Stuck in Asrock x79 extreme6 UEFI Setup Mode

[fatty boy]

Ok, I got this weird problem. Finally got a chance to put the parts together - Asrock x79 extreme6, E5-2620, Crucial M4 256GB etc. All fine - boots ok, goes into setup 1st time. Good. Changed a few settings - saved and exit. System rebooted and goes back into setup mode again. System only boots into windows - only if I selected discard settings and exist option. If I select that option - goes into windows. Any ideas?? ps - I had a look on the net - I already set mine to ACHI mode instead of IDE, my M4 ssd is connected to SATA3_A1 - which asrock recommended to use for faster boot up.

[SwordOfWar]

Re: Stuck in Asrock x79 extreme6 UEFI Setup Mode

Did you set AHCI before or after installing Windows? If you had the SSD set to IDE during the installation of Windows, then it is not going to work with AHCI mode unless first enable AHCI drivers in Windows. This is because Windows will disable AHCI by default if it is installed on a IDE mode hard drive.

You other option is to reinstall Windows after making the AHCI change in the BIOS.

*** Some other information ***

I would suggest using SATA3_0 and SATA3_1 for the boot drive. Why? Because according to the manual those are the only 2 sata3 ports you can use with a RAID configuration. So, if you ever wanted to add another of the same SSD in RAID 0 (big performance increase, and views both drives as one big drive in windows).

To identify the SATA ports on the motherboard, I suggest making sure your BIOS is updated, then go into BIOS and look for the "system browser" option. It will show you a picture of the motherboard, click on the SATA ports in the picture, and it will show an up close picture and you can mouse over the ports to see which ones are which. Find the one labeled SATA3_0 and use your SSD on that one. Then make sure to check the boot order and have the SSD set as the first boot option, and disable booting from USB devices (I had problems with the BIOS trying to boot from USB devices instead of my HDD so I only suggest turning that option on when you need to use it).

So, I'd suggest SATA3_0 for your current SSD.

1. Make sure your BIOS is up to date. You can download the BIOS firmware from here:
ASRock > Products > X79 Extreme6

I recommend you download the "Instant Flash" version of the latest firmware (currently 1.40), put it on a FAT32 formatted USB drive (make sure you extract the file from the .zip before putting it on the flash drive).

2. Boot up the BIOS (Hit DEL key on startup)
3. Find the Instant Flash Option
4. It should search your USB and find the update.
5. Begin update and let it finish.

When its all finished go back into the BIOS and go to the big Exit button at the top and I think there should be an option to reset/restore default settings.

clearing CMOS might be a good idea as well after your BIOS has been successfully updated and you check to see it still boots into BIOS.

Make sure to set AHCI Mode before trying to go into windows again.

[fatty boy]

Re: Stuck in Asrock x79 extreme6 UEFI Setup Mode

You are a legend. BIOS update fixed it. Didn't think BIOS update would be related to this issue at all.

[SwordOfWar]

Re: Stuck in Asrock x79 extreme6 UEFI Setup Mode

Glad you got it fixed :)

Yeah, I always recommend updating to the latest BIOS when you buy a new motherboard anyway. You never know when they might have added a useful feature or fixed bugs.