I am trying to install Windows 10 Pro on a Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 drive. Sometimes the drive shows up in the UEFI and works perfectly, other times the UEFI does not see the drive. I am using an ASRock H270M-ITX motherboard which has NVMe support for the boot drive.

The motherboard has the latest UEFI version, and the drive has the latest firmware. No other drives are installed.

When the UEFI recognizes the drive, I am able to install windows successfully and boot into windows. When the UEFI does not recognize the drive, I can only boot to the UEFI (not Windows).

I found the only way to get the UEFI to recognize the drive is to execute this strange sequence in order (which I stumbled upon by trial and error):

1. Remove the M.2 drive
2. Boot to the UEFI
3. Insert the M.2 drive WITH THE UEFI RUNNING and the computer powered on
4. Reboot the computer from the UEFI
5. Now the UEFI sees the M.2 drive. Windows boots normally if windows is installed. Entering the UEFI shows the drive, and it shows up in the boot options.

After the UEFI recognizes the drive, I can restart over and over and the UEFI continue to recognize the drive. Windows boots normally. However, if I power down (shut down without a restart), then the UEFI no longer sees the M.2 drive. The only way to get the M.2 drive recognized after a shutdown is to start the numbered sequence above, which is to remove the M.2 drive, boot to UEFI , insert the drive, then restart from the UEFI .

I found this blog on Tom's Hardware recommending to disable Comparability Support Mode for UEFI, and I tried that. But it had no positive effect.

I have tried installing windows from a USB and a DVD, with the CSM mode on and off. These do not seem to matter.

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1 Answer

It turns out the solution was to upgrade the power supply. Perahps my 250 Watt power supply was enough power to start the motherboard, but not enough to power the M.2 drive from a cold boot.

ASRock tech support was very helpful. They suggested this as a solution right away, and it fixed my problem.

Edit: Commenter offers this analysis:

... the anemic power supply couldn't supply enough power during start up, with or without the drive, and the drive was just the most sensitive to the issue.

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