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Acronis Hangs at Browse for Backup...

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To be fair, this might not be an Acronis problem, but when I launch Acronis True Image 2017 from a recovery disk, the program freezes once I click the "Browse for Backup" button on the Recovery tab.  And by "freeze," I mean the program no longer responds to input, though the mouse cursor remains active.

Here's why this might not be an Acronis problem:  Yesterday, just four hours after shutting down gracefully, my computer refused to launch Windows.  No matter what I do - even booting from a Windows 10 installation DVD - after POST and the usual BIOS screens, when Windows starts to load, I get the perpetual spinner of doom.  I can't get to Windows, can't get to the recovery tools, can't even re-install Windows.  I'm 100% shut out.

No POST errors.  No BIOS warnings.  Nothing to suggest a hardware problem, but the symptoms are similar between Acronis (Linux) and Windows - they start to function and then pause without completely freezing or throwing a BSOD, as if they're still running but waiting for something.

I ran diagnostics from my Acronis recovery disk (which took a couple of hours to complete - is that typical?) and have the report.  It's mostly gibberish to me - lots of hexadecimal - but I see nothing to suggest a hardware problem.  Thankfully, a directory listing from my hard drives' root directories is complete and accurate, so my data is probably still intact.  I'd share the file here, but I'm not sure it's entirely safe for public broadcast.

Any assistance is appreciated.

 

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Dave, thank you for the detailed description of the problems you are seeing.

Given that you are seeing the same type of hang for multiple different boot devices, i.e. your internal OS drive, Windows DVD and Acronis Media, this would suggest to me that you have a more fundamental issue at work here, and that this is unlikely to be an Acronis related problem.

When I have encountered similar 'strange' problems it has often proved to be a failing power supply unit - proved by switching the PSU with a known good unit but this applies only to desktop / tower type which your system description suggests you may have.

Problems with memory or disk drives etc would normally give error codes, beeps or intermittent errors.

Hopefully, your OS, programs and data on your internal drives should be good, though you could always try disconnecting the drives then booting from CD / DVD or USB stick to see if you still get the freeze though you won't have any internal drives to browse content for unless you attach an external one.

If you haven't done so already, try reseating memory, cables etc.  The only other advice is to reduce the hardware configuration down to the bare minimum by disconnecting or removing everything that isn't essential to boot in a minimal environment, so if your motherboard offers a basic VGA connector, remove your graphics card etc.

It is a motherboard or component issue.

What is weird is that you cannot boot on the Windows 10 installation DVD. Make sure the BIOS is set up to boot first on the DVD player. You typically have to press some key during POST to enter BIOS and verify this setting.

You have to proceed by elimination.

The graphics card seems to be working since you see something on the screen.

Reseat your memory cards one by one, and/or remove them and put only one in the right slot (verify in your motherboard user manual which one is the one that always need a card)

Can you boot on a CD with MemTest86 on it and run a memory test? Again, if you cannot boot on the CD, disconnect your SATA or other disks except for the CD/DVD player. Make sure sure the BIOS is set up to boot on the CD. Swith to legacy boot if necessary in the BIOS.

Once you have verified memory, your next step is your system disk. If your BIOS can see the disk, you should run your manufacturer disk diagnostic from a CD.

 

Thanks, guys!  It took a while but I finally found the culprit - a failing hard disk.  Oddly enough, it's not even my primary drive - it's a secondary disk used only for backups.  So, go figure.

I downloaded several live CDs, including Seagate's SeaTools, Hiren's Boot CD, etc.  Most every utility failed (except MemTest+) without providing any clues.  The sole exception was Parted Magic (from the Hiren collection), which managed to cough up a SMART report.  However, with nothing to compare it against, I couldn't tell if the drive was operating within or outside of acceptable parameters.  [Remember - Acronis' diagnostics report was able to give an accurate reading of the drive's root directory, so it's easy to conclude that the drive is functional.]  But then, Parted Magic's disk analysis reports all failed at 90%.  Oddly enough, even Seagate's SeaTools for DOS failed to run, saying just "no disks recognized" and "no disk controllers recognized."

In addition to your recommendations, one thing that helped was this post on StackExchange, where the question is asked, "Why do damaged hard drives freeze the entire system?"  The discussion goes on to explain some limitations of the SATA protocol responsible for these sorts of debilitating and elusive problems.  The symptoms exactly matched mine, so I finally opened up the computer and pulled out the backup drive.  Voila!  Windows 10 launched perfectly.

Talk about progress.  Forty years of home computers, and now, something as typical as a sick hard drive - a secondary hard drive, no less - can not only drag your whole computer down, but also fail to provide any warning, all while evading every attempt to determine the problem.  Makes ya miss the good ol' days:  "Error reading drive D:."

Thank you for your thoughtful and thorough recommendations!  I greatly appreciate it.

Dave, glad to hear that you found the cause of the problem and have the computer booting up OK again.  Certainly was an unusual problem and one I will add to my list of notes for if I come across anything similar.

Some drive maufracture diagnostics only see SATA drives attached to SATA ports managed by the chipset; some also do not pick up drives attached by USB (there may be support for their USB devices but not for HDD in docking stations or third party enclosures). The functionality also differs between CD versions and ones that work through Windows.

Ian