SSD (with Win7) not in boot priority list

[themilkynutball]

OS: Windows 7
MB: ASUS SABERTOOTH x79

So the problem I'm having is that, in order for my computer to boot into windows 7 I must enter the BIOS and select my SSD from the 'boot menu' list. This is because my BIOS doesn't recognize that my SSD is even an option for booting. If I look in my 'Boot Priority' list, all that shows up is my CD drive or my HD. Luckily, if I select 'Boot Menu' I can select the SSD.

Interestingly, when I enter the BIOS, and go into 'advanced mode', and go to 'BOOT', and check my options for booting, there are three options.

- My HD
- My optical drive
- 'Disabled' (perhaps this is the SSD?)

Anyways, this didn't always used to happen - before my SSD would show up in the boot priority list. I recently updated my BIOS - my guess is this is what caused the changed. That, OR, the way I installed the BIOS was a little wonky (it was my first time), and during the installation of me tinkering with things might have screwed something up (tried flashing the BIOS unsuccessfully).

Any ideas?

 

[ronintexas]

First thing I would do is unplug the SATA cables for all drives. Then, make sure the SSD is plugged into the first SATA port, and try to go into the BIOS and see if it is recognized as a boot drive. If no, try another port. Do this until the SSD is recognized.

Next, plug in the hard drive into the next SATA port, check in BIOS to make sure it is recognized as a boot drive - set it to #2. If both drives aren't recognized, change the port on the HDD.

Next, add the optical drive using the same method - all three should be present, set to boot in the order you want.

Disabled means that it won't boot....

 

[themilkynutball]

Thanks for the quick reply. I will try this method out soon. I get that disabled means that it won't boot, but I wonder why I can still access windows 7 when I click my SSD in the boot menu? Very strange...

Anyways, I'll report back when I try this out.

 

[MC_K7]

Usually I put the SSD (or boot drive) in the SATA 0 (or first SATA port).

Do you have other HDD plugged in as well? Check all your BIOS options or read your full BIOS manual. I know some BIOS have a section where you can see the boot options and you can select only 1 device for booting for each category. For instance if you have multiple hard drives and multiple CD-ROMs, you can select only 1 of each designed for booting (Same thing could happen if you have 2 optical drives).

 

[infected22]

There is a HDD priority list in one of the option.

Apart from Boot priority there is a HDD priority in the HDD options

 

[themilkynutball]

There is a HDD priority list in one of the option.

Apart from Boot priority there is a HDD priority in the HDD options

I did not manage to find this anywhere in the BIOS.

Usually I put the SSD (or boot drive) in the SATA 0 (or first SATA port).

Do you have other HDD plugged in as well? Check all your BIOS options or read your full BIOS manual. I know some BIOS have a section where you can see the boot options and you can select only 1 device for booting for each category. For instance if you have multiple hard drives and multiple CD-ROMs, you can select only 1 of each designed for booting (Same thing could happen if you have 2 optical drives).

I have only one HD, one SSD, and one optical drive. I've looked through the manuals and as much as I know this shouldn't give me many problems?

I haven't tried ronintexas's solution yet (haven't had time), but perhaps this is a helpful clue... Whenever I turn on the computer, I get a quick flash of a screen AFTER the motherboard splash screen that interestingly spits some information about my SSD... I couldn't get all the info down because it flashes so quick but here's what I got:

[cpp]"Marvell 88SE91xx Adapter - BIOS Version (cut off)
PCIe xt 5.06Gbps
Mode: CPU AHC1
Physical Disk
ID Disk Name
0 SSD SAMSUNG SSD 830 Series




Press <Ctrl>+<M> to enter BIOS Setup or <Space> to enter Marvell setup (I think that's what it says it was cut off)
[/cpp]

 

[themilkynutball]

First thing I would do is unplug the SATA cables for all drives. Then, make sure the SSD is plugged into the first SATA port, and try to go into the BIOS and see if it is recognized as a boot drive. If no, try another port. Do this until the SSD is recognized.

Next, plug in the hard drive into the next SATA port, check in BIOS to make sure it is recognized as a boot drive - set it to #2. If both drives aren't recognized, change the port on the HDD.

Next, add the optical drive using the same method - all three should be present, set to boot in the order you want.

Disabled means that it won't boot....

Sorry for the delay in replying... I just tried your method, ronintexas's, and it didn't quite work but I discovered new information that could potentially help? Firstly, let me explain what I did. I unplugged ALL my SATA cables from the motherboard, and ONLY kept my SSD SATA cable installed. It wasn't recognized as a boot priority disk (although if I went into 'boot menu' it was recognizable). I tried putting it in port #2, and I got the same results. Interestingly, I re-discovered that my SSD uses a 6GB/s SATA port, as opposed to my other drives (HD, Optical) which use 3GB/s. Because of this, I only have two options when connecting my SSD to my motherboard - both of which produced the same results.

What I'm starting to think is this is a software issue, not a hardware one. Before any boot, something along the lines of "SSD SAMSUNG - 6gb/s - unconfigured" flashes for a second which is a big hint.. I guess I just need to 'configure' the drive - how I do that is still not clear to me? Are there drivers I need to install? My guess is my recent BIOS update did something to mess with this...

Anyways, appreciate all the help guys.

 

[ronintexas]

I took a look at the config of the mobo, here is what they have:
Intel® X79 chipset : (Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10)
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), brown
4 x SATA 3Gb/s port(s), black
Marvell® PCIe 9128 controller :
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray

Based on this, plugging the SSD into the gray SATA connector, and the hard drives into the brown connectors, and any optical drives into the black connectors should be the optimum way to configure the system.

You should setup the drives in AHCI. There are actually 3 BIOS screens - the mobo BIOS, the Intel RAID, and the Marvel PCIe 9128 controller BIOS. To properly configure the drives, the hard drives should be setup in the Intel RAID chipset BIOS, and the SSD in the Marvel PCIe 9128 BIOS, then your ASUS BIOS should recognize the drives.

 

[themilkynutball]

I took a look at the config of the mobo, here is what they have:
Intel® X79 chipset : (Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10)
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), brown
4 x SATA 3Gb/s port(s), black
Marvell® PCIe 9128 controller :
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray

Based on this, plugging the SSD into the gray SATA connector, and the hard drives into the brown connectors, and any optical drives into the black connectors should be the optimum way to configure the system.

You should setup the drives in AHCI. There are actually 3 BIOS screens - the mobo BIOS, the Intel RAID, and the Marvel PCIe 9128 controller BIOS. To properly configure the drives, the hard drives should be setup in the Intel RAID chipset BIOS, and the SSD in the Marvel PCIe 9128 BIOS, then your ASUS BIOS should recognize the drives.

Thanks for the reply, Ronin. Because of you I discovered 2 new SATA ports on my mobo that are compatible with my SSD - but plugging into either didn't change anything. Despite that, I accessed my MARVEL BIOS by pressing "Ctrl+M" before startup, and saw something interesting - Here's a pic:

As you can see, it displays my SSD and labels it as 'unconfigured'. So I just gotta configure it right? Problem is, if I hit 'Enter Operation' it says it will erase all the content on the SSD - which has all my windows 7 files on it (I boot from my SSD). So, is the only solution to backup my SSD onto my HD, 'configure' it within MARVEL BIOS, and then put the data back on? That seems odd considering I can still access windows 7 (albeit only manually through the BIOS).

 

[ronintexas]

You can use Acronis ( http://www.acronis.com/products/tryorbuy.html ) true Image 2013 (try if for free) to create an image of the SSD, then "Enter Operation", formatting the drive for proper operation, then restore the image. There are several other packages out there if you want to google it...but this is really easy to use.

Once it is setup, the problems will be gone!

 

[themilkynutball]

You can use Acronis ( http://www.acronis.com/products/tryorbuy.html ) true Image 2013 (try if for free) to create an image of the SSD, then "Enter Operation", formatting the drive for proper operation, then restore the image. There are several other packages out there if you want to google it...but this is really easy to use.

Once it is setup, the problems will be gone!

Ok - despite how terrifying the prospect of losing all my data I'm going to give this a go! This might be a stupid question, but once the SSD is 'configured' in Marvel, do I have to restore the image in the BIOS using my HD (1.5TB)? Is this a relatively straightforward process? I'm just worried I won't get it back

 

[ronintexas]

You can use Acronis ( http://www.acronis.com/products/tryorbuy.html ) true Image 2013 (try if for free) to create an image of the SSD, then "Enter Operation", formatting the drive for proper operation, then restore the image. There are several other packages out there if you want to google it...but this is really easy to use.

Once it is setup, the problems will be gone!

Ok - despite how terrifying the prospect of losing all my data I'm going to give this a go! This might be a stupid question, but once the SSD is 'configured' in Marvel, do I have to restore the image in the BIOS using my HD (1.5TB)? Is this a relatively straightforward process? I'm just worried I won't get it back

The hard drive should be ok - you aren't setting it up in RAID. The SSD is a bit more picky for some reason.

 

[themilkynutball]

You can use Acronis ( http://www.acronis.com/products/tryorbuy.html ) true Image 2013 (try if for free) to create an image of the SSD, then "Enter Operation", formatting the drive for proper operation, then restore the image. There are several other packages out there if you want to google it...but this is really easy to use.

Once it is setup, the problems will be gone!

Ok - despite how terrifying the prospect of losing all my data I'm going to give this a go! This might be a stupid question, but once the SSD is 'configured' in Marvel, do I have to restore the image in the BIOS using my HD (1.5TB)? Is this a relatively straightforward process? I'm just worried I won't get it back

The hard drive should be ok - you aren't setting it up in RAID. The SSD is a bit more picky for some reason.

Sorry - what I'm asking is, once I have the disk image backed up on my HD (1.5TB), what is the process of loading the image back on to the SSD (which will now be wiped of all data)? I've googled around but each solution seems to assume the user is logged into windows 7. Is there any way to re-load the image back to my SSD in the BIOS? Sorry for the confusion.

 

[ronintexas]

Create Rescue Disc: http://www.acronis.com/company/inpress/2007/03-15-boot-loader-2.html

To Restore: http://www.acronis.com/company/inpress/2007/03-15-boot-loader-6.html

 

[themilkynutball]

Create Rescue Disc: http://www.acronis.com/company/inpress/2007/03-15-boot-loader-2.html

To Restore: http://www.acronis.com/company/inpress/2007/03-15-boot-loader-6.html

Thanks for the helpful links, Ronin... Unfortunately, I've run into another problem. In the MARVEL SETUP, when I select my SSD and hit enter to delete the data, and hit "Y" (to indicate I really want to erase the config data), nothing seems to happen. It simply blinks back to the original menu and says my drive is STILL "unconfigured". I tried tinkering around by pressing enter on the top selection ("HBA: 0 MARVEL: 0") but it requires that I select two drives (only the SSD is available).

This problem definitely seems to be getting more complicated...

EDIT: I just tried updating my Marvell drivers and it didn't resolve anything.

EDIT2: I just re-plugged my SSD SATA into the Intel 6GB/s slot... Interestingly, I don't get access to the MARVEL BIOS anymore... Issue still not resolved though - I still need to use 'Boot Override' to get into windows 7.

 

[ronintexas]

I had an issue similar on one of the builds at work. I had to configure it in the non-Intel ports, I had to tinker with the settings to get it done. Took a while to figure it out. If I remember correctly, once you set it up, you had to reboot, and re-enter the setup for the BIOS again to ensure the changes were done properly. I think it took about 200 reboots to get it done....

I just read up on the Marvell® PCIe 9128 card - try switching the Hard Drive and SSD (SSD-Brown and HDD-Gray), and then try to configure (use AHCI for the SSD). I found this information on the ASUS forums - and they were using the same SSD you have.

 

[themilkynutball]

I just read up on the Marvell® PCIe 9128 card - try switching the Hard Drive and SSD (SSD-Brown and HDD-Gray), and then try to configure (use AHCI for the SSD). I found this information on the ASUS forums - and they were using the same SSD you have.

I did this, but when I go into the MARVEL BIOS (Ctrl+M), only my HD is recognized (because that's the one in the MARVEL-SATA), and so I have the option to 'configure' that (which we don't want, correct?).

Strangely, the issue is resolved (sort of)! Here's what I did after getting your comment, Ronin. I switched the SSD/HD and went into the MARVEL BIOS and encountered the issue I just mentioned above. After this, I unplugged everything besides the SSD SATA, and tried configuring that again in the MARVEL BIOS (had the issue of it 'not doing anything'). I then tried the second port, and tried to configure, but encountered the same issue of it not doing anything.

After this, I simply plugged my blue-ray SATA/HDD Sata back in the ports, turned on the computer and went into the BIOS. In the 'basic' view, my SSD did not show up... I went into the advanced view, and checked the boot options... I hit option 1 to access the dropdown menu, and my SSD showed up! This is weird, because before it said 'disabled'. After doing this, the computer boots into windows 7 like normal. I still get the "MARVEL SPLASH SCREEN" which indicates that my SSD is 'unconfigured' but that doesn't appear to hinder the fact that I can boot directly from my SSD.

In summary, despite the fact that my SSD is 'unconfigured' in the MARVEL BIOS, and plugged into the MARVEL SATA PORT, I can still boot directly into it? Weird? I don't understand it but I'm not complaining...

I probably should've mentioned this earlier, but I just remembered specifically how this problem was caused. I wanted to update my BIOS, and I tried 'flashing my BIOS' but pressing the button on my MOBO (with a flash drive connected to the port with the appropriate BIOS update file). As per instructions, I was told to wait for a blinking light which would indicate that the BIOS was updating - but it never did... I remember pressing the flash button a few times, and nothing happened. After this I remember this problem occurring (of my SSD being 'unconfigured'). After this, I updated my BIOS - with a different method, which worked.

So my best guess is that the button I pressed activated something, or messed with the Marvel SATA drivers or something. It's a little unnerving that my SSD is still 'unconfigured' but again - I'm not complaining! If anyone has any insight on this, that's great - if not, thanks for all the help!

 

[ronintexas]

It is "unconfigured" because it isn't part of a RAID array. It is configured in the fact that it can be used. You don't want it to be a RAID array for your configuration. You should be good to go!

 

[Pamela_5]

I took a look at the config of the mobo, here is what they have:
Intel® X79 chipset : (Support Raid 0, 1, 5, 10)
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), brown
4 x SATA 3Gb/s port(s), black
Marvell® PCIe 9128 controller :
2 x SATA 6Gb/s port(s), gray

Based on this, plugging the SSD into the gray SATA connector, and the hard drives into the brown connectors, and any optical drives into the black connectors should be the optimum way to configure the system.

You should setup the drives in AHCI. There are actually 3 BIOS screens - the mobo BIOS, the Intel RAID, and the Marvel PCIe 9128 controller BIOS. To properly configure the drives, the hard drives should be setup in the Intel RAID chipset BIOS, and the SSD in the Marvel PCIe 9128 BIOS, then your ASUS BIOS should recognize the drives.

Thanks man, i had the exact same problem with same mobo. Plugging into the grey slot worked for me.

 

[Patrick_85]

There is a HDD priority list in one of the option.

Apart from Boot priority there is a HDD priority in the HDD options

I did not manage to find this anywhere in the BIOS.

Usually I put the SSD (or boot drive) in the SATA 0 (or first SATA port).

Do you have other HDD plugged in as well? Check all your BIOS options or read your full BIOS manual. I know some BIOS have a section where you can see the boot options and you can select only 1 device for booting for each category. For instance if you have multiple hard drives and multiple CD-ROMs, you can select only 1 of each designed for booting (Same thing could happen if you have 2 optical drives).

I have only one HD, one SSD, and one optical drive. I've looked through the manuals and as much as I know this shouldn't give me many problems?

I haven't tried ronintexas's solution yet (haven't had time), but perhaps this is a helpful clue... Whenever I turn on the computer, I get a quick flash of a screen AFTER the motherboard splash screen that interestingly spits some information about my SSD... I couldn't get all the info down because it flashes so quick but here's what I got:

[cpp]"Marvell 88SE91xx Adapter - BIOS Version (cut off)
PCIe xt 5.06Gbps
Mode: CPU AHC1
Physical Disk
ID Disk Name
0 SSD SAMSUNG SSD 830 Series




Press <Ctrl>+<M> to enter BIOS Setup or <Space> to enter Marvell setup (I think that's what it says it was cut off)
[/cpp]

 

[Patrick_85]

If Asus board plugin to express port 1 or 2

 

[taurotech]

I had exactly the same issue. MoBo Asus AM1M-A AM1 Socket FS1b Micro-ATXI. Cloned OS from old drive to SSD using Acronis and all worked fine if I manually selected the SSD. SSD listed in UEFI BIOS as storage device but not listed in boot priority. What worked for me was to load optimized defaults. Rebooted and straight to windows loading logo. To confirm success shut down unplugged power plugged back in and powered on all good. Checked BIOS and SSD is listed in boot priority. Hope this helps someone.

 

[Minglewood]

There is a HDD priority list in one of the option.

Apart from Boot priority there is a HDD priority in the HDD options

Yes, I had the same problem after changing a power supply and had to disconnect everything. When putting it all back together, I realised that I had been using the 3MB ports for all four of my hard drives, and a 6MB port for the Optiarc DVD drive. This I saw after consulting with the manual. The layout is not intuitive, the 3MB ports being next to each other in the middle, and the 6MB ports being on the two outsides, one brown and one white. After starting up, it was trying to boot from one of my three 6TB storage drives, and in BIOS I had the same problem: the 480GB Sandisc with my OS did not show up in the initial boot priority list. I could only choose between the DVD drive and one of the 6TB hard drives. Finally, looking further down (you have to use the scrollbar on the right), I found secondary boot priority options for each of the either DVD or hard drive categories. There I could choose the Optiarc as the default for the optical drive, and the Sandisc as the default for the hard drive. Then going back a step, I disabled the third boot option. Since then, no problems, except I don't see on startup anymore the list of internal drives like I did before.