Windows corrupts after latest patch corrupt primocache Topic is solved

[brighttail]

reetings all,

Soon after the latest WIndows 10 update of April 11, I started getting issues where my computer upon reboot would scan/fix errors on my hard drive.

I did some checking and found it was fixing two of Primocache's drivers:
rxfcv.sys and rxbskn.sys

It got so bad that I wasn't able to restart my computer and not even automatic repairs would work.
Fast forward to many formats and reinstallations later, every time I install primocache and reboot, I start getting the issues again. Within 3 reboots, I am at the automatic recovery screen with the log file saying both those drivers are corrupt and could not start on startup.

Everything works without primocache installed so I'm not sure what has happened in the most recent update but these two files are continually corrupting and causing me not to be able to run windows at all.

Help?

[brighttail]

I see there is a new version that may fix this issue from what I'm reading.
I'm not wanting to attempt reinstallation tho without confirmtion

Thanks.

[Support]

You may disable the Secure Boot in the BIOS to make Windows boot up first.
Then you may install the latest v2.7.2 which has no boot problem with secure boot on.

[brighttail]

Thank you. I will give this a shot.
I never had a problem with the previous versions and the Secure Boot being enabled.

The new Windows update must have changed something.

[brighttail]

Greetings,

I wanted to give you an update. As I have never had to disable secure boot in the past and since I had no issues with Primocache in the past, and since the only constant that had changed was the Windows upgrade of April 11, 2017, I decided to do a little testing.

After many reinstallations, every time I installed Primocache I had issues that were identical to what I previously reported.

So I reinstalled windows without it but did try other similar programs, such as Asus RamCache and Asus RamDisk. It should be noted that BOTH of these programs which had worked very well in the past, prior to the update, suddenly were giving me bluescreens everywhere. The RamCache simply wouldn't boot into Windows when I had it activated. When I had only RamDisk activated with a drive for my browser Cache, it would constantly crash and when Windows would come back after a few attempts, the entire folder was corrupted and the RamDrive needed to be recreated.

So something in this new Windows update has completely screwed up programs that create RamDrives or uses RAM for Caching. Now I haven't tried turning off secure boot to see if this would fix these issues, as my BIOS doesn't have a simple on/off switch. I believe I would have to save then delete the security keys (especially the PK key) but I would have to do some research to make sure I don't mess things up.

At present my computer is working without any RAM drive/RAM cache installed and I have already spent a couple hours on this. I'm not sure if anyone else is having similar issues?

[Support]

Well, the version 2.7.2 do fix the problem even when you enable the secure boot.

[brighttail]

Then it is a separate issue. Primocache, PrimoDisk. Asus Ramcache and Ramdisk as well as ATIRadeonRamDisk are all having issues.

[Support]

I'm sorry that I don't understand your question well. Primo Ramdisk doesn't have such problem with latest Windows 10 build. For PrimoCache, we already fixed the problem in the latest version 2.7.2.

[brighttail]

I am primarily concerned about Primocache. I ask that you go back to the top of this thread and see my problems. Even with 2.7.2 installed, as windows is booting up it is continually scanning and fixing the drive that Primocache is installed on. The two drivers that I have put up there were the culprits.

That being said I don't think it is just primocache. I installed the Asus Ramcache on my machine in place of primocache as i got it for free with my motherboard, and when active it prevented my machine from even booting up. I did two full reinstallations of the Windows 10 pro and it was repeatable. It was fine prior to the April 11, 2017 windows update. Not now.

[BonzaiDuck]

Don't blame PrimoCache for this. I looked at all of your symptoms, which I've recently experienced myself under a more complicated situation.

With the new Windows Build 1703, they have automated the installation to such a point that it can become confused about various things.

My system has a Windows7/Windows10 dual-boot through only the MS Windows dual-boot menu for more than one Windows version. I don't know what people do in multi-boot of Win and Linux, etc. but readings suggest it is even a worse problem.

So my first symptom was an update result to Windows 10 leaving the dual-boot operation and behaviors flakey in the most consistent way. I could be working in Windows 10, to routinely choose a Restart and expecting the system to post and then return to the dual-boot menu. Depending on which OS is set to default after a countdown, the boot menu either looks like what you would expect in Win 7, or it looks like what you'd expect under Win 10 and for whichever default setting you had set. But this time, the system would post and immediately begin to boot Win 7 with no boot menu. I could then enter the Win 7 desktop and do another Restart, and the Win10 version of the boot menu would present itself; I could then enter Windows 10 and think "everything is normal." But it isn't. It isn't because hibernation -- possibly even sleep -- will fail in Windows 10. This is an indication by itself that the boot-menu and BCD file is corrupted.

But with two successive Build 1703 updates completed, this "corruption" is totally consistent between the two. That is, after the first Build1703 install and the observed behavior, I restored the system to both versions of Windows (two OSes, two system volumes on one physical disk), so that the problem didn't exist. Reinstalling Build 1703 again ended with the same problem.

Now -- YOU don't have a boot menu or two OS versions to fret about. This was MY complication.

But the Boot Menu problem wasn't all of it, since I see your own symptoms matching some others I had.

If you are going to install a major build of Windows -- an installation that reboots the computer by itself twice or more -- you need to control it and create the simplest situation that it can handle. The SSD caching volume with PrimoCache is non-standard, recognized as "Unknown format." So the first thing I would do is completely eliminate the caching SSD volume so that it is "unallocated space." I would also disable or delete any RAM-caching tasks. So I would leave the main Primo window showing a blank with no tasks.

I would also look at your Device Manager for the Disk Drives node, and expand it. Then on the title menu of DM, select "View" and make sure the "Show hidden drives" box is checked. You may then see ghosted "drives" on the tree which you may know very well are no longer (no longer!) connected to the system. Even USB thumb drives and digital cameras will show up. So uninstall these.

The most important thing, though, is to find a disk-partition utility that offers a lot of features, and -- thank God -- the best of them offer free versions which do everything one might need to do, and in addition to the backup and scheduled backup component.

Download the free versions for all of these:

Macrium Reflect Free v.6 or later

Mini Tool (free download -- not for commercial use)

EasyBCD

I would suggest based on my own experience to use Macrium to make a Rescue CD that will boot from the optical drive after post, perhaps after you set the boot-drive order in BIOS or use the override feature to boot to the UEFI-specific optical disc.

Hopefully, whether Macrium or anything else including Windows itself, you have a recent backup drive image of your boot drive. Either way, to restore them requires a rescue CD either from Windows or from the utility software like Macrium. Macrium has a feature for "fix startup and boot" problems. Hopefully, it will find a "C :" drive and locate the system volume, so you only need to proceed with the software and it will fix the BCD error.

After you have installed the Build 1703, you can recreate all of your caching tasks and everything should be fine. Also, I think it is likely that a Macrium or Mini Tool rescue disc from one system can be used on another. The value of making the rescue disc on the system intended for it comes from the software's ability to grab unique drivers used on your system and add them to its own database. I would suspect that most of the time, it still won't miss a lick, and will serve just fine.

EasyBCD allows you to recreate the system's Boot Configuration Data from scratch, and from within Windows. But you are required to delete OS entries entirely from the existing list, and then add them back in. I say -- be careful, and look for an "Apply" button when you do it, or otherwise have a Macrium Rescue disc on hand if you bork the entire thing again.

WHOOPS! Forgot! There is one more idea to convey. If you can get Build 1703 through Windows Update, do it that way. I suspect if you follow the link and then back out of it, you will begin to see your Windows Update hung up with progress-bar at 0%, and mention of update KB4015214 also known as "Security updates for Creator Update" or "The Windows Update Assistant." And with that presentation of WU throwing error log EFL files every 5 seconds (deleting the oldest and leaving maybe the latest 20), you won't be able to reach that link again. SO -- I'd tell everyone to save that link once you go to it as a Favorite or copy the URL into a Notepad file.

I would also -- before continuing with the update through Windows Update -- make the ISO file or USB of the Build 1703 through the Media Creation Tool, customized for your system. And maybe even download the entire Build 1703 IT-administration ISO from the MS / Windows Download Catalog.

AS FOR SECURE BOOT -- THE UEFI MOTHERBOARD FEATURE

If you had a problem booting to Windows 10 and you explore the light-blue window of options, ONE of those options allows Windows 10 to modify your BIOS. In a panic, you may choose this feature and let it "do its thing" -- thus fouling up your BIOS settings. I didn't WANT the secure boot feature; it was a problem for Windows 7; it was a level of security at the hardware-firmware level I didn't want. So I had to learn how to disable it, since it was a motherboard BIOS default. On the newer boards, you want to enable Compatibility Mode and you want to delete your Platform Key "PK" after saving it to flash drive, and disable Secure Boot.