Samsung 950 Pro NVMe Driver and Magician software Issues

[bandit385]

I recently updated the Samsung Magician software and now when I open the program, I get a message that the drive is not supported. I also observed that now the driver for the drive doesn't appear to be up to date. I tried reinstalling the driver, but get the message:

Samsung NVM Express Device is not connected. Connect the Device and try again.

I tried both the previously installed driver version as well as the current, but it will not install due to the message above. Also, the previous Magician software as well as the current version both give the message the drive is not supported.

When I installed the drive, driver, and Magician software in July 2016, all installed and run correctly, no problem.

System information:

Windows 10
C drive: SSD Samsung 950 Pro UEFI/GPT /NTFS

I also added a D drive in Raid configuration a few weeks ago: Western Digital 2TB , but I don't think that would affect being able to install the driver or recognize the NVMe drive.

Any suggestions why the NVMe Driver and Magician software will not properly install or how I can go back to a restore point to just before I installed the Magician update?

 

[captaincharisma]

depends if the magician software creates a restore point before doing the upgrade. not all programs do this all you can do is go into system restore and see if there is one

 

[bandit385]

The last system restore point was from a week ago. It shows that the changes since the last restore was Magician software and Windows update. I will try that and see if I can re-install the software and driver.

 

[bandit385]

Well, I was able to get the Magician software to run, but it doesn't recognize the drive (ie. doesn't recognize capacity, support Magician optimization features, firmware update, etc). Also, I still can't update the driver. I get the message: Samsung NVM Express Device is not connected. Connect the Device and try again.

This is strange, because it worked when I originally installed it the first time.

Thoughts?

 

[scout_03]

that d drive you put in in raid is it with the samsung evo ssd .

 

[bandit385]

No the D Drive is a 2 TB Western Digital RAID drive. SATA.

The C drive is the Samsung 950 Pro M.2 SSD NVMe.

Any ideas why the driver won't install. I still get the message: Samsung NVM Express Device is not connected. Connect the Device and try again.

 

[scout_03]

did you try to use another sata cable on the ssd and unplug the 2 tb hdd for test to instal magicien and see sddd is detect by system .

 

[bandit385]

I may give that a try. I also vaguely remember reading somewhere that the driver should be installed/replaced on the windows boot disk to get it installed correctly for UEFI. I need to find that again.

 

[scout_03]

since the os boot drive is ssd they should be install on it .

 

[bandit385]

I found that setting the storage drives in UEFI mode in the BIOS causes the Samsung NVMe driver not to load when the SATA controller is in RAID mode. It appears the Intel RST driver controls the SATA drives as well as the M.2 PCIe NVMe drive (although the M.2 drive not part of the RAID array).

 

[Paul NZ]

Did you install Magician 5? 4.7 did work until Win10 AU screwed it up.

Because MS changed the way it dealt with digital signatures.

If you installed 4.7, in Win10 AU, it used to say AHCI wasnt activated, and I think it didnt detect the ssd either (even with a normal SSD, it would do this)

 

[bandit385]

Long Post - see My Conclusion and Dilemma at the end of the post.

Setup -
C drive: Samsung 950 Pro M.2 SSD NVMe PCIe - UEFI/GPT /NTFS
D drive: RAID1 - (2x) Western Digital 2TB HD SATA3 - UEFI RAID/GPT/NTFS
Windows 10 installation - GPT UEFI mode

To install Magician 5, I had to delete the UEFI RAID volume and boot up in safe mode. To install the latest drivers, I had to also delete the UEFI RAID volume and boot up normally.

(When I installed the UEFI RAID array, it appears to have loaded the Intel RST driver/controller and deleted the Samsung driver/controller, and replaced the Samsung driver with a generic NVMe driver. That's why I couldn't either version of Magician or either version of the Samsung driver. It was already taken over by the Intel RST driver/controller)

In order to temporarily remove the Intel RST driver/controller, I deleted the UEFI RAID and booted up in Safe Mode to ensure the Intel RST did not load. Then I successfully installed the latest Samsung Magician and Drivers. (almost fine)

Next, I re-built the RAID1 in Legacy Mode (Ctrl-i). Booted up and verified the latest Samsung drivers/controllers were still installed. Also, ran the Intel RST program (v.15.2.0.1020) and verified the RAID1 was present (the NVMe drive did not appear). (almost fine)

Next, I re-started the BIOS and changed the Storage option from Legacy mode to UEFI mode and then restarted Windows. But, when I checked, the Samsung driver/controller were deleted and replaced with the generic NVMe controller. Then when I checked the Intel RST program, the RAID1 volume was present, as well as the pci-e drive with the generic controller.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Conclusion:

So it appears when the BIOS is used to setup UEFI RAID (which enables Intel RST options in BIOS), the BIOS pulls the M.2 NVME PCI-e drive into the available options for the RAID array (although not used). Then the Intel RST driver/controller takes over and deletes the Samsung driver/controller, and replaces the Samsung driver with a generic NVMe driver.

--------------------------------------------------------------
Dilemma - What to do?

Do I keep the D drive RAID1 using the UEFI option? -
a) installs the generic PCI NVMe driver/controller,
b) it prevents being able to update or run the Magician Software and Samsung driver,
c) it pulls the NVME PCI-e drive into the available options for the RAID array and can be managed through UEFI BIOS menu or from within Windows using the Intel RST program.

or

Go back and rebuild the D drive (RAID1 array) using the Legacy storage option from within the BIOS?

a) not sure how it may affect the NVME PCI-e drive from being able to run in UEFI mode,
b) it keeps the Magician software and Samsung driver and I should be able to update separately if needed,
c) not sure how the speeds of the Samsung NVMe PCI-e drive is affected since the storage mode will be set to Legacy mode,
d) management of the RAID array will have to be made using the Legacy mode (cntl-i) and the Samsung NVME pci-e will not be visible in the UEFI BIOS or Windows Intel RST program.

Related website discussing the issue:

https://communities.intel.com/thread/96584

 

[scout_03]

could you post name and model of your motherboard would like to check user manual .

 

[bandit385]

Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 7 (rev. 1.0).

Also, I just updated the BIOS from F7 to F20 which has a different SATA and RST Configuration menu. Trying to find more information what the options: a) RST Control PCIe Storage Device - Manual and b) PCIe Storage Dev on Port 9 - Not RST Controlled - do.

 

[scout_03]

check page 26 of motherboard user manual for m2 sata also port 1-6 are controlled by intel so from page 30 to 32 so check where you did put the m2 ssd so both sata have supported raid if there i a hook on each port and in chapter 3 page 67 it is raid set up configuration then check m2 sata on link they only have on 905 po on support list with mvne http://ca.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=5481#dl

 

[bandit385]

The Samsung 950 Pro is a 512GB PCIe x4 SSD (MZ-V5P512BW). It is installed in the M2H_32G M.2 connector. The SATA HDs are connected to SATA3_0 and SATA3_1. Both SATA connectors appear to support RAID mode with the PCIe x4 SSD. The SSD is on the QVL.

 

[scout_03]

the m2 is in the bottom and sata raid are in 1 and 2 then i would contact gigabyte it should work or it is something with the m2 let see if someone else find something .

 

[bandit385]

I tried the solution discussed below and it appears to be working. I'm able to run Magician and have verified the Samsung controller/driver is installed along with the Intel RST controller/driver for my RAID1 drive. Also, verified the Samsung driver installer runs without the previous error message. The NVME PCI-e drive also does not appear in the available options for the RAID array and under the UEFI BIOS menu or from within Windows using the Intel RST program.

Others may find this helpful when changing from AHCI mode to RAID mode using a UEFI RAID configuration.

1) change to boot mode to SAFE in MSconfig, Restart, and enter BIOS

2) ensure settings are set to Disable CSM, RST RAID, save, exit, and continue bootup in SAFE mode.

3) verify Samsung controller/driver is installed, Intel RST RAID is installed, etc, Change boot mode back to normal, and restart.

4) Continue bootup in Normal mode, verify Samsung controller/driver is installed, Intel RST RAID is installed, Magician software runs, etc

 

[scout_03]

so you have it working now .

 

[bandit385]

Yes.

 

[scout_03]

good so people who have same m2 set up will know what to do ty to post it back .

 

[ManiacDC]

So to anyone else having this issue, there was a setting in my bios under SATA/Raid configuration (I forget the exact words, just roll with it) to turn off Intel RST PCIe storage device management. It was set to auto, so I set it to Manual and manually turned off each PCIe storage device. After doing that, I then saw the device under NVMe controllers/devices in my bios and it allowed me to install the driver and Samsung Magician works now.

I went through the steps bandit385 posted, but I don't believe I actually had to do all those (actually made things worse for me since my RAID array got disabled and some directories that Windows uses points there). Thanks for posting this bandit as it led me to the solution.

I'm using a Samsung 960 EVO NVMe m.2 drive on a Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3P.

 

[dankogrg]

i did the steps, yet the setup failed mid installation. there was a log which i don't know how to read
help anyone?

 

[RogerFx]

Hi Everyone.

I´m new to the forum and looking for some help with the Samsung 960.

I have a Lenovo Yoga 900-13ISK2 80UE about a year ago I swapped the original PM951 512 GB SSD (NVMe) to a the Samsung 960 Pro 1 TB (also NVMe) successfully. Everything seems to be working fine, as both SSDs the old one and the new one are NVMe apparently the same driver was good for it to booth and work. Using the Microsoft NVMe driver.

The speed is nice and seems same as to the original SSD but I keep having the feeling that it may not be using its full speed as there is no specific Samsung driver I could install to maximize its operation. I have the same problem with the Magician software about getting the message that the drive is not supported.

I keep getting a message from Intel drive update to updated it to their RST driver latest version but I´m afraid to run into problems as to stop being the drive recognized or other problems.

Can anyone give me some recommendation?

Thanks, Roger

 

[USAFRet]

Hi Everyone.

I´m new to the forum and looking for some help with the Samsung 960.

I have a Lenovo Yoga 900-13ISK2 80UE about a year ago I swapped the original PM951 512 GB SSD (NVMe) to a the Samsung 960 Pro 1 TB (also NVMe) successfully. Everything seems to be working fine, as both SSDs the old one and the new one are NVMe apparently the same driver was good for it to booth and work. Using the Microsoft NVMe driver.

The speed is nice and seems same as to the original SSD but I keep having the feeling that it may not be using its full speed as there is no specific Samsung driver I could install to maximize its operation. I have the same problem with the Magician software about getting the message that the drive is not supported.

I keep getting a message from Intel drive update to updated it to their RST driver latest version but I´m afraid to run into problems as to stop being the drive recognized or other problems.

Can anyone give me some recommendation?

Thanks, Roger

Please start a new thread for your particular situation. This one is old and already 'Solved'.

You'll get much better responses from aw hole new thread.

Thanks.