Rescue Media Builder - Booting from WinRE Media not possible
Hi,
booting the created media (based on WinRE) is not possible.
The boot process remains in an endless loop within starting WinRE (Windows logo and the circling dots...);
neither CD nor USB-Stick nor DVD working.
The Linux version is working well.
Boot Media has been created with the "Simple" option.
Environment: OS Win 10 pro 1909 (Build 18363.535), Acronis True Image 2020 (Build 22510) Can anyone help me with this problem?
Thanks
Try using Control Panel/Recovery to make a Microsoft WinRE USB Recovery disk and see if that boots. If that does boot, I have something you can try.
Hi Steve,
this issue is not related to the MVP Custom media tool .
I had this issue whit the boot media created out of Acronis True Image using the "simple" option. Therefore I tried the MVP Custom media tool and run into problems I already discussed with Mustang, who already found the problem in the MVP Custom media tool:
the string for the WinRE location has a different wording with not english language versions of windows (out of reagentc /info).
For the simple option out of Acronis True Image there's still no solution.
Ewald, as per Mustangs post above, have you tried other WinRE type boot media such as the Windows Recovery media?
Hi Ewald,
It could be an upper filter problem in the WinRe registry. Acronis has added a volsnap upper filter to help with BitLocker locked drives. If German systems are using a different word for volsnap, that could cause the problem.
Run regedit.exe in your Windows 10 system and look at the following key:
HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{71a27cdd-812a-11d0-bec7-08002be2092f}
Look on the right side at UpperFilters. Does the data include the word "volsnap" or is there a similar German word? You should also see Acronis' "fltsrv" listed.
Hi Mustang,
both are listed (same wording as you mentioned).
I'm currently creating a Windows Recovery Media (will still take a while until finished...)
Hi,
the Windows Recovery media created from control panel/recovery... worked well.
Okay, time to look at the WinRE registry in the Acronis created version that will not boot. You'll need to mount the boot.wim file from the sources folder on the USB stick.
1. Create a folder named C:\mount.
2. Open a command prompt as Administrator and enter:
dism /Mount-Wim /WimFile:F:\sources\boot.wim /Index:1 /MountDir:C:\mount
Where F: is the drive letter of the USB stick.
3. Run regedit.exe. Highlight HKLM on the left. Select File/Load Hive. Navigate to C:\mount\Windows\System32\config. Select the SYSTEM hive. Name the hive PE_SYSTEM. Look at HKLM\PE_SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Contol\Class\{71a27cdd-812a-11d0-bec7-08002be2092f}. See if volsnap is present at UpperFilters. If it is, take it out. Highlight "UpperFilters" on the right. Select Edit/Modify and remove volsnap from the list. Highlight HKLM\PE_SYSTEM on the left. Select File\Unload Hive. After the hive is unloaded, close regedit.
4. Save the changes by entering the following in the command prompt:
dism /Unmount-Wim /MountDir:C:\mount /commit
5. See if the USB stick will boot.
Hi Mustang,
after mounting the boot.wim I had a look in the drivers folder under system32:
All of the drivers were from 2013, versions 9.... (means windows 8?), other stuff possibly too, which might not work.
I did not continue there with modifying the boot.wim...
I assume that Acronis True Image took an old recovery partition for taking the boot.wim (the old recovery partition from former win8/7 installation still exists on the lower end of the disk, first partition, which had apparently been replaced by a bigger one at the upper end of the disk during upgrade to W8.1 or W10).
I can remember that there was some issue that the recovery partition was too small (300MB) during any upgrade of the OS.
But I'm not sure which upgrade that was.
Good find. That confirms that the volsnap UpperFilter is the problem! I have proven that adding volsnap to the older WinRE media causes it not to boot. This has been reported to Acronis.
You have two choices:
1. Remove the volsnap UpperFilter from the existing media. That will work.
2. Delete winre.wim from the old Recovery partition so Acronis can't use it by mistake. Then create the Acronis WinRe again.
Deleteing winre.wim is tricky. You need the skills to assign a drive letter to the old Recovery partition, remove the System and hidden attibutes and then either delete or rename the file.
It would be easier to delete the entire old Recovery partition and the create a new NTFS partition of the same size in its place. You can't just delete the old partition without replacing it because the bcd will be looking for partition 5 and the system will now be in partition 4.
Hi Mustang,
thinking about renaming the winre.wim in the old recovery partition...
Meanwhile I created a simple boot media in a Hyper-V VM. That worked fine on my "production" machine, too ;-)
Hopefully Acronis will update their product soon.
There must be lots of users running in that problem (everybody who updated his system containing a 300MB recovery partition). Maybe most people are using the linux version which does not show that problem.
Bye,
Ewald
Hi Mustang, Eli, & Steve,
USB Rescue Media - an ATI 2020 Simple WinRE Creation - that would not boot
Even though thread is over 6 mos old, wanted to re-confirm (just for info) the work all of you had done on this. Had an older system now running Win10 1909 - pretty much the same as Eli -partition #4 with a WinRe.wim file, probably from win 8.1 or 8, and a 4 year newer partition #6 also with, but larger, WinRe.wim file
Did the DISM THINGY Mustang posted and deleted the upper filter with “Volsnap”. It Booted !!
Decided to take it one step further so assigned a drive letter to partition 4, opened partition with explorer, renamed WinRE.wim to XWinRE.wim. Then reformatted the USB Media, opened the ATI 2020 Rescue Media Builder and Created a Simple, WinRE, USB Rescue Drive.
Worked ! Noticed no problems. Saw that the Media now had a boot.win file over 200 MB larger than on the Media that failed.
Just a little more info to confirm your good work and to thank you all again.
Bill (Mandacat)
Hi Bill,
You're welcome.
Renaming the old WinRE.wim or even deleting it is a good solution. Most people have trouble with that approach because of the hidden and system attributes on WinRE.wim. You obviously knew how to deal with that issue.