W540 stuck on ThinkPad splash screen

Question

I've got W540 (32GB RAM, 500GB HDD) running Windows 7.1 64bit that is constantly getting stalled at the ThinkPad splash screen during powerup.
It will often stall at the "ThinkPad" splash screen.  
Other times it will stall at the "ThinkPad" splash screen with the "To interrupt normal startup, pess Enter" message displayed.
I've seen other entries that reference this issue with:
- using a SSD, I'm a standard HDD.
- a broken USB port.  Mine all look OK (is there a way to actually test them?)
I've updated to the latest Bios and reset the Bios defaults with no change.
I've run the hardware diagnostic tests and found no errors.
When I say "stall" on the splash screens I sometimes find if I leave it alone long enough (maybe 5+ minutes) it will continue to the normal Windows boot up.
This is the 2nd W540 out of a pool of laptops to display symptoms similar to this.
Anyone got information on what may cause a stall at the ThinkPad splash screen?
Thanks.

Answer 1

Not knowing your exact set up, but KNOWING that this is a blind black box with no activity light like a normal workstation, you need to do workarounds.
Normally, on my older workstation, I could see the HD light blink and the rate would give me an inkling of the process.
The WORKAROUND: we now need to calibrate your computer clock to your watch, or use a cell phone time keeper which would already be synced if the W540 is connected to the WiFi (no switch so the W540 has to be connected, unless there is no access point).  As an aside, I have found that when there are large MS updates, like last Tuesday, or other such WiFi connected updated, the compute also hangs with the user having NO KNOWLEDGE that the WiFi is talking / or calling home to some cloud device.
Back to the workaround: Boot the system, and when there appears to be a crash or hang in the sequence, note the time of the 'event' and also note the time when it appears to restart.  Once properly booted, and I cannot tell you how often this has happened to my W540, check the even times in the [Event Viewer].  Too long to explain, Google the term "Win 7 Event Viewer", or check this:
MS Help - Event Viewer
Then find out where the computer chokes and restarts by checking the time in the events and the cause.  These are i/o routines which the Lenovo Gods have decide to shield us from such WORKSTATION task.
FWIW, often I get <Program Not Responding>, when in fact it is performing a numbers intensive task.... yet I cannot tell what is happening as there is no i/o light. Usually unlocks when the task is finished, which may be what is happening on your system.  You need to find out the task that is  causing the wait.
Odd, the Lenovo Gaming machines Y50 have these lights, albeit atrophied:  see lower 4 indicator lights....