Some of the stuff (like QF#2) I did a few days ago.
I have no idea how long it took as I left it overnight and when I woke up it was done.
But it was likely a few hours for sure!!! :)
I will try the other QFs as well, and the other things we spoke about like uninstalling Norton.
Hopefully, I could post some good news here tomorrow or Friday.
About the BIOS, yes I have a Z97-A and 3503 is the latest version available.
THANKS A LOT FOR YOUR HELP!