Multiple drives locked?

[Bernie_Mooney]

I had a crash on my Win 10 machine. I borrowed an HD with WIN10 from a friend to make a recovery disk and it said drive locked. SO, I swapped out a few different HDs and tried to do a reset and received the same message. They can't all be locked because I got the same message on a working HD. I used a usb stick. Any ideas?

 

[Colif]

i expect the hard drives should work in friends PC still, your bios may recognise the install isn't your drive and lock it for protection.

why did you borrow a hdd to make recovery disc? you should have asked him to make the USB? You can't expect windows 10 to just work if you put it in another PC,

Is there anything on your original drive you want to save? ? try making this on another PC: http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/use-ubuntu-live-cd-to-backup-files-from-your-dead-windows-computer/ - just in case we can't unlock it.

If the drive you are trying to reset is the original drive, here is how to unlock an install - http://www.thewindowsclub.com/the-drive-where-windows-is-installed-is-locked

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

Thanks, I'll check out your links. The thing is the HD he gave me works fine. I just used it to to create a recovery USB and put my HD back in. The bios should recognize it, no? And if he created the recovery on his PC would I still have the problem? The idea of using his HD was that if one thing didn't work I could try other things without having to go back to him.

Oh I should mention that I made a USB recovery on another friend's PC and that didn't work

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

Okay. Somehow I managed to create a disc using media creation tool and then it said that it couldn't install due to GBT or whatever. There already is a copy of Windows on there. so WTH? Then I hooked the drive as a slave and was able to copy the data off it and then I deleted a folder and created a new one so I don't know what this whole "locked" business is all about. I do not want to get a new drive and pay for another copy of win10

 

[Colif]

If you want to fresh install win 10 on the drive now you have copied everything off it, go through the process you already have and when you get to screen where you got the GPT error, delete all the partitions on the hdd and click next and win 10 should create 4 new partitions and continue the install.

What happened was win 10 recognised your motherboard has an UEFI bios and win 10 wants to use GPT format on the drive, and the error isn't written in a clear enough way to show you what it wants you to do. Your old drive may have been an update from win 7 and used MBR format on the drives. Win 8 & 10 use GPT, the main advantage being it can use hard drives bigger than 2tb, MBR cannot.

You wouldn't need a new copy of win 10 to install it on a new hdd in a PC that has already had win 10 on it. You have a digital entitlement to always install win 10 on that PC again. when you reach screen asking for licence now, click "I don't have a key" and win 10 will continue install and reactivate itself once finished. A record of your PC, possibly your email address, and your old licence are recorded on a Microsoft server. Win 10 checks that server to confirm you can install win 10 on that PC.

this guide might have helped: : http://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-windows-10-clean-install.html

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

If you want to fresh install win 10 on the drive now you have copied everything off it, go through the process you already have and when you get to screen where you got the GPT error, delete all the partitions on the hdd and click next and win 10 should create 4 new partitions and continue the install.

What happened was win 10 recognised your motherboard has an UEFI bios and win 10 wants to use GPT format on the drive, and the error isn't written in a clear enough way to show you what it wants you to do. Your old drive may have been an update from win 7 and used MBR format on the drives. Win 8 & 10 use GPT, the main advantage being it can use hard drives bigger than 2tb, MBR cannot.

You wouldn't need a new copy of win 10 to install it on a new hdd in a PC that has already had win 10 on it. You have a digital entitlement to always install win 10 on that PC again. when you reach screen asking for licence now, click "I don't have a key" and win 10 will continue install and reactivate itself once finished. A record of your PC, possibly your email address, and your old licence are recorded on a Microsoft server. Win 10 checks that server to confirm you can install win 10 on that PC.

this guide might have helped: : http://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-windows-10-clean-install.html

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

Thank you. Why yes, it was an upgrade from 7. Thanks again

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

If you want to fresh install win 10 on the drive now you have copied everything off it, go through the process you already have and when you get to screen where you got the GPT error, delete all the partitions on the hdd and click next and win 10 should create 4 new partitions and continue the install.

What happened was win 10 recognised your motherboard has an UEFI bios and win 10 wants to use GPT format on the drive, and the error isn't written in a clear enough way to show you what it wants you to do. Your old drive may have been an update from win 7 and used MBR format on the drives. Win 8 & 10 use GPT, the main advantage being it can use hard drives bigger than 2tb, MBR cannot.

You wouldn't need a new copy of win 10 to install it on a new hdd in a PC that has already had win 10 on it. You have a digital entitlement to always install win 10 on that PC again. when you reach screen asking for licence now, click "I don't have a key" and win 10 will continue install and reactivate itself once finished. A record of your PC, possibly your email address, and your old licence are recorded on a Microsoft server. Win 10 checks that server to confirm you can install win 10 on that PC.

this guide might have helped: : http://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-windows-10-clean-install.html

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

If you want to fresh install win 10 on the drive now you have copied everything off it, go through the process you already have and when you get to screen where you got the GPT error, delete all the partitions on the hdd and click next and win 10 should create 4 new partitions and continue the install.

What happened was win 10 recognised your motherboard has an UEFI bios and win 10 wants to use GPT format on the drive, and the error isn't written in a clear enough way to show you what it wants you to do. Your old drive may have been an update from win 7 and used MBR format on the drives. Win 8 & 10 use GPT, the main advantage being it can use hard drives bigger than 2tb, MBR cannot.

You wouldn't need a new copy of win 10 to install it on a new hdd in a PC that has already had win 10 on it. You have a digital entitlement to always install win 10 on that PC again. when you reach screen asking for licence now, click "I don't have a key" and win 10 will continue install and reactivate itself once finished. A record of your PC, possibly your email address, and your old licence are recorded on a Microsoft server. Win 10 checks that server to confirm you can install win 10 on that PC.

this guide might have helped: : http://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/1950-windows-10-clean-install.html

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

ACK! It got to 75% and failed. But it almost worked. Tried twice

 

[Colif]

Does it give any error codes or just fails?
Did you try another hdd - this would at very least remove drive as being the problem.

Fixes I have found for 75% install fails (most of the time it fails there is during an upgrade and I assume you did a fresh install, so much of the advice is not worth typing like close AV or update drivers when they aren't there now anyway)
- Disconnect any non essential hardware,
- use a wired mouse instead of wireless
- Update BIOS to latest version
- try making a new ISO and use different USB drive

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

Does it give any error codes or just fails?
Did you try another hdd - this would at very least remove drive as being the problem.

Fixes I have found for 75% install fails (most of the time it fails there is during an upgrade and I assume you did a fresh install, so much of the advice is not worth typing like close AV or update drivers when they aren't there now anyway)
- Disconnect any non essential hardware,
- use a wired mouse instead of wireless
- Update BIOS to latest version
- try making a new ISO and use different USB drive

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

It just fails, no error message. I find it interesting that after multiple tries it managed to get from 75% to 92% All your ideas a great but I have done them.

So this what I'm thinking. I do have a legit copy of 10, so if I can get a Win 10 disk from someone and install and then call MS would they give me a validation code? .? I'm on file as having a legit copy. This nonsense is already past absurd.

OH Christ. While I was writing this it went to 99% and then failed.

 

[Colif]

disconnect it from internet while you install, see if that helps it get past 99% - it shouldn't be this hard.

when you upgraded to win 10 from whatever was on it before, you got a digital entitlement to always install win 10 on PC again. So when you reach screen asking for a licence, just click "i don't have a key" and win 10 will continue install process and reactivate itself once it connects back up to servers later on. You don't need to call Microsoft, it should be done automatically

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

disconnect it from internet while you install, see if that helps it get past 99% - it shouldn't be this hard.

when you upgraded to win 10 from whatever was on it before, you got a digital entitlement to always install win 10 on PC again. So when you reach screen asking for a licence, just click "i don't have a key" and win 10 will continue install process and reactivate itself once it connects back up to servers later on. You don't need to call Microsoft, it should be done automatically

 

[Bernie_Mooney]

Thanks again. Your're right. It shouldn't be this hard. I appreciate you helping the dim, but well meaning guy.