Installation media will not boot on ASUS Q501LA laptop

B

Blue|Fusion

I've had Linux running for many years on my trust ASUS Q501LA laptop (c. 2014) with the latest BIOS (c. 2019). I bought a new laptop and want to move this old laptop to "Support Element" duty in my server/network rack and be the target for SNMP and Syslog data. I want to switch it to FreeBSD. I am using the latest memstick 14.2 install media, but have also tried in the past with 14.0 and 13.2 to no avail.

Using verbose mode during boot, I get a glimpse that the boot stops on the first line of probing PCI device 0:22...... In Linux, I believe it is this device (22 decimal vs 16 hex???) I say I get a glimpse, because once it the boot hangs, the system powers off after about 1 second.

Code: 
00:16.0 Communication controller: Intel Corporation 8 Series HECI #0 (rev 04)
        Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc. Device 12bd
Control: I/O- Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx
+
Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
Latency: 0
Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 46
Region 0: Memory at f7e24000 (64-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32]
Capabilities: <access denied>
Kernel driver in use: mei_me
Kernel modules: mei_me

I tried disabling everything else in the BIOS, wired and wireless, camera, touchpad, audio, etc. and it made no change. I believe this is indicating an issue with the Intel ME device, perhaps? If I disable ACPI, the system throws a panic and switches to booting the next UEFI device (installed Linux GRUB).

Any ideas? I've been going through the forums for hints but everything I tried thus far gave no relief.
 
As always, do a verbose boot (yes, you can do that from the install memstick, read the Handbook to find out how), it might tell you in more detail what the problem is.
Oh, and the last thing you see printed on the screen is usually a red herring, the real problem happens after that.
 
tingo said:
As always, do a verbose boot (yes, you can do that from the install memstick, read the Handbook to find out how), it might tell you in more detail what the problem is.
Oh, and the last thing you see printed on the screen is usually a red herring, the real problem happens after that.
Click to expand...
I used the Verbose option in the Bootloader menu. I was thinking this too upon staring at it for far too long. I figure maybe it failed on the PCI device after this device. In that case, reviewing the Linux lspci output, it should be the....ICH controller?

Andriy said:
You can use a smartphone or a camera to persist that glimpse.
Click to expand...
Indeed I can!

This is where the output freezes using the Verbose option and everything that I can disable, disabled in UEFI BIOS.
 
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