Can't rid of Dell SupportAssist Pre-Boot System Performance Check after BIOS update Inspiron 3470

Hi s-petersen:

Assuming you have an Inspiron 3470 (and not the model 9470 mentioned in your first post), did your reset to factory condition roll your system back to and older Windows operating system (e.g., Win 8.x), and do you currently have Win 10 v21H2 / Build 19044.1466? Check your OS version and build at Settings | System | About | Windows Specifications or open a Run dialog box (press the Windows + R keys) and enter winver.

Do you have the Dell Vostro 3470 / Inspiron 3470 System BIOS v2.21.0 (rel. 12-Jan-2022) currently recommended on the support page <here> for the Inspiron 3470, and did you install the Intel Chipset Device Software v10.1.18121.8164 (rel 25-Mar-2020) after updating your BIOS? If you don't know your current BIOS version open a Run dialog box, enter msinfo32 to open your System Information panel and look for the “BIOS Version/Date” field.

This just a guess on my part, but the problem you encountered updating your Dell software and drivers using either SupportAssist or Dell Update sounds very similar to what I've seen when SupportAssist has issues updating the SupportAssist OS Recovery Tools (also called Dell SupportAssist Remediation) on my Inspiron 5584. When SupportAssist is trying to download and/or install the SupportAssist OS Recovery Tools update it looks like the installer is stuck in a loop but I think this large ~ 350 MB update is actually downloaded and installed as a number of separate components, and I sometimes have to wait over 30 min for the update to run completion. I've also had the SupportAssist OS Recovery Tools update fail on a few occasions and it take several manual update checks with SupportAssist to get this update to install correctly (see my Nov 2021 thread Update to SupportAssist v3.10.4.18 OK, Forced Update of SupportAssist OS Recovery Tools Fails for one example). When you go to Control Panel | Programs | Programs and Features, do you see a Dell program called Dell SupportAssist Remediation, and if so do you have the latest v5.5.0.16046? From my Inspiron 5584:

Regarding your pre-boot diagnostics, if you have the current BIOS v2.21.0 then Dell employee DELL-Chris M's 15-Sep-2021 instructions in Imesh Sandamal's SA Auto Diagnostics Check for a Dell Vostro 3500 might help you find the setting in your BIOS that will disable the automatic start of SupportAssist OS Recovery. Similar instructions are also posted in the section titled "Enable or Disable the Automatic Start of SupportAssist OS Recovery" of the SupportAssist OS Recovery User's Guide. Please note the warning in those user guide instructions that you will not receive assistance from SupportAssist OS Recovery if automatic startup of this feature is disabled in your BIOS and your operating system fails to load correctly.
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64-bit Win 10 Pro v21H2 build 19044.1466 * Firefox v96.0.1 * Microsoft Defender v.4.18.2111.5-1.1.18800.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.5.0.152-1.0.1538 * Dell SupportAssist v3.10.4.18 * Dell SupportAssist Remediation v5.5.0.16046 * Dell Update for Windows 10 Universal v4.4.0 * Inspiron 5583/5584 BIOS v1.16.0
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

Manually updated the chipset drivers to 10.1.18121.8164

Tried all of the linked suggestions (NG)

Hi Zinc,

My computer is a Inspiron 3470, when I factory reset it it was running Win 10 19 something.

I updated to all of the updates to 20H2 19042.1466,   BIOS v2.21.0 (rel. 12-Jan-2022)

I ran the Dell update and Bios update after all of the other updates

Dell SupportAssist Remediation is v5.5.0.16046

Dell supportAssist os recovery plugin is 5.4.1.14964

Dell SupportAssist in the OS is 3.10.4.18

Dell update is 4.4.0

Where would I find  the Intel Chipset Device Software information?

I will follow the links in your post and let you know, I have to work on this tomorrow.

Thanks,

Scott

Hi s-petersen:

You might find links to some helpful threads in my 13-May-2021 post in DanDaMiniFig's Dell G7 17 7790 Possible SupportAssist Error.

Have you actually allowed the enhanced ePSA pre-boot diagnostics to run to completion or tried running any of Dell's online diagnostics? The Diagnostics tab <here> on your Inspiron 3470 support page has a link to the SupportAssist Pre-Boot System Performance Check lookup page where you can enter the error code generated by your ePSA diagnostics.  See the Dell support article Resolve Hardware Issues With Integrated and Online Diagnostics (SupportAssist ePSA, ePSA, or PSA Error Codes) for more information.

As a first troubleshooting step I'd suggest running System File Checker (sfc / scannow) from an elevated command prompt with Administrator rights (see Option 3 of the TenForums tutorial How to Repair System Files with SFC Command in Windows 10) just to make sure your Win 10 v21H2 system files weren't corrupted during the update from v1909. If System File Checker does not find any issues with your system files it should report that "Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations." See the ghacks.net article Use DISM to Fix Issues SFC Can't if System File Checker finds issues that it can't automatically repair.

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64-bit Win 10 Pro v21H2 build 19044.1466 * Firefox v96.0.1 * Microsoft Defender v.4.18.2111.5-1.1.18800.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.5.0.152-1.0.1538 * Dell SupportAssist v3.10.4.18 * Dell SupportAssist Remediation v5.5.0.16046 * Dell Update for Windows 10 Universal v4.4.0 * Inspiron 5583/5584 BIOS v1.16.0
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

I have let the pre-boot diags run to conclusion, and I have run the web based hardware check as well, and there were no problems detected in either test.

I ran SFC /scannow with no issues reported.

I have also set boot security to audit, and also tried disabled, and tried disabling OS recovery, with no success.

Well... your not gonna believe this... There is an issue with plugging my my keyboard into certain USB ports, If I plug it into the ports in the back, not in line with the HDMI port, it goes into the pre-boot diagnostics every time, there is a quick little yellow message before diags load, saying diagnostics selected. I am able to boot normally if I use the ports that are in line with the HDMI port, of the front ports. It is a Lenovo keyboard, and I don't have another one handy to see if a different brand has the same issue.

The odd thing is the keyboard works fine in any of the ports except during the boot.

I will call this one almost solved, I will post back when I switch keyboards, to see if it is a port problem, or compatibility issue

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@s-petersen wrote:

Well... your not gonna believe this... There is an issue with plugging my my keyboard into certain USB ports, If I plug it into the ports in the back, not in line with the HDMI port, it goes into the pre-boot diagnostics every time, there is a quick little yellow message before diags load, saying diagnostics selected...

Hi s-petersen:

That's good news. I had composed a (very long) reply that included a link to the Dell support article How to Recover the BIOS on a Dell Computer or Tablet but I won't bother posting any further troubleshooting tips until I hear how your keyboard swap goes.

You never mentioned why you tried a reset to factory condition in the first place, but finding a workaround for a wonky USB port or Lenovo keyboard sounds much easier than having to fix a corrupted BIOS.
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64-bit Win 10 Pro v21H2 build 19044.1466 * Firefox v96.0.1 * Microsoft Defender v.4.18.2111.5-1.1.18800.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.5.0.152-1.0.1538 * Dell SupportAssist v3.10.4.18 * Dell SupportAssist Remediation v5.5.0.16046 * Dell Update for Windows 10 Universal v4.4.0 * Inspiron 5583/5584 BIOS v1.16.0
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

I was given the computer by a friend, my Alienware Aurora tower(I7 970) was starting to get random freezes(even before boot), So I wanted to clear out his old stuff and start from a clean system, and use this machine for backup, and possibly go to Win 11 if it's good.

Just glad to hear a keyboard swap solved your problem.

Here are a few final comments before you move on.

You mentioned that you tried "disabling secure boot, and several other bios settings to no avail". Secure Boot is disabled on my own Inspiron 5584 (and I often run a diagnostic with the free Belarc Advisor utility after a BIOS update just to ensure it hasn't been enabled) but if you find your Inspiron 3470 has problems waking from sleep mode or exhibits some other odd behaviour you can restore your BIOS settings back to their defaults as instructed in the Dell support article How to Restore the BIOS (System Setup) Defaults on a Dell Product.

If you haven't already done so I'd also suggest that you disable the Win 10 Fast Startup option (Control Panel | Hardware and Sound | Power Options | Choose What the Power Buttons Do | Shutdown Settings | Turn on Fast Startup) as instructed in Option 1 of the TenForums tutorial How to Turn On or Off Fast Startup in Windows 10.  Fast Startup (also known as hybrid boot-up / hybrid shutdown) can interfere with the loading of drivers and services at boot-up for a variety of programs and cause all sorts of unexpected glitches and strange behavior. Fast Startup can even interfere with Windows Update (see the MS support article Updates May Not Be Installed With Fast Startup in Windows 10) so I normally recommend that Win 8.x and Win 10 users disable this setting. Some users have reported that Fast Startup was re-enabled after a Windows version update (e.g., after a Feature update from v21H1 to v21H2) so I occasionally check the status of this setting as well.

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64-bit Win 10 Pro v21H2 build 19044.1466 * Firefox v96.0.1 * Microsoft Defender v.4.18.2111.5-1.1.18800.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.5.0.152-1.0.1538 * Dell SupportAssist v3.10.4.18 * Dell SupportAssist Remediation v5.5.0.16046 * Dell Update for Windows 10 Universal v4.4.0 * Inspiron 5583/5584 BIOS v1.16.0
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

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@s-petersen wrote:

My computer is a Inspiron 3470, when I factory reset it it was running Win 10 19 something....

...I was given the computer by a friend, my Alienware Aurora tower(I7 970) was starting to get random freezes(even before boot), So I wanted to clear out his old stuff and start from a clean system, and use this machine for backup, and possibly go to Win 11 if it's good.

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Hi s-petersen:

Sorry I forgot to add a warning about your reset to factory condition in my previous post.

If you continue to see any glitchy behaviour on your Inspiron 3470 make sure you remove all the outdated trial versions of third-party software that were installed at the factory . For example, I reset my Inspiron 5584 to factory condition in August 2020 after it wouldn't boot up [i.e., it would get stuck on the black splash screen with the Dell logo, there were no beep codes during the power-on self test (POST) to indicate there was a hardware problem, and I couldn't access Dell's SupportAssist OS Recovery) and one of the first things I did after the reset to factory condition was to uninstall the trial versions of McAfee and MS Office 365 using the removal tools provided by the program developer.  For example, I uninstalled McAfee LiveSafe from Control Panel | Programs | Programs and Features and then wiped the last traces off my system with the McAfee Consumer Product Removal tool MCPR.exe) to ensure remnants wouldn't interfere with my Microsoft Defender antivirus.

If I ever had another boot-up problem like I did back in August 2020 I don't think I'd bother with another reset to factory condition - I'd just perform a clean reinstall of my Win 10 Pro OS and forget about reinstalling all the Dell bloatware installed at the factory (the MS support article Recovery Options in Windows has a good summary of all the different recovery options). I plan to keep Dell Update v4.x installed on my Inspiron 5584 but I'm in the process of removing other Dell software like SupportAssist, Dell Support Assist Remediation (a.k.a. SupportAssist OS Recovery), etc. that seem to cause more problems than they're worth.  I use Karen's Replicator for regular backups of my personal data and Macrium Reflect Free imaging software for creating full disk images that I can use for system recovery, and I've also enabled the built-in Windows System Restore (disabled by default in Win 10 - see Windows Central How to Use System Restore on Windows 10) so I think I'm prepared for my next emergency recovery if it's ever needed.
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64-bit Win 10 Pro v21H2 build 19044.1466 * Firefox v96.0.2 * Microsoft Defender v.4.18.2111.5-1.1.18800.4 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.5.2.157-1.0.1562 * Dell SupportAssist v3.10.4.18 * Dell SupportAssist Remediation v5.5.0.16046 * Dell Update for Windows 10 Universal v4.4.0 * Inspiron 5583/5584 BIOS v1.16.0 * Karen's Replicator v3.7.6 * Macrium Reflect Free v8.0.6392
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

Even though my laptop is only a couple years old I’m still having this issue after I got it it’s a Inspiron 15 3000 2020 and I’m still having this issue and I unfortunately cannot get the boot menu. Due the screen being broken so I could really use some help of getting rid of this issue.

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@Rip windows 7 wrote:

Even though my laptop is only a couple years old I’m still having this issue after I got it it’s a Inspiron 15 3000 2020 and I’m still having this issue and I unfortunately cannot get the boot menu. Due the screen being broken so I could really use some help of getting rid of this issue.

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Hi Rip windows 7:

Could you please check the model of your Dell computer and let us know what Windows operating system is installed? The closest match I could find to "Inspiron 15 3000 2020" on the Dell support site was for a legacy Inspiron 3000 at https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-ca/product-support/product/inspiron-3000/drivers, and Dell hasn't released driver or BIOS updates for the Inspiron 3000 since the year 2000. Is this a refurbished Dell computer or was it purchased brand new from Dell in 2020?

Could you also explain on what you mean by "the screen being broken"? For example, when you power on your computer do you see a white Dell logo on a black background or hear any beep codes (see the support article Understanding Beep Codes on a Dell Laptops) during the initial POST (Power-On Self-Test), or do you mean your display is always black? If you have the same problem as the original poster of this thread, s-petersen, then your screen should display some sort of error code or warning that is generated by the Dell SupportAssist OS Recovery software when it runs its own pre-boot diagnostic check.

Can you boot up your system in Safe Mode?
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64-bit Win 10 Pro v22H2 build 19045.2965 * Firefox v113.0.1 * Microsoft Defender v4.18.2304.8-1.1.20300.3 * Malwarebytes Premium v4.5.28.266-1.0.2005 * Macrium Reflect Free v8.0.7279 * Dell Update for Windows Universal v4.8.0 * My Dell v2.2.4 * Dell Inspiron 5583/5584 BIOS v1.22.1
Dell Inspiron 15 5584, Intel i5-8265U CPU, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Toshiba KBG40ZNS256G NVMe SSD, Intel UHD Graphics 620

@lmacri​ at that time i didnt know what model it was but heres the actual model its a Dell insperion 15 3583 with a intel core i3 8th gen and support assist is now saying the battery is not being detected and it wont charge it shows a white light and then blinks orange so its gotten worse. (i know its been a while)

... support assist is now saying the battery is not being detected and it wont charge it shows a white light and then blinks orange so its gotten worse....

Hi Rip windows 7:

What is your Windows operating system and current BIOS version?  If Win 10 or Win 11 please include the edition (Home or Professional), version, and OS build number [open a Run dialog box (Windows key + R) and enter winver].  To find your BIOS version open a Run dialog box (Windows key + R), enter msinfo32 to view your System Information, and look for the field named "BIOS Date/Version".

What version of Dell SupportAssist is listed at Control Panel | Programs | Programs and Features? NOTE: A new SupportAssist v4.6.2 was released on 04-Dec-2024.

The colour and exact number of blinks by your power and battery status light is important. The table in the Diagnostics Lights section of your Inspiron 3583 Service Manual explains what each blink code means.

I'd advise you run an F12 ePSA (enhanced Pre-boot System Assessment) on-board hardware diagnostic from your Dell BIOS as instructed in the support article How to Run a Preboot Diagnostic Test on a Dell Computer (also see the companion video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cfFECs5Qa0).  Start with the Quick Test, and then move on to the Advanced Test and test all your main hardware components (NOTE:  Check to confirm your primary battery is included in the Advanced Test). If either ePSA scan reports an error code (e.g., 2000-0132) write it down and post back to let us know the error code(s).

If you want to look up any PSA error codes yourself lookup tables for most codes are available:

   - <here> for codes  starting with 2000-0xxx

   - <here> for codes  starting with 2000-4xxx

   - <here> for codes  starting with 2000-8xxx

Do you have the My Dell app installed on your Inspiron 3583 (NOTE: I have a Win 10 OS and My Dell can be run from the list of installed programs on my Start button)?  If so, what version is listed at at Settings | Apps (NOTE: You can also click the small "About" link at the bottom right of the interface)? Newer versions like the current My Dell v2.2.6.0 have a built-in power manager where you can check the status of your battery.  From my Inspiron 5584 laptop when it is plugged in and fully charged:

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Dell Inspiron 15 5584 * 64-bit Win 10 Pro v22H2 build 19045.5131 * Firefox v133.0.3 * Microsoft Defender v4.18.24090.11-1.1.24090.11 * Malwarebytes Premium v5.2.3.156-1.0.5108 * Macrium Reflect Free v8.0.7783 * Dell Update for Windows Universal v5.4.0 * My Dell v2.2.6.0 * Fusion Service 2.2.14.0