SSD not detected by windows install

[Agentshades]

I booted up my PC the other day and got the windows boot manager screen telling me that a necessary boot file was missing from my primary sad and that I couldn't load into windows. When this has happened before I've ended up having to reinstall from a Windows 7 disk and then use a USB boot media to upgrade back to 10.

However, this time around when I load into the windows 7 installer (I did try directly installing 10 from the USB, but the loading screen spun for about an hour and then the computer shut down) the SSD doesn't show up in the list of drives. I opened the command line and ran diskpart -> list disk and it isn't there either, just an old hdd I use for file storage.

I then checked my BIOS to see if maybe the drive was just faulty but it's both a selectable boot option and detected by my system information menu in the bios.

Any idea why I might not be able to see this? I originally installed Windows 7 to this drive before upgrading to 10 so I know it was possible at least once before.

 

[Ralston18]

Check inside the case. May be a bad cable (power or data) to the primary SSD. Loose or possibly broken - could be plug or the port.

The connection only intermittently works....

Try another set of cables. Borrow from the secondary drive if possible. (No harm in taking the secondary drive (aka "old hdd") out of service to help eliminate it as being the source of the problem.)

Failing that run the applicable manufacturer's disk diagnostic software by connecting/installing the drive on another computer.

The diagnostic software may identify the problem.

Just remember that if the drive is failing anything you do could cause data to be lost.

 

[Agentshades]

Thanks for answering! I've swapped the cables and now I can see the drive in the windows installed screen. However now it reads as "Drive 0 Unallocated Space" and clicking on it gives no option to format the drive. Clicking next with the drive selected causes the hourglass to appear for over an hour and then the cursor returns as though I hadn't done anything.

 

[Ralston18]

Apologies - I may have confused you.

Did you just swap the cable ends between the SSD and the old HDD?

My intent was to have the data and power cables replaced between the SSD and motherboard/PSU.

And the HDD disconnected both power and data.

 

[Agentshades]

Apologies - I may have confused you.

Did you just swap the cable ends between the SSD and the old HDD?

My intent was to have the data and power cables replaced between the SSD and motherboard/PSU.

And the HDD disconnected both power and data.

Yes, I disconnected the HDD entirely and used different cables to connect the SSD to the motherboard and to the PSU. The SSD now shows up as the only connected drive. It however reads as unallocated space and is not formatable. Even using diskpart in the command line to clean it results in an "I/O device error."

 

[Ralston18]

You mentioned a Windows 7 disk - so that implies that you have a DVD (optical drive). Is that drive showing up anywhere? Can you get Windows 7 to boot again via the optical drive?

Beyond that, to be honest, I am not sure what else to suggest.

Probably best to contact the SSD drive's manufacturer.

Hopefully there will be some diagnostic software that you can run via another computer. I.e., connect your SSD via a USB adapter or an external case. Making the drive Drive 1 for example or even Drive 2 if that computer has multiple drives - optical or otherwise.

The risk, as always, being that any data on the SSD will be lost beyond recovery.

 

[Agentshades]

You mentioned a Windows 7 disk - so that implies that you have a DVD (optical drive). Is that drive showing up anywhere? Can you get Windows 7 to boot again via the optical drive?

Beyond that, to be honest, I am not sure what else to suggest.

Probably best to contact the SSD drive's manufacturer.

Hopefully there will be some diagnostic software that you can run via another computer. I.e., connect your SSD via a USB adapter or an external case. Making the drive Drive 1 for example or even Drive 2 if that computer has multiple drives - optical or otherwise.

The risk, as always, being that any data on the SSD will be lost beyond recovery.

Thanks! The disk drive and any USB drives I plug in show up as normal. Based on all the problems I'm having centering around not being able to write to or format the SSD, I'm beginning to think maybe the drive is just bad.