Hard Drive Not Found

Stephan Pringle Tuesday, February 9, 2016

If you see the hard drive not found error message when attempting to boot your Windows computer and need help fixing it, please try the following.

Check the BIOS
1. Power off and then power on the Windows computer.
2. Enter the BIOS by pressing the Setup Key during POST.
3. Check to see if “Enabled w/PXE” is selected for the NIC.
4. Switch the NIC to only Enabled and save the changes.
5. Exit the BIOS and watch the POST for errors.
6a. If the Windows Bootloader appears, the issue is solved.
6b. If the error remains, proceed to step 7 below.

Check the Hard Drive
7. Power off and disconnect the power cable on the computer.
8. Open up the computer and carefully save any screws.
9. Disconnect the data and power cable to the hard drive.
10. Check the cables for damages along with the hard drive.
11. Reconnect the data and power cable to the hard drive.
12. Leave the computer open and plug in the power cable.
13. Wait 10 seconds and power on the computer.
14a. If the Windows Bootloader appears, the issue is solved.
14b. If the error remains, proceed to step 15 below.

Check the BIOS
15. Verify the BIOS sees the drive and correct size.
16. Switch between LEGACY and UEFI/NORMAL if the drive was swapped.
17. Exit the BIOS and watch the POST for errors.
18a. If the Windows Bootloader appears, the issue is solved.
18b. If the error remains, proceed to step 19 below.

Test the Drive
19. Using a SATA to USB adapter, see if the drive is readable.
20. If the drive is not readable, it will need to be replaced.

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Stephan Pringle

Technology Support Specialist at Sipylus
About The Author: Stephan Pringle is an Information Technology Support Specialist. He covers hardware and software and provides tips for you to troubleshoot and repair issues on your own. In his spare time, he writes articles about the State of New York on his Hackintosh and HackBook and that has helped him to become the top contributor of the New York City section of Yahoo! Answers.
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Stephan Pringle

About The Author: Stephan Pringle is an Information Technology Support Specialist. He covers hardware and software and provides tips for you to troubleshoot and repair issues on your own. In his spare time, he writes articles about the State of New York on his Hackintosh and HackBook and that has helped him to become the top contributor of the New York City section of Yahoo! Answers.

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