Unable to install Windows 7 on new SSD

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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Hey guys.

I am unable to install Windows 7 Home Premium on my new Samsung SSD 840 EVO.

What I do: I remove my old SSD and replace it with the new, insert the Windows CD, set boot order to 1. CD, 2. the SSD.
What happens: I go past BIOS just fine, but then find myself stuck at a screen telling me there's no bootable device/media.

I have tested my CD driver. It plays movies just fine, and I've used the Windows 7 CD in the past and it works on my old SSD. I even burnt another one, but no progress.

Random Sidenotes:
- My computer randomly fails to recognize and detect my old SSD on startup. It will typically fail to detect it, but when it does detect it it boots just fine.
- With my old SSD, my computer is unable to shut down normally. It will stall at shutting down, before going BSOD minutes later. It has changed to black screen lately, but the BSOD beep still comes as the comp is still running. I've theorized that this is due to old driver files still on the old SSD which was sysprepped from a previous system.

My mobo is a MPower 87Z. My BIOS is 1.0.
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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10,510
Sorry about the inactivity, t'was the season and it kept me busy ;)



That would be a little problematic, because my last SSD is malfunctioning, which is the reason why I want to use this new SSD.

The problem with my old SSD is that it is randomly not detected by the system. From 1/5 to 1/20 times, it'll fail to be detected by the system during boots, and will only work at random.
When it fails to detect it, the SSD will not show up in the BIOS boot order, and when I go past BIOS I'll enter a black screen telling me to insert a bootable media device or something along those lines.

I did manage to install the OS multiple times on it with my old build.

Though I believe, if memory serves me correctly, I once did start up the old(faulty) SSD with the Windows CD in earlier with this new system, and it went straight to resuming the system without initializing any OS installation, despite me being able to install W7 on the very same SSD in an older build.

Could it possibly be that it is the Mobo itself that is at fault?

It has 2 BIOSes on it.
Nr 1 has crashed and I have been unable to reset it. The machine starts but the screen is pitch black, and resocketing the battery doesn't work.
So I am using MPower's secondary BIOS nr. 2.

Also, my samsung SSD is completely fresh and unused. I received a CD with software alongside it. I'm not sure if I have to install it, considering that it needs to be in a running system in order for me to even install anything on it, but I need it already working to have a system.
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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When I attempt to install the OS, I can find the Optical Drive and the Samsung SSD without any problems in the BIOS.
With the Optical Drive as first pri, and the SSD as second BOOT pri, I continue with the system startup.

Afterwards, I stumble into the same black screen telling me that there is no bootable device :/
Re-inserting the Windows CD doesn't seem to do anything.
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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I actually have 2 burnt Windows 7 CDs that I use(I have no original CDs).

When I insert them into my laptop while it's running, the CD icon will immediately pop up with the Windows icon. I have also used one of the CDs in the past about a year ago to re-install Windows on my old build.

But as a question; if I have a CD in the optical drive, should the CD's program/media be shown in the Optical Drive's name in BIOS? Is there a way to tell the difference between an empty/undetected optical drive and a loaded/detected drive?

Also, is there a way to verify the integrity of the CD and its files in case it's not perfect?
 

The_IT_Guy

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May 29, 2013
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Be aware that an 'Upgrade' disk isn't the same as a full install disk. Win7 won't let your do a fresh install as it requires a previous OS to do the upgrade. What you could do is clone the OS from the old sdd to the new drive. There are several ways to do this: http://www.howtogeek.com/97242/how-to-migrate-windows-7-to-a-solid-state-drive/

Also, you should probably find out why the bluescreen crashes are happening. Use this program and whatever you see in red is a crash. Google the results to see what the issue really is that caused the BSOD: http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/blue_screen_view.html
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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Ideally, I'd like to avoid migrating any files from my old SSD, as I believe it is old drivers from an older build that's the cause of the BSOD.

I sysprepped my old SSD from one build over to a new one(the one I am currently using), which is when the BSODs began to occur.

When I could still see the BSOD, they reported to be of: DRIVER_POWER_STATE_FAILURE 0x0000009F

From what I was able to gather, they were presumably caused by some old drives on my old SSD that were leftovers from the old build that were causing the BSOD and preventing the computer from properly powering down.
They only occurred when I attempted to shut/power down/restart/hibernate/sleep the computer, while the computer ran perfectly fine otherwise.

I have been unable to locate any potentially faulty drivers responsible for the BSOD, despite manually uninstalling a lot of unessential programs and shutting down non-vital processes. I haven't attempted to enter Safe Mode and shut it down then.

This is with my old SSD, which makes it difficult for me to ever restart the system as the old SSD has a tendency to sometimes become invisible to the BIOS, making me unable to resume Windows on it for a random period of time, which could be all between just another restart or two to multiple days where it doesn't work.
Nothing I do seem to make a difference whether the old SSD will be detected or not when I attempt to boot. Altering BIOS, reseating RAM, cleaning out residual power or similar is no guarantee that it'll work. Sometimes, I can wait a day, and without any alteration, it'll suddenly work when previously it didn't. Other times I can try to start the computer more than 20 times and it'll never see the old SSD.
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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Thanks. I am currently away, but once I get home in a few days I'll check it out.

I've also decided to add a HDD to my new system in order to get more space. It'll be interesting to see if the Windows install starts up once I add a new HDD to the system.
It could also enable me to check and see if the problem doesn't lie with the SSD being faulty.
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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My new HDD should arrive somewhere around the coming weekend, so I will probably be able to post back with my findings in just a couple of days.

I might also try to update the BIOS to see if it makes a difference. Any tips/words of advice about that?(I haven't had to do it before)
 

sinerathin

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Dec 14, 2013
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Hey guys, Sinerathin here.

It turns out that both of my CDs were defunctional, despite one having worked for me in the past.

As the problem persisted even as I added my HDD to the system, I proceeded with making yet a third burned disc with the imageburn software, and this time; it worked, and so the Windows installation started as normal when I started the computer.

So the problem is solved :)