Question Unable to Install Windows 7 on SDD Disk

Jan 22, 2025
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Hello. While loading the system it says "No Device Drivers Were Found". I know the question is a bit cliché, but my system and situation are a bit specific.

My motherboard is MSI PC MATE 250 and currently windows 7 is installed on the HDD. I also installed a SSD in the SATA port (Crucial BX500) My goal is to install windows 7 on SSD. I have a bootable USB drive that I'm sure worked before. (I used Yumi)

The SSD disk works, but even if it doesn't, Windows doesn't even show the HDD I'm currently using during the installation phase. SATA mode in bios is on and AHCI. I don't know where else to look. How can I overcome this problem?
 
You have to load the F6 AHCI drivers for your SATA controller in order for the Windows Installer to see your HDD or SSD.

And you shouldn't have the HDD attached while you are installing Windows to the SSD, or the installer may decide to put the boot sector on that instead.
 
You have to load the F6 AHCI drivers for your SATA controller in order for the Windows Installer to see your HDD or SSD.

And you shouldn't have the HDD attached while you are installing Windows to the SSD, or the installer may decide to put the boot sector on that instead.

But the BIOS is already in AHCI mode. Windows installation says no storage devices are detected. In reality there are 2 and they are intact.
 
If you put your BIOS in AHCI mode, and the Windows installer does not natively understand AHCI, how else do you expect it to access the drives?

Windows 8.0 doesn't either, but 8.1 and newer does.

There are two modes in sata mode. Ahci and "OPTANE MOD" When I try "Optane Mode" the computer redirects me to the bios again when it starts up. I think I need to make another adjustment here, but if so, I don't know. ( But in the meantime, Windows 7 installation support is active in BIOS. )
 
The MSI downloads page for that board is so terrible it doesn't even have this driver on it.

You could wade through Intel's site looking for the correct Intel RST SATA preinstall driver for AHCI mode, or just get it from some other company's support site such as Gigabyte here (choose one for Windows 7). Put it somewhere on the USB and browse to it when Windows install offers the option to load drivers.

Or install Windows in IDE mode and then look up a guide on how to change things over to AHCI mode afterwards.
 
The MSI downloads page for that board is so terrible it doesn't even have this driver on it.

You could wade through Intel's site looking for the correct Intel RST SATA preinstall driver for AHCI mode, or just get it from some other company's support site such as Gigabyte here (choose one for Windows 7). Put it somewhere on the USB and browse to it when Windows install offers the option to load drivers.

Or install Windows in IDE mode and then look up a guide on how to change things over to AHCI mode afterwards.

Thanks. I didn't want to deal with that so I found a shortcut. I started the Windows 7 installation tool from the windows on the HDD I am currently using and selected the SSD as the second disk. This worked successfully and windows 7 was installed on the second ssd disk. But the installed Windows does not automatically detect the Ethernet and asks for a driver to be installed. So there seem to be some problems. My goal is to move the operating system and also my installed software from windows on HDD to windows on SSD.


This method seems like a bit of a hassle, but I think it will work. As a method, then removing the HDD cable and leaving only the SSD, maybe it can solve the problem I mentioned in this topic. (Might be worth a try).

dwd999
I thought about doing a disk image but I think there would be some errors and omissions, so it would be best to just start from scratch and move slowly.
 

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