First Time PC Builder - Cannot Install Windows 10

[robotdna]

Hello all,

 

I brand new here as well as to the PC building world. I need some assistance with an error I cannot resolve. I have talked to some friends and they are not sure what the issues are either. Excuse me if I am not aware of proper post formatting here; I tried to read all pinned posts first. Okay, here goes:

 

My Hardware:

• i7 8700k
• Asus ROG Strix z370-E Gaming
• 32 GB kit (4 x 8GB) GSkill Trident RGB RAM @ 3200 MHz
• NVME M.2 Samsung 960 Evo, 500 GB
• Asus ROG Strix GTX 1080ti
• Corsair HX1000
• Custom EK water loop

Other Information:

• BIOS: Ver. 0408
• Attempted install OS: Windows 10 Pro

Current Situation and Background:

The PC appears to boot up correctly (as far as I can tell) and access the UEFI BIOS Utility. I had some issues with only being able to use 3/4 RAM modules but enabling XMP seemed to fix this. I downloaded Windows Media Creation Tool on my laptop to start loading Win 10 on a bootable USB drive. Did not work at first, so I disabled my antivirus (Avira) and tried again and it functioned. So, I plug in this USB drive to my custom PC, turn it on, tap F8 a few times to get to the boot drive options. I see my USB drive and my SSD. I boot to my USB drive and the Windows installer shows up. I follow it through, get to the key query step, and type in my license. It tells me it is invalid. I presume this might be a problem with not having internet access, so I continue without it. I get to the restart step, and get a blue screen upon a very long restart. I do not remember the error code, but I did write down subsequent ones. So, I try again. I F8 into my boot drive options, and see that there are two USB drive options: UEFI: XXXX Partition and XXXX Partition, with XXXX being the USB drive name. I have tried to boot into both options. Most recently I have selected the UEFI one and got this error code:

• 0xc0000098 - "The operating system couldn't be loaded because the system registry file is missing or contains errors. File: \windows\system32\config\system"

I have also gotten:

• 0xc0000428 - "The digital signature for this file couldn't be verified."
• 0xc0000221 - "The operating system couldn't be loaded because the kernel is missing or contains errors. File: \Windows\system32\ntoskrnl.exe"

I should mention I have tried to install on a separate flash drive also using the ISO+Rufus method and get these errors, I believe.

 

Alright, I think I included what I know so far. Where should I start? Have I missed something?

 

Thank you for your assistance.

[owluitar]

Don't use Rufus for this if you can. If you have another Windows 10 computer, use the Windows 10 Creation tool to make the USB: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=691209

I've had so many errors in the past using Rufus, because it would mess up a single file and not say that it had an error..

[robotdna]

3 minutes ago, owluitar said:

Don't use Rufus for this if you can. If you have another Windows 10 computer, use the Windows 10 Creation tool to make the USB: https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=691209

I've had so many errors in the past using Rufus, because it would mess up a single file and not say that it had an error..

 

Yes, I have done this:

 

32 minutes ago, robotdna said:

I downloaded Windows Media Creation Tool on my laptop to start loading Win 10 on a bootable USB drive. Did not work at first, so I disabled my antivirus (Avira) and tried again and it functioned. So, I plug in this USB drive to my custom PC, turn it on, tap F8 a few times to get to the boot drive options. I see my USB drive and my SSD. I boot to my USB drive and the Windows installer shows up.

 

 

[Kyle_N]

Make sure to enable secure boot, fast boot, and disable legacy/csm (compatibility support module) in your BIOS, before you install Windows. Usually this would only cause activation and sometimes driver issues though. 

 

My recommended steps:

After setting the BIOS option, reboot into the USB (from the Media Creation Tool). The USB should be the ONLY boot option.

I would recommend skipping activation (choose I don't have a product key) during setup.

Delete ALL partitions on the drive you're installing to, and install Windows to Unallocated space.

 

After it finishes installing, you will see a screen like "Getting ready", "Getting devices ready", or something. It will look like a standard Windows boot screen, possibly with your motherboard logo. Once you see this, unplug the USB. (if you miss it, just unplug before finishing OOBE setup). 

Complete OOBE setup with Cortana (WITHOUT the USB plugged in), and you should be good. 

 

If you go into your BIOS boot menu at this point, the only option should be Windows Boot Manager.

[robotdna]

1 hour ago, DOGC_Kyle said:

Make sure to enable secure boot, fast boot, and disable legacy/csm (compatibility support module) in your BIOS, before you install Windows. Usually this would only cause activation and sometimes driver issues though. 

 

My recommended steps:

After setting the BIOS option, reboot into the USB (from the Media Creation Tool). The USB should be the ONLY boot option.

I would recommend skipping activation (choose I don't have a product key) during setup.

Delete ALL partitions on the drive you're installing to, and install Windows to Unallocated space.

 

After it finishes installing, you will see a screen like "Getting ready", "Getting devices ready", or something. It will look like a standard Windows boot screen, possibly with your motherboard logo. Once you see this, unplug the USB. (if you miss it, just unplug before finishing OOBE setup). 

Complete OOBE setup with Cortana (WITHOUT the USB plugged in), and you should be good. 

 

If you go into your BIOS boot menu at this point, the only option should be Windows Boot Manager.

Before trying this, I should update the thread: I just ran MemTest86 and got over 375 errors in a manner of 10 minutes or so, while using the XMP profile provided (3200MHz, 1.35V). I contacted GSkill about this. I presume there is a possibility I have faulty RAM? Or could it be something else?

[robotdna]

I updated my BIOS while running on 2 sticks of RAM and then re-ran MemTest86 and everything is spectacular. Thank you for your help!