Windows installer doesn't work?

Hi Helleg. I'm Greg, an installation specialist, 9 year Windows MVP and Independent Advisor, here to help you.

Trigger the media only using the BIOS Boot menu key, not by setting a flash stick to boot first in BIOS/UEFI Setup. Also for UEFI the Windows Boot Manager must remain set to boot first (or hard drive for Legacy BIOS, or if WBM is not present yet) and the media must be booted as a UEFI device only.

I will give you all possible steps to troubleshoot installation failure which work in about 90% of cases. If not we'll go from there:

Follow the illustrated Clean Install steps in this tutorial which compiles the best possible install that will stay that way as long as you stick with the tools and methods given: http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wiki...

Make sure all other drives and peripherals are unplugged. Update the BIOS or UEFI firmware to latest, or reset to Defaults, making sure SATA controller is set to AHCI, UEFI is enabled, CSM disabled, Windows Boot Manager set first to boot, if necessary disable Secure and Fast Boot until after install: https://www.mydigitallife.net/comprehensive-lis...

https://www.groovypost.com/howto/reset-pc-bios-...

Create the latest new Windows 10 Installation Media by installing Media Creation Tool and following the directions here: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10/m.... If you're using another PC to do this then uncheck the box for Recommended Settings to choose the exact version and bit rate for the target PC only.

Insert media, boot it by powering up PC while pressing the BIOS Boot Menu Key: https://www.sysnative.com/forums/hardware-tutor...

If the media won't boot you may need to enter BIOS/UEFI Setup (pressing key given in chart in link above) to turn off Fast Boot or Fast Startup first. If you can start Windows enter UEFI firmware here: http://www.isunshare.com/windows-password/four-...

Choose the boot device as a UEFI device if offered, on first screen press Shift + F10 to open a Command Prompt, type the following commands followed by Enter key:

DISKPART

LIST DISK

SEL DIS # (replace # with the disk # of the Windows disk from list in previous command)

CLEAN

EXIT

Close Command Box, on second screen choose Install Now, then Custom Install, then at the drive selection screen choose Unallocated Space, click Next to let it create needed partitions and start install - this makes it foolproof.

Make sure to follow the setup steps to complete your install. Drivers are important enough that those steps are printed in red.

You will get and keep the best possible install to the exact extent you stick with the steps, tools and methods in the linked tutorial. It's a better install than any amount of money could buy and a great learning experience that will make you the master of your PC.

I hope this helps. Feel free to ask back any questions and let us know how it goes. I will keep working with you until it's resolved.

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Standard Disclaimer: There are links to non-Microsoft websites. The pages appear to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the sites that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the sites before you decide to download and install it.

Hey Greg, appreciate the quick response. I followed the instructions to that guide. I have no peripherals besides a keyboard, mouse, monitor and the ssd. I cleaned the drive again. Fast boot is disabled, the SATA controller is set to AHCI and uefi is on. I  have tried setting the uefi device to boot first, as well as manually running it through the boot manager. I've done the same with the ssd after installing windows. The same issue still occurs. After the install finishes, I unplug the usb and restart as instructed. Theres no usb so it tries to boot from the next device in line, the ssd, which gives me a black screen that says "please insert proper boot device, or insert boot media into selected device and press a key".

I have had this issue in the past when accidentally booting from the empty drive instead of the installer, but then all I had to do was run the usb through the boot menu, run the installer once and it ran fine, restarted and proceeded to continue setting up windows. But with this ssd, no matter how many times I've run the installer, it will recognize the ssd just not boot from it. The install program finishes without any errors, I can select it via the boot manager so the ssd should theoretically be bootable but the PC can't find the appropriate files on the drive.

The weirdest part to me is that I can plug in my existing hdd, boot windows as normal and go into the ssd in file manager, and see the files that the installer put on the ssd. But yet it isnt being recognized as a bootable device.

The problem is that WIndows Boot Manager is apparently not appearing which must be always set first to boot on UEFI installs. If it isn't present before install, it should get invoked during install. Can you find it in the Boot Priority order or add it manually? Consult your Motherboard manual - or Support if it's within a year of purchase.

UEFI Setup settings must be UEFI enabled, CSM disabled, Secure and Fast Boot disabled until after install if necessary, Windows Boot Manager always first in Boot Priority.

What is the UEFI firmware version installed now? Check for newer on Motherboard support downloads page.

If nothing else works change from UEFI to Legacy or CSM, boot as plain Flash stick (difference illustrated below), keep SSD set first in priority.

But this is not as secure and not using UEFI is like turning off all odern features in a car.

The problem could be the SSD. We do see bad ones. You can test it with the bootable diagnostics from it's maker: https://merabheja.com/ssd-health-monitor/

The boot manager works fine. When I have the uefi installer plugged in, I can go into the boot manager and set it to run first, and also force it to run. CSM and fast boot are both disabled during install, though disabling CSM makes the ssd unavailable so I have to enable it after running the installer so I can then select the ssd.

I did check the uefi firmware and it's out of date. I'll update and see if that fixes anything. Maybe the system can't detect that the installation files are on the ssd because of out of date firmware? I dont think it's a bad drive as I've tested it and the drive seems okay. I scanned it for errors and nothing came up, and I can use it as a storage device just fine, but trying to boot from it still doesn't work. Everything seems to be in order until I actually try to boot from the ssd after installing, which is when the system says there is no bootable media on it.

So there is a WIndows Boot Manager listed first in your Boot Priority order tab? I had thought you said it has SSD first.

You said the SSD is not detected when you disable CSM unless you enable it another way. How is that?

Can you update your UEFI firmware without having WIndows installed?

You can try installing on another drive, or move the SSD to another PC to install to it alone, then move it back. Windows 10 is remarkably adaptive to new hardware without needing adaptive restore. If it will start it will swap out all drivers requiring several restarts.