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July 17th, 2025 20:38
Cannot install Windows 11 on an Inspiron 14 laptop
I have been attempting to install Windows 11 onto an Inspiron 14 2-in-1 laptop. It seems to be impossible to do so.
The installer is unable to see the SSD that is in the laptop. The Window that should enable selection of where I might want to install Windows shows the message "We couldn't find any drives. To get a storage driver, click load driver".
I have tried a number of things:
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I tried a scan of my media for a driver. The scan found nothing.
I tried to use DiskPart to reformat the disk to NTFS. This did not change anything.
I tried to use DiskPart to reformat the drive to use FAT32. DiskPart failed, saying that the disk was too large (!)
I tried downloading a VMD RST driver from Dell's site and put it on a USB thumb drive. I then browsed to the drive when installing. I found one driver that was compatible with the Inspiron 2-in-1. I selected it and installed it -- but I am still not seeing any disks on the drive selection window.
Can someone tell me how I can get this machine to see my SSD?
ejn63
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July 17th, 2025 20:51
It would help to know the exact system model (Inspiron 5423, etc.), but if it's a newer system, the SSD is likely running in Intel RST (IRST/RAID) mode, meaning you need to pause the installation when indicated and point toward a flash drive with the Intel RST driver on it.
Some systems can have IRST deactivated, but newer ones cannot.
More details require knowing the system model.
https://www.dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000148150/how-to-install-the-storage-controller-f6-driver-during-the-windows-installation-setup-process
(edited)
factor3
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July 18th, 2025 04:17
@ejn63 :
Thank you for your response.
The machine is an Inspiron 14 7430 2-in-1 laptop.
Its BIOS apparently does not have any way to turn on or off a VMD or a RAID mode, and as it turns out, the driver(s) that I acquired for the SSD are compatible with 5*** Dell laptops, but not (newer?) 7*** laptops.
Which explains why the VMD driver that I installed on my machine did not work.
Apparently, I am either going to have to find a proprietary drive for this machine, or a driver that is compatible with a 7430 laptop.
Any ideas?
GauravSyst
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July 18th, 2025 09:18
Well I will suggest you to check the following thread: https://www.dell.com/community/en/conversations/inspiron/how-can-i-install-windows-11-on-unsupported-cpu/67e64f36350db56843a3cb03
ejn63
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July 18th, 2025 10:52
The Intel rapid storage driver is here
https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/drivers/driversdetails?driverid=mk0y4&oscode=wt64a&productcode=precision-16-7670-laptop
There is nothing proprietary about the drive itself - it is a standard NVMe drive.
The generic Intel F6 driver will also do the job.
factor3
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July 18th, 2025 14:42
@ejn63
I went to the link you suggested and downloaded the driers. I also extracted the drivers and put them on a USB thumb drive.
I started up the installation on my 7430 laptop, and when the time came I installed the VMD driver.
It did not work. I am still getting the empty drive window.
I will download the Intel F6 driver and will see if it works...
factor3
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July 18th, 2025 16:03
@ejn63
It turns out that none of the F6 drivers are compatible with the Inspiron 7430 2-in-1. None of them work.
I am back to square 1.
(edited)
ejn63
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July 18th, 2025 16:27
What version of Windows 11 (24H2 etc) and how was the boot media prepared?
Did the system ship with Windows or some other OS from the factory?
factor3
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July 19th, 2025 14:30
@ejn63
Actually, I got it to work.
It turns out that the F6 drivers I had were all RAID drivers. I went back to Intel's site and looked specifically for F6 VMD drivers. I found a setupRTL.exe file, downloaded it, and extracted its drivers from it. The VMD driver worked.
Thank you for your help. I would not have succeeded without it.