Samsung Recovery Solution 5

Hi there,

This is driving me nuts for a couple of days. Both my wife and sister bought a Samsung Notebook RV411 (Malaysian model) with the following specs:

Processor: Intel Core i3 M380 @ 2.53GHz
Ram: 4GB
HDD: 500GB
OS: Windows 7 (64 bit)

My wife's notebook is running no problem, BUT my sister's one is like going crazy. The problem started when she plugged in a pen drive that was infected by a virus (I think) in school. Her MS Word 2010 Starter edition couldn't open new documents nor saved document. All it did was open a grey box. If I fire up Internet Explorer, only images appear but no text.

So I tried my hand in helping her. Her notebook has MSE running, which didn't detect any viruses. I scanned it with SpyBot and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and it turned up negative. so I updated Windows 7 Service Pack 1 and upgraded her IE to ver 9. So far so good. Word works, IE also no problems. I ran SpyBot & AdAware Malware Scanner also, and everything was a-ok.

Then Samsung Recovery Solution 5 pops up a message that says "There was an abnormally teminated when doing a Complete Backup"

The problem is I can't find any documentation online on Samsung Recovery Solution 5. Not even on Google. So, I did another backup with SRS. But the message keeps popping up for a few days. Then last week, it started to go all wonky again. When you turn on the laptop, it goes straight to the Samsung screen with F2=Setup and F4=Recovery even when it's shut down properly. It doesn't happen all the time and it's seemingly random.

So my question is : Do you guys think it's a hardware issue or is it caused by a virus/worm/malicious code still not cleaned?
Next question: How to find documentation on SRS? Samsung's website is next to useless.

 

Instructions for SRS 4 are here. I have no first hand experience of SRS 5 but would expect the operation to be very similar.

However, unless you are 100% confident that you can clear the infection, the best strategy would be to reload the birthday image and start aftesh. However, first copy over all user files to D: (if not already there), since restoring the image will replace whatever is on C: You will also need to do a thorough scan of D: since the virus could have also affected it.

Should you have a 2.5" USB enclosure to hand, it may be advisable to get the HDD out of the computer and into the enclosure. Then plug into to another computer with a good AV software and give the whole HDD a thorough scan.

John

 

Have you tried Samsung's online chat tech support? I used it a couple of times last week and found it to be very helpful.

As noted, there is almost nothing available on the Web regarding SRS 5. I could not even find a place to download it (long story). The Samsung tech support agent gave me a link to download it, but it turns out that the SRS 5 installer is buggy. I could not get it to reinstall, and ended up having to re-image the hard drive from one I had saved before I started using the computer.

In general, I have been disappointed in Samsung Recovery Solution 5. It is very fragile. If I make the slightest change to the disk partitioning scheme or MBR, for example to install another OS besides Windows 7, SRS 5 will stop working. That includes the "press F4 at system startup" stuff. If I hadn't saved a HDD image first thing, I would have had to reinstall from the Windows 7 DVD included with my machine (Series 3, NP300-V5A-A02US) to get SRS 5 working again.

The Samsung recovery partition also seems to interere with Windows 7's native system imaging facility. I guess that is OK because SRS 5 does the same thing, but I would rather be able to use both.

None of that is true with the system recovery partition on my Acer netbook, for example. I have Ubuntu 10.04 installed alongside the original Windows XP partition. The Acer recovery software still works just fine.

Unfortunately, OEM recovery solutions are not always as robust and well-thought-out as one would like. I find I'm better off periodically saving a disk image to an external hard drive, e.g. using Clonezilla. That way I can restore the system's drive to exactly the way it was, with minimal work.

 

Does anyone have an exact spec for the "correct" partiitoning & MBR scheme for Samsung's HDD with the picky partitions?

I am trying to do a complete recovery with SRS5 and like the quoted above it does not like this at all and refuses to work.

This is a NP-RV510-A01US model.

I am assuming the tech before me "tinkered" with the partition or MBR (intentionally or unintentionally) in a way just enough as to upset the SRS 5 software as suggested above.

The operating system is totally trashed and hosed from a trojan. It will not accept an upgrade to Win7 SP1 (the trojan stopped all upgrades), otherwise I could try the solution here ... Repair Install - Windows 7 Forums however without a Win7 SP1 on the system, this is not the answer.

And the owner unfortunately misplaced the original disks. Plus the unit was not registered and until that happens Samsung cannot replace the disks.

I'd like to try and revive this unit but without some guidance to the exact partitioning and / or MBR layout ... "up a creek without a paddle", so to speak.

Anyone have an answer?

Ken
in Central TX

 

The best way to guarantee you have a factory backup image is to use another product. I did a True Image Home 2012 backup of my Series 9 notebook before I ever booted it for the first time.

Now I can restore it to open box freshness if I decide to sell the machine.

Recovery Solution 5 is lipstick on Ghost.

 

Yup indeed true. Unfortunately in this case, its waaaayyyy too late for this solution.

Apparently one of the recovery files is corrupted and the SRS 5 cannot unpack the file and it stops. And without a DVD of the original files still stuck. Otherwise, it'd be functional. Darn shame to throw it out.

Recovery software is really picky.

 

Does Samsung sell a factory disk set? Most of the other OEMs sell a DVD set that will allow you to image your machine to the open box experience.

 

Samsung does offer a free replacement disk set but only for registered product owners.

However, in their crazy logic (probably a Microsoft legal requirement), the original laptop HDD had Windows 7 Home Premium and the replacement disk set currently available from Samsung ONLY comes in Win 7 Starter and Home Basic versions.

In order to get the 'real' Home Premium version recovered for this laptop, a "repair request" has to be submitted (outside warranty) to 're-image' the HDD back to mfg original. And the cost of this 'service' has yet to be given.

How utterly silly.

Only because 1) the original recovery disks were misplaced and 2) obviously a critical file on the hidden recovery partition is corrupted (probably due to a HDD defect or the hard drive was dropped?).

As previously discussed, recovery software is not a good replacement for real installation disks. Mfg's and Microsoft, when will you ever learn.

Lessons learned - NEVER loose the disks that come with the product.

 

You can get the Windows .ISO everywhere so this isn't a Microsoft issue. This is purely a Samsung issue. Samsung doesn't have their support act together, AT ALL. A one year warranty on the 2012 Series 9 notebook? Really? STRIKE TWO

If you buy a ThinkPad and run the disk creation tool, it creates a disk set that is the equivalent of the first boot factory disk set.

The 2012 Series 9 notebook disk set process doesn't do that and it should. There is no way to build a disk set like that for the machine I have unless you are smart enough to use a third party tool before you boot the machine the first time into Windows.

 

I just got done with a Samsung chat and they do not offer a recovery disk at all.

They require you to ship in the drive for reimaging at $39.99!