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[SOLVED] ASRock Z170 X6 - Will Not See M.2 Samsung 950 Pro PCIE Drive - Win7

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Barryng

Member
Joined
Nov 16, 2001
I just completed a new build using an ASRock Z170 X6 and a Samsung 950 Pro 500 GB PCIE M.2 Drive. Although the bios setup in Easy Mode shows the drive under both Storage Configuration and Boot Option Priority, in Advanced Mode under Storage Configuration it indicates M2-1(PCIE): Not Detected. When I try to install windows 7 Professional it does not see any drive so obviously I am currently at a dead end with respect to install an OS.

I am assuming there is a bios setting or jumper that needs to be changed but there is nothing obvious. I would appreciate some help as the 500 GB Samsung PCIE 950 Pro M.2 drive is the only drive I intend to use with this system.
 
do you have something plugged into sata 3-0 or sata 3-1 ports?
these are shared with your ms slots.
 
Only had DVD drives connected to Sata 3-2 and 3-3. I then disconnected everything from all the Sata ports and still a poroblem. The Easy Mode sees the M.2 as a boot priority but the M.2 does not appear under Storage Confifuration. Worst case I will just fall back to the 500 GB Samsung 850 Pro and consider the 950 Pro M.2 as a very expensive experiment that failed but I really would like to get it working as my C: boot drive.
 
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Windows 7 Has some issues detecting M.2 Drives if memory serves. As for a way around it, I'm not entirely sure.

Try linux to see if it sees the drive? If it does, then that is the confirmed problem. I remember reading something about having a certain patch file being run on the win7 install disc, but I can't be sure.
 
Thanks for all of the responses.

I just updated the bios to P1.70 but it still only shows the M.2 drive as a boot priority but it does not appear under Storage Configuration.

I tried all the usual obvious troubleshooting steps (reseated the M.2 drive, cleared the bios, etc.) and I have nothing plugged into any of the Sata ports. It seems strange that the M.2 drive is seen by the bios as a boot priority but it does not show as an installed drive.
 
I wonder if the drive needs to be initialized first?

I would reach out to Asrock and see what they have to say.
 
I am going to call ASRock tomorrow. In previous builds Windows sees the new drive and formats it when starting the installation process. In this case I think the bios is not telling W7 that the drive exists.
 
Format is NOT initialization. You cannot initialize a drive from Windows install process, only format. If you have an existing os install, try it on that board and see if windows management sees it and you can initialize it from there.
 
I do have an another system but the mobo does not have a socket that will accept the M.2 format.

Can I boot on an old DOS USB and then use FDISK although I am not sure this will work because the drive is not shown as a Storage Device in the bios.
 
I didn't say swap it to another board. I'm saying if you have a drive with an os on it already, swap it to this system, get it to boot and see if you can INITIALIZE the new drive from computer management. You can also install the OS on a different drive and do the same thing.

The point is to check if you are able to see it in computer management and initialize it from there if possible.
 
I've had a problem with my Intel 750 pcie (not an m.2) not showing up in bios in any bios version above 1.20. I do also have a non-NVME m.2 installed that works fine and also dual 980 Ti's taking up pcie slots 2 and 4. It's pcie6 that isn't working with said configuration. Been like that prior to current extreme6 and also 2 other extreme6s I've had. I don't have an NVME m.2 to test if it just has something to do with the pcie lanes and bioses above 1.20.

Don't know if this helps you at all and sorry if it doesn't but if you could try going to bios ver 1.20 it somewhat gets me closer to understanding what's going on with my problem.
 
I finally did get it to work. There are Samsung drivers available as described below from a thread in another forum:

" ... have to add the drivers for the Samsung pro drive when you go to install Win 7, after selecting the language, there will be an option to Load Drivers at the empty partition window. Click on that and specify the usb drive that you have the drivers stored on

Unfortunately Samsung only has them listed as a .exe and no option to extract it so you would have to get them from here

http://www.win-raid.com/t29f25-Recom...e-Drivers.html

And you want to get the ">pure 32/64bit Samsung NVMe Driver v1.4.7.16 WHQL<"
Download that and extract it and copy those files/folder to a usb drive and you should be good ..."

The M.2 drive is still not seen by the bios but W7 boots off of it without a problem. I don't understand this as I thought Windows depended on the bios to interface with all the hardware.
 
Wow that does not make any sense that you have the pro drive as your boot drive when the Bios can't see it.
 
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