Windows 7 wont allow me to install OS onto SSD's

[Sloppzz]

Hi Guys,

I got a couple of Samsung 200GB SSD drives recently, and im trying to configure them in a raid 0 stripe.

Im having a bit of an issue getting the system to recognize them.

I have an MSI P67A-GD53 B3 motherboard, and if you look in the bios it recognizes them. However when you run the Windows 7 install disk it shows the 2 disks, but wont let you create a partition on them or anything, it just says these disks cannot be used.

When i try and setup a raid volume within the Intel Storage Management section, it wont create the volume either it just keeps circling round to the front menu and not doing anything.

I tried downloading and running Parted Magic, and using Secure erase, however when you click the "internal" option it doesnt find the disks in the menu.

Has anyone got any ideas as to what else i could try? Ive tried setting them to IDE and to ACHI or whatever it is.

I also plugged in my Sata drive which is currently running windows, and i cant even see them in disk management within there to format them, its as if they are locked down.

ANy help would be appreciated.

Cheers

Martin

 

[Lvcoyote]

Sounds like you haven't set the Intel controller mode to raid in BIOS.

 

[Trivius]

When your BIOS is loading have you tried pausing it then pressing a key (over and over) until you get to where it lists the drives available, there might be a CTRL+KEY option displayed to enter into that will let you configure your drives into a RAID, e.g., on mine it is CTRL-M, if I recall (I also think I have a CTRL-I option for something as well). But you might first need to change your drives to RAID in BIOS settings (from IDE or ADHI), perhaps (then while installing Windows you can reformat the array prior to selecting it as your OS).

 

[wingman99]

+1 sounds like you did not set your intel chipset to raid.

 

[Sloppzz]

Hi Guys thanks for the responses.

Ive done all of the above. I set it to RAID in the bios, and did the Ctrl + I to get to the intel raid setup. However when i select the drives and try and setup the raid volume it sits there doing nothing for a couple of minutes, then goes back to the front screen and doesnt do anything.

I also tried getting into the windows 7 setup screen, and doing a ctrl + f10 to get dos up and doing a diskpart. If i do a disk list within diskpart it shows the two drives, and when i do a clean it seems to work, but i still cant seem to install windows onto the drives.

Not sure if this is relevant, but these two drives are Enterprise flash drives?

 

[Trivius]

So Windows install is not even working? If so, perhaps focusing on getting one drive up and running then do a format on the second drive, and then see if BIOS will let you RAID the second to the first and if Windows will acknowledge your RAID0. Perhaps unplug one drive during this process and if that does not work, then unplug the other one, swapping them out, and trying again. Maybe this is just a case of a bad SSD that needs to be RMA?

 

[RGone]

IF you see two drives in windows setup mode then it is not set to Raid 0 if that is what you are trying to do. At least Windows setup is not seeing the drives in Raid 0 mode. It could be that you need the raid drivers during setup for Wn 7 to see the drives in Raid 0 mode.

Whichever it is certain that Win 7 at setup is not seeing the two drives in Raid 0.

 

[EarthDog]

Do you have both drives hooked up to the same controller? Both in the white ports?

 

[synthetic_fenix]

I am tending to agree with RGone here, reading this it sounds more like you need to load the drivers during the Windows 7 install so it can see the controller in order to use it for the RAID functionality.

 

[madhatter256]

Hi Guys thanks for the responses.

Ive done all of the above. I set it to RAID in the bios, and did the Ctrl + I to get to the intel raid setup. However when i select the drives and try and setup the raid volume it sits there doing nothing for a couple of minutes, then goes back to the front screen and doesnt do anything.

I also tried getting into the windows 7 setup screen, and doing a ctrl + f10 to get dos up and doing a diskpart. If i do a disk list within diskpart it shows the two drives, and when i do a clean it seems to work, but i still cant seem to install windows onto the drives.

Not sure if this is relevant, but these two drives are Enterprise flash drives?

Is there a BIOS update? It might fix issues related to SSD & RAID.

If Win7 recognizes the drives with RAID enabled, you still might also have to load the appropriate drivers.

 

[Sloppzz]

Hi guys,

I know they aren't set up in raid 0 as the raid setup within the bios won't seem to work.

Obviously when I run windows 7 setup it's seeing 2 drives because I can't get it setup into. Raid group. It's made me pull my hair out trying to figure it out. I have downloaded a bios update so I'm going to give that a try.

The cables are connected into the 2 black 6gb ports on the mb, the white ports are 4gb and there are 4 of them.

 

[EarthDog]

The cables are connected into the 2 black 6gb ports on the mb, the white ports are 4gb and there are 4 of them.

This is your motherboard right (as listed in post #1)?

The specs on that page show 2 SATA3 (6Gb/s) ports, and 4 SATA2 (3GB/s) ports. You should have both drives plugged in to the Intel (white ports) which are SATA3. If you are in the other ports you are on a different controller (Jmicron or other) . That isnt a problem unless you:

A> arent setting up those ports for RAID and are setting up the Intel ones.
B> those ports cant do RAID period (rare - this board can).

You are using "Ctrl-i" to get in to the RAID menu to set it up, correct? You can refer to your manual as well, specifically section B-2 and forward to make sure you are following those steps.

 

[King107s]

This is your motherboard right (as listed in post #1)?

The specs on that page show 2 SATA3 (6Gb/s) ports, and 4 SATA2 (3GB/s) ports. You should have both drives plugged in to the Intel (white ports) which are SATA3. If you are in the other ports you are on a different controller (Jmicron or other) . That isnt a problem unless you:

A> arent setting up those ports for RAID and are setting up the Intel ones.
B> those ports cant do RAID period (rare - this board can).

You are using "Ctrl-i" to get in to the RAID menu to set it up, correct? You can refer to your manual as well, specifically section B-2 and forward to make sure you are following those steps.

+1
-Plug SSD's into same controller ports (all intel or all marvell)
-Configure SATA to RAID in BIOS
-Press Ctrl + I or Ctrl + M depending on what controller youre using during POST
-Configure RAID and reboot
-In windows add the array with the disk manager or Install windows as a fresh copy

If your drives are security locked you will not be allowed to create the array or do anything with them other than view them.

Please see my instructions in the following link to unlock them.
http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=677872

 

[Sloppzz]

Sorry yes I am plugged into the white ports on the mb. I just checked and got my colours mixed up, the joys of typing on my iPad downstairs and not making the effort to wander up and get it right

 

[EarthDog]

Ok, that was one question of two answered, LOL! So you did the "Ctrl-i" command to get into the raid setup, along with setting it to RAID in the bios?

 

[Sloppzz]

Yeah when I do a Ctrl + I it brings up the intel raid setup screen. It lists my two disks and next to them in green it says "non raid disk". So I go to "create raid volume" and name it etc and it gives a raid volume size which is the 2 drives, then I click create volume.

At this point it sits there for about 5 minutes doing nothing, then it goes back to the front screen again and sure enough both my disks are still listed, and saying "non raid disk"

 

[RJARRRPCGP]

The new Windows installer, for Vista and later has an issue where it you have 2 HDDs connected, then the installer refuses to let you install Windows to any HDD!
(Probably SSD, too)

It don't make sense, unless the motherboard manufacturer F-ed up with the ATA ids and caused both drives to use the same ATA bus id, thus an ATA bus address conflict.

For my HDD incident, I had to unplug the other HDD.

I never had an issue like this with XP's installer. Looks like a regression in the installer of Vista and later.

 

[EarthDog]

The new Windows installer, for Vista and later has an issue where it you have 2 HDDs connected, then the installer refuses to let you install Windows to any HDD!
(Probably SSD, too)

What? No. I do this constantly with an SSD and a HDD, or an SSD and two HDD's.

Also, awfully hard to install a RAID setup with only one drive attached, no?

 

[benj1290]

Sometimes when creating the raid you have to initialize the drives it order for it to raid, when you are at the ctrl+i screen is there any options for that?

Also in that I understand that it says non-raid disk for the SSD, but is there anywhere on the screen that says virtual disks? if so is there anything listed in there?

When you make the raid itself there's all kinds of different screens so I'm not 100% on what yours looks like, but for most that i have worked with when you go into the raid config screen you will choose the disks by pressing the Spacebar and then it will check with a [X] next to that drive, you would choose the drives that you want to raid (the 2 SSD).

Not 100% if thats what you have done and its still getting the error.

 

[RJARRRPCGP]

What? No. I do this constantly with an SSD and a HDD, or an SSD and two HDD's.

Also, awfully hard to install a RAID setup with only one drive attached, no?

That won't happen in RAID mode. This occurs when you want the drives to be regular independent drives. This only appiles to non-RAID modes.

When the installer sees more than one non-RAID HDD, (or SSD) in normal drive mode, then it acts strange, it then won't let you install to any HDD (or SSD) in the list!

This bug was spotted on my Acer Aspire M5630 desktop. My Acer Aspire M5630 don't have AHCI. Thus, always looks like old school IDE to Windows installers.

My Acer Aspire M5630 currently has Precise Puppy 5.4.3 with a custom 3.4.29 RT kernel. (I compiled the kernel)