Performed a clean install from USB now can't downgrade using restore files from MS

[majorgearhead]

I did a full wipe and fresh install using Roofus and the Windows 10 ISO after having updated to register my keys on the MS site. I find now that unless I use Roofus, there is no way to boot off of a USB. Before I was able to take the SP3 restore files and put them on a fat32 usb key and boot into that to fix. Now that 10 is on, I get errors about UEFI file corrupt or missing. I have also tried making a restore key from within windows 10 to be able to do restores where the drive is hosed and this has the same error. Seems only thing I can do is use the ISO's from MS and Roofus to create a bootable USB.

Anyone else experiencing this?

 

[leeshor]

Moving to the Windows 10 section.

 

[majorgearhead]

Note to Mods, sorry for the mischan initially.

I think I found a way out of my predicament. I found an old USB drive in which I had created a recovery from the recovery partition. The SP3 with clean install to 10 would still not allow this to boot, complaining about some of the UEFI files. I had previously used this drive with success in Windows 8.1. Here is what I did, but I am sure it can be done another way. Warning I used a Mac in this.

1) Connected USB to Mac and fired up Disk Utility
2) Created a CD / DVD Master from the USB key
3) Ran the following to make it an official ISO (In Terminal) 'sudo hdiutil makehybrid -iso -joliet -o ~/Desktop/recovery.iso ~/Desktop/RECOVERY.cdr'
4) On PC downloaded Rofus 2.2 and used this new ISO as an image and burned to new USB
5) Booted with volume button down.

I was able to go completely back to Windows 8.1 without issue. What I don't know is if there is something that is part of Windows 10 that modifies UEFI to not allow the old restore images. Note that I even tried with secure boot off and still got the UEFI warnings previously.

I am going to test the upgrade to 10, but it felt a lot less buggy in the OS when I was running off of an upgraded machine instead of the clean install to 10.

What would be great is after all the dust settles, MS releases a recovery image for Windows 10 that works on the SP3.

 

[GreyFox7]

Note to Mods, sorry for the mischan initially.

I think I found a way out of my predicament. I found an old USB drive in which I had created a recovery from the recovery partition. The SP3 with clean install to 10 would still not allow this to boot, complaining about some of the UEFI files. I had previously used this drive with success in Windows 8.1. Here is what I did, but I am sure it can be done another way. Warning I used a Mac in this.

1) Connected USB to Mac and fired up Disk Utility
2) Created a CD / DVD Master from the USB key
3) Ran the following to make it an official ISO (In Terminal) 'sudo hdiutil makehybrid -iso -joliet -o ~/Desktop/recovery.iso ~/Desktop/RECOVERY.cdr'
4) On PC downloaded Rofus 2.2 and used this new ISO as an image and burned to new USB
5) Booted with volume button down.

I was able to go completely back to Windows 8.1 without issue. What I don't know is if there is something that is part of Windows 10 that modifies UEFI to not allow the old restore images. Note that I even tried with secure boot off and still got the UEFI warnings previously.

I am going to test the upgrade to 10, but it felt a lot less buggy in the OS when I was running off of an upgraded machine instead of the clean install to 10.

What would be great is after all the dust settles, MS releases a recovery image for Windows 10 that works on the SP3.

I seem to recall people in the Tech Preview having to wax their w10 partition to use the 8.1 Recovery.
And by "wax" I mean delete not shine it up and make it all smooth and slippery.

 

[majorgearhead]

I seem to recall people in the Tech Preview having to wax their w10 partition to use the 8.1 Recovery.
And by "wax" I mean delete not shine it up and make it all smooth and slippery.

I tried this with no luck. Plus I am fully back to Windows 8.1 meaning I was able to make a bootable USB with Rofus and went in and removed the Volumes and did a clean on the disk, so there were no partitions. Once Windows 8.1 was up I used the recovery wizard to make a recovery USB. I then tried booting into this by holding volume down and powering on. Still same UEFI error. Going to stop by the MS Store today to see if this is an issue with the replacement machine they gave me. The old machine did none of this.

 

[GreyFox7]

I tried this with no luck. Plus I am fully back to Windows 8.1 meaning I was able to make a bootable USB with Rofus and went in and removed the Volumes and did a clean on the disk, so there were no partitions. Once Windows 8.1 was up I used the recovery wizard to make a recovery USB. I then tried booting into this by holding volume down and powering on. Still same UEFI error. Going to stop by the MS Store today to see if this is an issue with the replacement machine they gave me. The old machine did none of this.

Well I have seen USBs be finicky about booting in UEFI. I tried to make one a dozen times... no joy with a couple USB sticks... a couple weeks later using a different USB stick and the exact same procedure... it worked. Not sure if the is a copy problem, usb problem, UEFI problem or freaking sun spots.

 

[majorgearhead]

Well I have seen USBs be finicky about booting in UEFI. I tried to make one a dozen times... no joy with a couple USB sticks... a couple weeks later using a different USB stick and the exact same procedure... it worked. Not sure if the is a copy problem, usb problem, UEFI problem or freaking sun spots.

Isn't that the truth. Thanks GreyFox7

 

[majorgearhead]

Never replied back. But this whole issue was if I had an SD card in the slot and tried to boot off of a USB key, it would not work. I don't know if it is significant that it was a Sandisk SDXC.

Got everything resolved when I removed the SD card.