Why Microsoft Why?

Format _C:

2[H]4U
Joined
Jun 12, 2001
Messages
3,885
OK this sucks
I got a 500 GB SSD for Windows also had a 256GB SSD for "Hackintosh" use well I needed that for other uses well I take it out from the PC and now Windows will not boot? why I put Windows on the bigger one so I put it back in and it boots run start up repair "No problems found" remove it again no boot run start up repair "Please Select a drive with a Windows installation" as it find none.
OK how do I fix this so I can remove the SSD again? Other then a full reinstall how can I fix this
Thank You
 
My guess is the "boot" or essential element thereof, resided on the drive you pulled.

It's been a long long time, and way before UEFI, but I know I've repaired things similar to this. With that said, if the old drive is toasted, might be easier to just start again.
 
I recently did the same thing. Even though my EFI partition was on the main drive, it still wouldn't boot without that second drive.

I did all the deleting of the EFI partition and rebuilding the /boot folder and all that crap via command line and it didn't fix anything. It used to work well, but this time, no luck.

I never like to tell people to reinstall, but after hours of trying over two nights, I gave in
 
The drive is fine just needed it for other uses,
I guess a reinstall is easy as this is not my "main" PC if this was that would be a PITA to get back to my "normal" liking as I have tried to save my "Quick pins" on the explorer page and the quick launch (task bar) the icons are easy to fix but not the pins on the actual program. and my start menu or "start screen"
try as I might and read this for many hours did that and nothing I did actually works but this "extra" PC is not as bad.
 
My guess is the "boot" or essential element thereof, resided on the drive you pulled.

It's been a long long time, and way before UEFI, but I know I've repaired things similar to this. With that said, if the old drive is toasted, might be easier to just start again.

I recently did the same thing. Even though my EFI partition was on the main drive, it still wouldn't boot without that second drive.

I did all the deleting of the EFI partition and rebuilding the /boot folder and all that crap via command line and it didn't fix anything. It used to work well, but this time, no luck.

I never like to tell people to reinstall, but after hours of trying over two nights, I gave in
My name maybe Format C as I did that a lot in the Windows 95 - Windows 7 days when it was good to do once in awhile but 10 does not need this done as much and my "main" PC the Ryzen in my signature is quite the ordeal!
PS: using a flash drive to reinstall is much faster then the "Reset This PC" option
 
What pendragon1 said, for some reason, sometimes Windows 10 would put a small partition on a 2nd drive for no dam reason...I recall this happening a lot when SSD became more common. remove the 2nd drive, install windows with only the SSD connected you want to use.

Then, just use F12 to boot your hackintosh instead of taking drives in and out all the time
 
you had it in when you installed, so it plopped the boot files on it. macrium reflect can fix it, i think, its been a awhile...
edited speeling.

OK I'm back I reinstalled Winodws 10

What pendragon1 said, for some reason, sometimes Windows 10 would put a small partition on a 2nd drive for no dam reason...I recall this happening a lot when SSD became more common. remove the 2nd drive, install windows with only the SSD connected you want to use.

Then, just use F12 to boot your hackintosh instead of taking drives in and out all the time

This is my Dell Precision T1700 which has a neat UEFI (I guess true BIOS is no longer in use for modern PCs?) option that can hide a drive from the OS so I can just do that now when I want to use the other OS but the drive was needed for another PC and I don't actually use the Hackintosh that much.
 
For the record, when Windows is installed, it will put the boot stuff on what it *believes* is disk 0. In some systems this can be a bit ambiguous, like in my pre-NVME m.2 system it sets the m.2 to "SATA5/6" which of course is after everything else. When I did the original clean installation years ago I had to remove the extra storage drive until Windows was installed.

This isn't new behavior, it's done this for many years.
 
For the record, when Windows is installed, it will put the boot stuff on what it *believes* is disk 0. In some systems this can be a bit ambiguous, like in my pre-NVME m.2 system it sets the m.2 to "SATA5/6" which of course is after everything else. When I did the original clean installation years ago I had to remove the extra storage drive until Windows was installed.

This isn't new behavior, it's done this for many years.
My practice has been to use a partition manager to clear out free space on Disk 0 before doing a fresh Windows install, preferably at the beginning of this disk, and I note down the amount of free space. Then when I install Windows, and it prompts for an install location, I select that free space. This approach has always worked for me, even though I usually have a Drive D: (for all my data) on the same physical disk. All the same, I always disconnect the HDDs for my media storage and software downloads, for my backups.
 
I had a terrible time trying to install Win 10 after switching to all NVMe and SSD for my PC. I finally got it to work when I literally physically disconnected all of my drives except the target NVMe. Once there was only one drive, Win 10 installed flawlessly.
 
My practice has been to use a partition manager to clear out free space on Disk 0 before doing a fresh Windows install, preferably at the beginning of this disk, and I note down the amount of free space. Then when I install Windows, and it prompts for an install location, I select that free space. This approach has always worked for me, even though I usually have a Drive D: (for all my data) on the same physical disk. All the same, I always disconnect the HDDs for my media storage and software downloads, for my backups.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who does that I don't want to put my downloads documents & music and other stuff on the same partition so I usually make a 85GB for the OS (I should do more now as this is what I used since XP but Windows 10 uses most of that itself now!) and the rest is Data
However my main Ryzen build has the SSD all to the OS the rest of my drives are the spinning types 4 TB 6 TB and 2 1 TB drives

I attached the "This PC" page from my main Ryzen build

I had a terrible time trying to install Win 10 after switching to all NVMe and SSD for my PC. I finally got it to work when I literally physically disconnected all of my drives except the target NVMe. Once there was only one drive, Win 10 installed flawlessly.

I did this even though I could do the UEFI setting but I needed the drive else where so I had to pull it out anyway.
 

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Windows 10 uses most of that itself now!)
a fully updated w10 install is about 25GB but can be brought down to about 18-20GB.

yeah either a primary os partition or a separate drive are the best ways to not lose stuff.
 
I'm glad I'm not the only one who does that I don't want to put my downloads documents & music and other stuff on the same partition so I usually make a 85GB for the OS (I should do more now as this is what I used since XP but Windows 10 uses most of that itself now!) and the rest is Data
However my main Ryzen build has the SSD all to the OS the rest of my drives are the spinning types 4 TB 6 TB and 2 1 TB drives

[ .. ]
I have had separate partitiions for data, photos and videos, music, etc for years now. I use both a desktop at home and a laptop when travelling (mostly for my job). It's easy for me to keep both machines in sync for my drives D:, E: and F:. Also WHEN, not IF, Windows goes pear-shaped,I can either restore Windows or reload a fresh copy without worrying about data loss.

I should mention that I also back up separately (and sync) selected folders in \users for some program configs, notably Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop.

It may sound complicated to set up, but in practice it's easy enough to manage and provides me with peace of mind.

I should mention that my C: partition with just Windows and programs is 256 GB on my desktop and 160 GB on my laptop, and about half-full with programs, both with SSDs of course.
 
Yep I back important stuff up to many drives (pictures documents etc) less important stuff I back up at-least once or not at all as that would mean I would own 500 drives and I love the larger TB drives but not if it fails as all of my stuff gone from one failure! Less important stuff is music movies games etc I mean some can't be found online anymore so the ones I can't easily find again I do back those up.
Also I only use the online storage for stuff I don't care if someone else gets access to it like my JP1 remote configuration files and device upgrade I learned from my own remotes or ones I found for my stuff same with some pictures like screen shots that don't have personal information.
I wish it was easier to tell Windows where I want my data automatically in just one click
Also to get into the UEFI firmware it is like 10 clicks though many menus then one more for restart I can't get to it by F2 (Dell) or Delete (Ryzen Gigabyte) as they boot so fast and sometimes ever when pressed I don't do it fast enough!
 
I had a terrible time trying to install Win 10 after switching to all NVMe and SSD for my PC. I finally got it to work when I literally physically disconnected all of my drives except the target NVMe. Once there was only one drive, Win 10 installed flawlessly.
This is what you should always do as Windows does not let the user to decide anything during the installation process. It assumes that the user is an idiot and cannot be let to decide where the bootloader etc. goes. Most of the time it's true of course.
 
This is what you should always do as Windows does not let the user to decide anything during the installation process. It assumes that the user is an idiot and cannot be let to decide where the bootloader etc. goes. Most of the time it's true of course.
I hate this in previous versions of Windows it used to ask you to name the PC and I use that as I want to know which one is which and not just the default "DESKTOP-crazy stuff impossible to remember" name my spare PC that are prebuilt I name it the make and model if it can all fit and not get truncated "Precision-T1700" is my bedroom PC Asus-F512DA is my laptop FMTC is my "custom" built Ryzen PC not really custom as I did not make anything I just assembled it with off the shelf (Amazons shelf in this case LoL!) parts
I also don't sign in with my Microsoft account on the first screen as it names the users folder after my email I'd rather have it my real name. So yes the think most are idiots not us [H]ere I like to control the setup and options more like past versions did.
 
And it messed me up too. Long story short, my cat stepped on my surge protector and blew out my computer.

I think something happened to the PSU and it fried one of the SSDs in that machine (the one with Ubuntu on it). However, this also made it so my PC could not boot at all.

So I took it apart, got a few files off the Windows drive I wanted to keep, and then reformatted. Also replaced the motherboard and PSU and got a new case I wanted to buy for a while.

Probably could have got the machine working as is (maybe just with a new PSU) but it was a fun rebuild and only cost like $200. But it wouldn't have been as bad if the drives were independent.
 
And it messed me up too. Long story short, my cat stepped on my surge protector and blew out my computer.

I think something happened to the PSU and it fried one of the SSDs in that machine (the one with Ubuntu on it). However, this also made it so my PC could not boot at all.

So I took it apart, got a few files off the Windows drive I wanted to keep, and then reformatted. Also replaced the motherboard and PSU and got a new case I wanted to buy for a while.

Probably could have got the machine working as is (maybe just with a new PSU) but it was a fun rebuild and only cost like $200. But it wouldn't have been as bad if the drives were independent.
Does your surge protector have an on/off switch? If yes, replace it. Your cat probably accidentally tripped the power on and off real quick which can kill a computer. Don't ask how I know.
 
Yeah, she stepped on the power switch. Strange because that has happened before (and there have been short blackouts) and it was never a problem. But that time it did it.
 
And it messed me up too. Long story short, my cat stepped on my surge protector and blew out my computer.

I think something happened to the PSU and it fried one of the SSDs in that machine (the one with Ubuntu on it). However, this also made it so my PC could not boot at all.

So I took it apart, got a few files off the Windows drive I wanted to keep, and then reformatted. Also replaced the motherboard and PSU and got a new case I wanted to buy for a while.

Probably could have got the machine working as is (maybe just with a new PSU) but it was a fun rebuild and only cost like $200. But it wouldn't have been as bad if the drives were independent.
This why you invest in UPS......and Dogs.
 
I have had separate partitiions for data, photos and videos, music, etc for years now. I use both a desktop at home and a laptop when travelling (mostly for my job). It's easy for me to keep both machines in sync for my drives D:, E: and F:. Also WHEN, not IF, Windows goes pear-shaped,I can either restore Windows or reload a fresh copy without worrying about data loss.

I should mention that I also back up separately (and sync) selected folders in \users for some program configs, notably Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop.

It may sound complicated to set up, but in practice it's easy enough to manage and provides me with peace of mind.

I should mention that my C: partition with just Windows and programs is 256 GB on my desktop and 160 GB on my laptop, and about half-full with programs, both with SSDs of course.

This why you invest in UPS......and Dogs.

That will not help if the cat steps on the power switch of the UPS!
I remember years ago I was burning a CD when I was in high school as I was one of the first students to get a CD burner it basically got paid for by me making CDs for other students, even a teacher paid me to make him one LoL!
Well it was like 95% done and my Siamese cat stepped on the power strip.
I was mad but I loved the cat she was a rescue from a kitten mill so her previous life was hard she was forced to be a mother cat needless to say after she was rescued she lived a normal life and was 17 when she passed I hate how some people abuse animals these days I'd rather just hang out with my cat named "Jericho The Cat" (First middle , & last names)
I now have a power strip plugged into my UPS (please don't tell CyberPower LoL) it has a guard over the power switch.

I don't see what the big issue is of a power strip into a UPS as long as you don't overload the UPS and the branch circuit that both are plugged into which is a 20A circuit in my case with a NEMA 5-20R. I love the people on Amazon that call the NEMA 5-20P and "non-standard" plug standard yes common no just like the twist lock variets yes they are a standard common in homes no!
Anyway I don't mind dogs but I'd rather be owned by my cat who says Me-Ow!
He is a big bady he loves to be next to me he was also a rescue a stray that was hanging out by a friends house he said the house across the street had a fire and the owners boarded the house up and moved to Flordia this was about 2 years ago and this is when the cat started hanging out at his house there is quite a lot of cats there but the city has a new "TNR" (Trap Neuter/spay & Release) program so they get to live out the rest of their lives without making more and more cats every year I see this as a step in the right direction for the city and cats in the area.


Jericho_The_Cat.jpg
 
Here's a photo of the cat that killed my computer. She's too sweet to punish.

View attachment 350836
Aw how cute!

I'm back and as Britney Spears once said "Oops I did it again"
I got a new WD SN850 PCIe 4 x 4 Yay!
Anyway I left my old rotational storage drives connected and you know the rest LoL!
putting the boot partition on a spinning disk defeats the purpose of the SSD after all the SSD is for speed for booting and general stuff that the system needs to be able to get at fast!

In my desktop PCs I use the SSD for the Windows OS and programs only and a spinning disk for my music and other non OS/program stuff, however my laptops I use one bigger SSD I got a 1TB SSD for my Asus F512DA however I did find out it can use a normal SATA drive with an adapter I got one but the case won't close with my 500GB drive?

Anyway disk 0 is the drive it put the boot sector on a spinning disk in my case Disk 2 is the SSD damn Microsoft.
I know it is only 100MB but is there any way to remove that partition without having to format the drive and copy all of my stuff to another drive and then back?

Thank You,
I would think I would have learned by now :banghead:


Damn_It_Microsoft.jpg
 
This is why you always connect only the intended OS drive during install, and only connect other storage after the system is up to date and complete.......and own a dog.
 
This is why you always connect only the intended OS drive during install, and only connect other storage after the system is up to date and complete.......and own a dog.

Yep I know this now but I bet I'll forget next time LoL If I disable the SATA controller (in the UEFI) and turn off my external drives this should be sufficient correct?
As my SSD is not SATA it is an NMVE drive.
I hope there is never a day when the SATA controllers disappear from motherboards, oh the horror! 😡
I need my internal optical disc drives and my internal SATA hard drives as well!

Also no I'd rather have a cat own me then own a dog LoL


Jericho_The_Cat (2).jpg


Jericho_The_Cat.jpg
 
As long as Windows only sees the targeted drive, you are good. I am sure even if they do away with the SATA interface, there will be controller expansion cards to obtain legacy support.

A dog can almost as bad as a cat, or worse, depending on the breed. I live with a Belgian Malinios mix, that demands constant attention. They are a very "work" focused breed that is alway paying close attention to what you are doing, waiting for commands or to respond to any input, like DMA layer applications or something. If I move, he moves, if I stand up, he stands up. When I walk anywhere, he is literally in my hip pocket. Luckly he is a mix with Smooth Collie, so he is growing out of it a bit now that he's four years old. But sometimes I wish he was more like a cat, and just wanted to be left alone.
 
As long as Windows only sees the targeted drive, you are good. I am sure even if they do away with the SATA interface, there will be controller expansion cards to obtain legacy support.

A dog can almost as bad as a cat, or worse, depending on the breed. I live with a Belgian Malinios mix, that demands constant attention. They are a very "work" focused breed that is alway paying close attention to what you are doing, waiting for commands or to respond to any input, like DMA layer applications or something. If I move, he moves, if I stand up, he stands up. When I walk anywhere, he is literally in my hip pocket. Luckly he is a mix with Smooth Collie, so he is growing out of it a bit now that he's four years old. But sometimes I wish he was more like a cat, and just wanted to be left alone.

Well I hope the PCIE slots don't disappear as well but I don't think this will happen as they are used for video cards (since when did they start getting called a "GPU"?)
My cat is like this as well he won't leave me alone especially feeding time he is always in my way I tell him by you following me like this you slow me down feeding you (not like he understands this though!)
 
I just installed Win 10 recently, and it only installed on my M.2 drive (I have 2 M.2s and 2 SATA SSDs). Luckily I picked the right drive, since it didn't label them or anything and I wanted Windows on the specific drive.

It did not install boot loaders on any of the other drives, so it worked for me. But I have seen that happen on other systems I've used in the past.
 
My old install stuck the EFI partition on my WD Black "D" drive
After migrating from the sata ssd to the m.2 nvme, I couldn't get the system to boot. Did the same steps to create an EFI partition on the NVME as I had done a year ago on a friends machine
I was upgrading but it didn't work for me. Messed with it for a few hours and then I just went ahead and did a fresh install and spent the next day installing all my programs, settings, and games.

That was the first time doing a fresh install on my main machine since August of 2009 when I initially installed Windows 7 on it.

HAL-X100-Disk-Management-2-28-2021.jpg
 
I had a terrible time trying to install Win 10 after switching to all NVMe and SSD for my PC. I finally got it to work when I literally physically disconnected all of my drives except the target NVMe. Once there was only one drive, Win 10 installed flawlessly.
Quite ridiculous how antiquated the setup procedure still is. Like returning to Win95 times.
 
Quite ridiculous how antiquated the setup procedure still is. Like returning to Win95 times.
Um, well he had existing UEFI system partitions in place that the OS was picking up on, likely believing there was an existing install. It was a user error. The drives should have been properly reformatted prior to reconnecting to the system as secondary drives.
 
Um, well he had existing UEFI system partitions in place that the OS was picking up on, likely believing there was an existing install. It was a user error. The drives should have been properly reformatted prior to reconnecting to the system as secondary drives.
No it was an installer error to not let the user decide which disk is used for install. Period.
 
No it was an installer error to not let the user decide which disk is used for install. Period.
it does let you choose where the os goes, but not the boot loader stuff though. does any os? disconnecting non-os drives has been a basic to-do during install for ages.
 
No it was an installer error to not let the user decide which disk is used for install. Period.
I've always reinstalled my Windows OS with multiple disk attached to it and never had problems. But non have System Partitions on them.
 
I've always reinstalled my Windows OS with multiple disk attached to it and never had problems. But non have System Partitions on them.
The point is that the installer completely hides everything from the user. It's just a horrible design.
 
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