The “missing OS” is a sign that it either isn’t booting from your USB or that the USB is somehow corrupted.

I would try to redo your USB drive, just to make sure, then you might have better luck.

I’m pretty sure that is it.

Some mother boards have only certain USB ports enabled during the POST sequence, so you might want to try a different port as well. I find that usually the upper most (closest to the CPU) port is the one that gets enabled first.

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If nothing else, SATA is actually Plug and Play, so you can disconnect the hard drive, to force the PC to boot from the only available media (USB). Although… kinda sketchy, yeah. Getting a USB/SATA adapter and taking the drive out and using that to connect it is definitely a safer option.

How old are these PCs?

These things happen. You need to remember that virtually EVERY phone call happening in the USA is being recorded and monitored.

What used to happen to me, I would call with my mom. We would talk for an hour or so and then the call would drop, only for her to be calling me immediately. I mean, like the moment I pulled my phone away from my head, there was a call coming in. I would answer it and it was a recording of my mom. FROM THE BEGINNING of the phone call. And it was only her voice. From an hour ago.

I would hang up, call her back and we would get connected no problem.

The phone system is way F*ckier than we realize.