As for finding out why your install failed, not sure.

I wouldn't bother trying to upgrade your existing install, thats most likely where the problem is. Get a spare HDD and remove your current one and do a clean install. Don't use the preview as your live OS, it still has issues and when the final version is released you'll have to wipe the preview anyway.

I have done several 8 clean installs on various bits of old hardware without problem.

I suspect that the system wouldn't boot because it appeared to be double counting the keyboard and mouse during the device enumeration at start-up - the BIOS messages were showing Disks x 4 (Correct, if it means virtual disks under partitioning) keyboard x 2, mouse x 2 (Obviously wrong).

I think this may have occurred because I had previously installed a Belkin Blue-tooth adapter in a USB remote hub (For Blackberry connectivity).

Its likely that the system was detecting the Belkin adapter and trying, as the install default action, to make a duplicate connection to my proprietry Microsoft bluetooth keyboard and mouse which already had a usb connection established through the proprietry Microsoft transceiver.

If I can summon up the will to live, I'll whip out the Belkin and try again tonight.

The error doesn't happen in 7 and wasn't propagated back to 7 when Win 8 re-instated it after the aborted boot ! That said, the Belkin adapter was added to my Win 7 system well after the initial installation of Win 7 on my system.

Interesting.

Postscript

Here be monsters. Looks like they re-written the whole USB segment:-

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/hh451212(v=vs.85).aspx

Nick

Edited 7 June, 201214 yr by Clunkclick

Doesn't secure boot also need a TPM module? They're not usually included outside of corporate machines (the only machines I've ever had with a TPM are my Toshiba Portege (i.e. business range) laptop, and my HP work desktop (again, from their business range)) so that might explain why your UEFI-capable BIOS still won't handle secure boot.

I suspect that the system wouldn't boot because it appeared to be double counting the keyboard and mouse during the device enumeration at start-up - the BIOS messages were showing Disks x 4 (Correct, if it means virtual disks under partitioning) keyboard x 2, mouse x 2 (Obviously wrong).

No, the BIOS/UEFI doesn't detect VMs or partitions. Just the physical drives themselves. VM and partitions are O/S controlled. (A VM effectively is just a file on the disk)

Try the install with as little as possible connected and work up from there. I have know installs to fail because the installer didn't like a piece of hardware, but all was good in the hood when it was plugged in after install. (Possibly as it had access to the t'internet and drivers)

Doesn't secure boot also need a TPM module? They're not usually included outside of corporate machines (the only machines I've ever had with a TPM are my Toshiba Portege (i.e. business range) laptop, and my HP work desktop (again, from their business range)) so that might explain why your UEFI-capable BIOS still won't handle secure boot.

If my understanding of the states-side internet posts are to be believed, this secure boot/TPM system is going to be a **** load of trouble coming this way.

If your TPM component or connections to it goes tits then the motherboard won't boot.

Some people are reporting that with older motherboards the TPM module is, on first boot, de-activating newly purchased motherboards because they are two or more years old (Perhaps clearance stock or bought from a back catalogue supplier) and that as far as theTPM databases are concerned that is "Out-of-date". therefore could represent something trying to by-pass the usual system loader. That's currently happening in the states where they get more or less first access to new kit as it rolls off the production line. Now, in the UK. because of the worldwide marketing policies we don't generally get what's new in the states until a year or 18 months later . . . . . . . . .

Effectively that will kill marketing policies which discrimate between regions, unless they adopt different TPM databases/sets for different regions and if you do that you may as well not have TPM at all as the "Root-kiters" , malware hackers, and fake goods crims will exploit regional differences timing. Further, it will limit the lfe of motherboards short of current component life-times and severely limit second-hand sales. Naughty.

Nick

Edited 8 June, 201214 yr by Clunkclick

I wouldn't bother trying to upgrade your existing install, thats most likely where the problem is. Get a spare HDD and remove your current one and do a clean install. Don't use the preview as your live OS, it still has issues and when the final version is released you'll have to wipe the preview anyway.

I have done several 8 clean installs on various bits of old hardware without problem.

I had cleared and re-formatted a disk (G:) for that exact purpose. But 8, or at least the preview version of it, hasn't got provision to allow selection of the install drive and shoves the instal straight onto C - something to do with this bl**dy TPM I suppose ?

Nick

Edited 8 June, 201214 yr by Clunkclick

As far as I'm aware, there's no such thing as a "TPM database". It's simply a "secure" module with unique IDs, which helps in keeping a computer secure. I.e. I run Bitlocker on my work laptop, the TPM 1) provides a unique ID to prove that the HD is in my laptop and 2) provides the encryption keys which allow the bootloader to start, at which point it prompts me for my encryption password to continue booting. However, that TPM has never been registered or similar, and I don't know of any centralised database for TPM modules (apart from the institution-level use of Intel vPro or similar, but that's not a global or even regional system, it'd only be company-wide).

Maybe you're talking about something totally different to me, but I can see no possible way that on first boot, a 3 year old motherboard with TPM module could "de-activate" itself. You're right about the failure though, if the TPM in my laptop fails then it'd be unbootable and I'd have to find the recovery key to get my data off before reinstalling Windows 7 without encryption. Which is why I keep backups, it's unlikely but it's a possibility