Shell Launcher shows black screen before application starts

Gladding, Mark 1 Reputation point
2021-04-21T02:24:22.343+00:00

We have customised our WIndows 10 IoT Enterprise (1607) OS image to boot into the custom Shell Launcher rather than the standard Windows desktop. The Shell Launcher successfully runs our application and there are no UI elements with Windows branding displayed.

However there is a long period of time (~15-20 seconds) during which a black screen is displayed. This time occurs after the BIOS splash screen disappears and prior to our Application being launched (launching our application takes <1sec).

The boot sequence we observe is as follows:

  1. BIOS splash screen is displayed (~5-10 seconds).
  2. Black screen is displayed (~15-20 seconds).
  3. Application UI is displayed

This behaviour is very disconcerting to a first time user of our device as it appears the device has shut itself off during power up.

Is there a way to configure the OS so the BIOS splash screen remains visible until the Application UI is displayed (i.e. eliminate the black screen)?

Windows for IoT
Windows for IoT
A family of Microsoft operating systems designed for use in Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
380 questions
Windows 10 Setup
Windows 10 Setup
Windows 10: A Microsoft operating system that runs on personal computers and tablets.Setup: The procedures involved in preparing a software program or application to operate within a computer or mobile device.
1,899 questions

2 answers

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  1. Carl Fan 6,836 Reputation points
    2021-04-21T10:03:08.767+00:00

    Hi,
    Did you set up kiosk mode and sign in with the kiosk account (a local standard user account) ? Has the system been activated？
    According to your description, you may check the permisson. Just like the information below:
    https://stackoverflow.com/questions/39613612/diagnosing-why-a-custom-shell-on-windows-10-iot-gives-black-screen

    Hope this helps and please help to accept as Answer if the response is useful.
    Best Regards,
    Carl

  2. Sean Liming 4,506 Reputation points
    2021-04-25T15:17:32.127+00:00

    Is it safe to assume that you have the embedded-boot and embedded logon components enabled to hide Windows elements and autologon?

    1. If you are using UEFI boot, you can put an image in the firmware that will stay visible through the OS load stage.
    2. Using group policy, you can set the logon background screen to shows something while the system auto logs into the shell application

    Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Control Panel > Personalization ->"Force specific lock screen and logon image"