Reboot loop: Windows 7 stuck in Preparing to configure windows update loop

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Mangoman667

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Apr 28, 2016
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Hi all,

I am getting very frustrated with this issue. This is probably the fifth time this has happened to me on this PC.

When I restart, windows goes through the motions, but then after the windows logo goes away, the monitor goes to no signal for a moment, and then displays "preparing to configure windows updates, please do mot turn off your computer". After a few seconds, it restarts.

I usually fixed this issue by following the procedure to copy the regback contents to the config, but this method failed me this time. Now, I cannot boot into safe mode(same issue), last known good configuration does nothing, repair your computer finds nothing (says boot status indicates that the OS booted successfully), restoring to an earlier point does nothing. I should mention that my earlier restore points apparently got damaged or deleted during recovery, so I am left with just one. Also, sfc scannow found a file and repaired it once, but then refused to run on consequent tries (there is a system repair pending which requires reboot to complete. Restart windows and run sfc scannow again, doesent work). Running sfc with the offbootdir and offwindir parameters results in the same error.

I should note that i have access to the system DVD if i need it to perform any tasks.

I am at the end of my expertise and I need to use my computer for very important projects. Any help would be vastly appreciated. Thanks.
 
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Hellfire13

Hellfire13

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Apr 20, 2016
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how old is ur hdd on which windows is loaded???
how many hdd are connected to d system in total???
have u checked d boot preference in BIOS???
is there any hdd pre delay or latency timer activated in BIOS???
is ur BIOS updated to d latest version???

"the monitor goes to no signal for a moment, and then displays "preparing to configure windows updates, please do mot turn off your computer". After a few seconds, it restarts."
...does this go on a loop???

 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
9
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1,510
The hard drive is an ssd going on 3 years. There are two drives, one SSD with the system on it, and one storage drive. The boot order is correct, there is not latency timer set, and the BIOS is yhe latest version. The loop order is: BIOS splash screen, starting windows, no signal, preparing to configure updates, reboot, loop.

I will try disabling the automatic reboot after failure, and I'll let you know what the BSOD says.
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
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1,510
Ok so i selected disable automatic restart, but the system keeps restarting without a blue screen. I am almost certain it's not a hardware issue since this has happened before and i was able to successfully come out of it. Restarts usually work as normal unless there is a windows update pending, which throws it into this really annoying loop. I'm not sure where to go from here.
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
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1,510
There has to be a way out of this. I've done it before, so i know it's possible, but each time it was different. Remember i still have access to everything except a clean boot. I can access my c drive and recovery partition either from advanced boot or the windows dvd. There has to be something i'm missing.
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
9
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1,510
Well, that was my go-to contingency plan for this issue because it worked the first time and subsequently, but it failed to fix anything this time. The procedure calls to make a backup using md mybackup and copy *.* mybackup, so is that usable then?

Sidebar, also the mobo's USB ports cease to function when I'm in the recovery environment. I don't know why. I'm able to use the USB ports that are hooked to the headers, so that's kinda strange

Also, i was just able to run sfc /scannow and produced the message "Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations"
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
9
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1,510
I have never applied a microsoft update to fix anything, the way I fixed it previously was by following the instructions on this webpage: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/fix-windows-7-infinite-reboot-loop/. This time, it didn't have any effect on the issue. In fact the microsoft update is what causes the issue--I use my computer daily and just let it go to sleep without restarting it. Two days ago a program developed a memory leak and I had to restart and apparently windows update decided to apply some kind of update that caused this loop. I can infer this because i saw the little shield icon by the shut down button when i was restarting. I hadn't altered or installed anything lately, so I can't imagine it's a driver issue.

Also, I have software on my PC that backs up my C drive to an external. Is there a way to use that to get back to normal if something is corrupt? I have a laptop, so I can feasibly access and review the contents of the external if need be.

EDIT: I ran some bootrec utilities as recommended by another site. I found that the boot manager wasn't recognizing a single installation of Windows 7. I then went into diskpart and marked the system partition as active. bootrec /osscan then read 1 installation. Now, the PC tries to boot but is throwing an error stating File: \Boot\BCD Status: 0xc000000f Info: An error ocurred while attempting to read the boot configuration data. It states to use the repair disk to repair the BCD, but now the disk says it's not compatible with the windows installation. WTF it worked yesterday. Please help.
 
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Hellfire13

Hellfire13

Titan
Apr 20, 2016
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i might not be sure but i think u have messed up ur mbr...
try microsoft startup repair from ur installation disk...
if that doesnt fix, my suggestion wud be to do a clean install...further probing without any productive outcome may damage d integrity of d hdd...
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
9
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1,510


I'm back to the same place. I can access my repair disk now, but the reboot loop is still happening. I am confident that this is a fixable issue, but it is driving me nuts. Are there any other methods that you know of? If not, there is certainly someone else on this site that knows Win7 well enough to help me out? Please advise.

Also, you say there may be damage to data on the HDD with further tries. How can I make an image of the disk with CMD and put it on another external? I have a 3TB external that can easily hold the 120GB that my SSD has on it.
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
9
0
1,510
The C drive is the one I'm concerned with. I have access to the command prompt and the disk is mounted and in good condition. I am just asking whether it is wise to make an image of the drive onto my external so I can use it if anything goes wrong, and if so, how would I do that?
 
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Mangoman667

Commendable
Apr 28, 2016
9
0
1,510
Reinstall is the last thing I'm willing to do. I'm just saying if i have a full copy of the drive, then we can use more aggressive methods in the disk to try and fix it, and not have to worry about breaking anything. Also, is there a way to force the OS to create a minidump through command prompt? I found a command called "wmic RECOVEROS set DebugInfoType = 3", but that sets the parameter in the X drive, and not the C drive. If we can get the OS to dump when it crashes, then we might have an easier time.
 
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