How I Bricked Windows 10 Build 1703
How I Bricked Windows 10 Build 1703
Today I realized I needed to upgrade to Build 1703 – the worst decision I ever made! It erased all my configurations and adjustments as expected, and it even locked the bootmanager. After a restart following the update, there was a clash with an older MSI Afterburner version. It kept insisting that RTSS wasn’t compatible with this Windows release, while Afterburner insisted it had to run. They ended up fighting for control of the system. I switched to Safe Mode to stop Afterburner from launching at startup. There was a button labeled "Return to previous build" – it looked too easy, so I pressed it. Nothing changed, so I tried again and again. Eventually, I gave up and rebooted into normal mode. But it wouldn’t boot. Luckily, after a couple failed attempts, the automatic repair started and suggested checking disk errors. I did that, then rebooted once more. And then – voilà – the bootloader couldn’t locate any operating systems. The Windows installer also failed. I had to restore from a backup created a few months prior. I managed to recover all missing files from the older version, so everything was okay. Plus, I discovered KB3073930.
I really enjoy working with Windows 10! My computer might need a complete reset and reinstall someday. Doing this occasionally seems helpful. It doesn’t require it, but some small issues have popped up here and there. For example, the drive shortcut in File Explorer isn’t showing an icon anymore, though the button still functions.
I've also replaced my windows several times before; it's always helpful for practice!
I experienced this before. The mouse functioned initially, but then everything stopped. My setup clearly wasn't unusual. After multiple reboots, I encountered file system errors. Only the boot manager and the C: drive were problematic, while the D: drive worked fine.
And since the older Acronis media rescue tool lacked NVMe drivers, I needed to perform a fresh Windows 10 installation. But wait—MSDN provided the download link for my Windows 10 Multiple Editions ISO. I had to still rely on the media rescue tool to recover the ISO from my backup. This process took several hours; retrieving the 4GB ISO was slow due to the media tool's performance, and once I burned it, mounted it, and reinstalled Windows 10, I discovered newer Acronis versions no longer accepted my activation key. The older installers were also missing. Luckily, the only available feature in the newer version was to access the backup as removable storage, allowing me to retrieve the previous installer. But wait—Windows 10 insists that Acronis True Image HD 2012 is incompatible and won't run it even in compatibility mode... Unless you've already upgraded from Windows 7 with Acronis installed, which is how I originally ran it. So I had to boot from a Windows 7 ISO, clean install Windows 7, and restore from there. It was a hassle—spent an entire weekend and a Monday afternoon without having spare flash drives or another machine.
I appreciate the observation about the recurring group discussions on Windows 10 threads. It seems many people express frustration over generic complaints like "Windows 10 sucks" without offering real assistance. You're right to point out that Version 1703 – Creator Update – is distinct from a regular build, and it's important to preserve your settings during upgrades. The idea of doing something on the system appears to be causing issues, as you mentioned. Are you referring to specific changes or modifications? This situation suggests the system might be misconfigured. It looks like MSI Afterburner isn't aligning with Microsoft guidelines for its service. According to online sources, MSI has resolved compatibility problems with RTSS starting from version 7.x and up. Make sure you're using the most recent version of MSI Afterburner. If you're not overclocking, consider skipping RTSS altogether. Although RTSS is currently unresponsive, it may respond eventually. Running the application in Safe Mode isn't a recovery mode; instead, use Normal or System Recovery settings (hold Shift while clicking Restart). Alternatively, boot from a Windows 10 installation media and select "Repair Windows." Remember, Safe Mode is just a safe environment, not a recovery option. In Safe Mode, type `bootrec /fixmbr` and `bootrec /fixboot` to check the boot process. If that doesn't help, run `diskpart`, list the disks, and verify the EFI bootloader location. Then use `sel vol <number>` with the correct letter (e.g., X) and follow the steps to fix the boot configuration.
I'm not making any changes. The settings that keep resetting are just simple toggles in the UI, some manual registry adjustments, group policies, and manually turning off services. This occurred before both the 1607 Anniversary Update and the 1703 Creators Update. I don’t dislike Windows 10 out of spite; I prefer straightforward solutions. Windows 7 was sufficient for me, while Windows 10 seems overly complex for my needs. I appreciate simplicity that doesn’t pretend to be smarter than it is. It’s RTSS’s responsibility, and I’m just pointing it out because I found it amusing to create an infinite loop and wanted to clarify why I switched to Safe Mode. I don’t use Afterburner for overclocking—I only keep it for RTSS as a visual overlay. I just clicked the option when I saw it; it worked, but didn’t solve anything. I also tried another method, but it failed with errors like “Disk is locked.” I checked disk and volume attributes, but there were no read-only flags. Restoring from a backup helped, though I had to wait until Monday to get a laptop from work.