Unable to (clean) install Windows 11

[mx-gwz]

Unable to (clean) install Windows 11 on NVME drive.

 

I have been trying for days to install Windows 11 with no luck.

Windows installer complains about a missing driver before you can select the drive to install to. It's clear Windows is having an issue with the NVME drive.

 

I've found lots of posts online where people have had this same problem, but with very few concrete answers. Instead I find lots of speculation and some questionable advice that has not worked for me.

 

This is a brand new built system: Gigabyte Aorus X570 Elite Wifi motherboard, Ryzen 5900X cpu, Seagate 2TB Firecuda NVME drive (the only drive in the system).

 

I've tried (not limited to and not necessarily in order) the following:

Reset UEFI to defaults.

Update motherboard firmware to latest.

Enable secure boot (set to Custom or Standard, doesn't matter)

Disable CSM.

RAID isn't enabled.

UEFI is enabled.

NVME is enabled.

I've tried variations on all of the above and then some.

 

I've downloaded AMD chipset drivers, preinstall RAID drivers, etc. Nothing makes any difference.

 

I've tried Microsoft's direct download ISO, and also their media creation tool.

I once resolved a similar clean install to NVME issue of Windows 10 by using the tool. Where the ISO failed to install Windows 10, the tool succeeded. Not so in this case.

 

I've done literally thousands of Windows installs but only a few in the last couple years. Of those only the afforementioned Windows 10 install and this one used NVME drives and both ended up a royal PITA.

 

Microsoft is doing a good job if their goal is to get people to use Linux instead.  I could put Linux on this thing in 15 minutes and be done with it, but it's not for me and that isn't my call.

 

If anyone has any concrete information on this issue, I'd greatly appreciate it.

 

[mx-gwz]

UPDATE:  I tried an older SATA SSD as the only drive and had the same problem, so my assumption that it was the NVME was mistaken. This leaves me at square one. I tried a clean install of Windows 10, but had the same problem.

 

So, CPU? Motherboard? RAM? Video? BIOS settings?

No idea.

 

[mx-gwz]

Solved:

 

Moved the installer flash drive to a USB 2 port in the back.

 

<rhetorical rant>

    Really Microsoft?

    We can boot from an installer in a USB 3 port, but not actually install from it? An intelligible error message would have been a big help here.

</rhetorical rant>