So.. This issue, or variations of it has been brought up at different points in the past:


http://rog.asus.com/forum/showthread.php?48605-please-help-The-embedded-controller-(EC)-ASUS-hero-VI...

https://rog.asus.com/forum/showthread.php?43206-Z87-Windows-8-1-Fast-Startup-and-Hibernation-work-sp...

http://rog.asus.com/forum/showthread.php?48808-Help-Multiple-ACPI-Errors


Apparently it needs to get brought up again, though. I'm experiencing a highly reproducible issue dealing with Hibernation and the Asus Boot Setting utility in Windows. To address some of the basics, yes, the CSM is disabled in the UEFI BIOS and yes, Fast Startup is enabled in the Power Options applet. This is essentially a fresh install of Windows 10 Pro x64, with drivers for the chipset, video card, SATA controllers, etc., already installed. There are no yellow bangs present in the device manager.

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The Problem: Essentially, as far as Windows is concerned, support for Hibernation and Fast Startup are getting flipped on and off like a light switch every time the user warm boots (i.e. restarts) the affected system.


Steps Necessary to Reproduce the Problem: (1) Open up a command prompt, (2) issue the command "powercfg -a", and (3) get the following output:





Next, restart the affected system one time. Then, repeat steps (1) and (2). This will yield the output below:





If the affected user proceeds to look in the root of their system drive, they will also see that hiberfil.sys is now missing. If the system is restarted one more time, Hibernation and Fast Startup will once again be reported as supported, and hiberfil.sys will reappear. This cycle will then repeat itself infinitely as the system restart count increases over time.

Conclusion: Restarting the system will either disable or enable Hibernation and Fast Startup support in Windows, depending on whether they were enabled or disabled prior to restarting. Furthermore, this pattern appears to be unbreakable (except as noted elsewhere in this post) and 100 percent predictable. I would welcome, highly encourage, and appreciate it if anyone running Windows 7 through 10 on a Z87, Z97, or Z170 chipset (Asus or ASRock) would test the above procedure themselves and report back here with their findings.

I have made some additional observations as well:

• This pattern occurs whether Windows 7 or Windows 10 is installed. The problem is therefore not OS-dependent. I haven't had the time to check if this holds true on Windows 8.1 as well.
  
  
• The exact, same pattern also occurs without fail on my Asus Z97 Deluxe. This means that the problem isn't chipset-dependent either, and that the root cause of the problem is likely the same for all affected chipsets.
  
  
• Uninstalling AI Suite and removing all other Asus software from the system changes absolutely nothing. Hibernation and Fast Startup support still flip on or off with every restart.
  
  
• Restoring all settings in the UEFI BIOS to their "Optimized Defaults" doesn't make any difference, either.
  
  
• The system always cold boots with Hibernation and Fast Startup support enabled (as reported by "powercfg -a"), whether or not they were disabled prior to shutting down. Incidentally, for some reason that I haven't yet been able to identify, Fast Startup actually does work like it should, and what's even more surprising is that it appears to work consistently, despite the Hibernation issue (hence why "Fast Startup" is nowhere to be found in the thread title). Seeing as how Windows supposedly hibernates the kernel session upon system shutdown to make a "fast startup" possible the next time it starts, I can't see how this is possible. This behavior seems incredibly weird to me, and I'm currently unable to explain it any further.
  
  
• However, the Asus Boot Setting utility is non-functional. It opens up just fine, but the DirectBIOS feature does not work at all (it just restarts the system), and the "Fast Boot" and "Next boot after AC power loss" options under "Advanced Setup" do not correctly represent the way these options are set in my UEFI BIOS. This application obviously has some kind of problem communicating with its underlying driver/framework.
  

And this brings me to my main point, where the dots are ultimately connected:

• What driver has been responsible for Asus Boot Setting (dys)functionality in the past? Answer: the infamous AMDA00 interface.
  
  
• What other issues have typically been associated with AMDA00 dysfunction on prior board generations? Answer: Fast Startup and Hibernation.
  

I understand that there's no "AMDA00" driver currently installed on my system. There isn't even a driver listed for it on the Asus website's Windows 10 download page for the Maximus VIII Hero. I'm not nearly familiar enough with this board's architecture to say whether the AMDA00 interface is even a part the equation anymore, though. Perhaps it's been replaced by something else entirely, but if it has, then by all indications, that "something else entirely " still doesn't function properly.

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So, what's causing this? This is my burning question, and I think I've demonstrated pretty reasonably that AMDA00 (or whatever driver or framework now exists in its place) is probably the answer. Someone please tell me that it's more likely to be something else. I'm not being facetious--I really do mean that. If somebody knows of something else that could feasibly explain this behavior and these symptoms given the observations I've made and the correlations that exist as a result, then I truly and genuinely want to hear from those people. As it stands, however, both Hibernation and the Asus Boot Setting utility are effectively broken and there is no good reason or excuse for this.. at all. I've fundamentally established that the problem isn't necessarily tied to a particular operating system or chipset, and that the presence of any Asus software (or lack thereof) makes no difference either.

I shouldn't have to explain why I need or want Hibernation and the Boot Setting utility to function properly, and I absolutely do not intend to. Such an explanation would be utterly irrelevant and superfluous considering that this motherboard is blatantly advertised to be "Windows 10 Ready", not to mention that Asus markets these boards heavily and quite explicitly to enthusiast consumers. While I can't speak for anyone else, I will say that this enthusiast consumer expects his $250+ computer peripherals to function properly, and without exception. Does anyone here consider such an expectation to be even remotely unreasonable? I would hope not.

I will submit a ticket to Asus technical support momentarily, but I welcome all intelligent input or discussion on this matter. I think I've stoked the fire and expressed my agitation more than enough at this point.. :mad: