You just bought an SSD Drive, plugged and installed it happily, only to realize your BIOS does not recognize it. The experience is daunting and could leave you confused thinking about the origin of the problem.
If your BIOS can’t detect your SSD when on the setup screen, don’t fret. There are DIY workarounds you can explore to fix the problem. When you know the causes of this problem, solving it becomes easy.
This article will be everything you need to solve this problem. Follow this guide to save yourself the unnecessary troubles and stress of fixing your SSD not recognized by BIOS.
Are you ready?
ASUS BIOS Not Detecting SSD: Possible Causes
Before you jump to the troubleshooting methods, you must understand the likely causes of your SSD not being recognized by the BIOS. Below are the most common causes of this problem:
- Problem with Motherboard connector pin
- Malfunctioning or defective drive
- SSD driver not enabled in BIOS
- Improper connection of SATA power.
- Faulty data cords and SATA power
ASUS BIOS Not Detecting SSD: How To Fix
The troubleshooting methods we’ve provided below will address these possible causes. Ensure you follow these steps in the proper order and only stop when you’ve found the one that solves your SSD problem.
1. Preliminary Steps
There are some essential troubleshooting tips you should consider before delving into more complex ones. Follow the simple steps below:
- Ensure your device is plugged correctly and receives an adequate power supply.
- Check that the SSD is well connected without any loose connection
- Restart your device to resolve minor bugs, glitches, and one-time malfunctions.
Retry the connection and see if the BIOS can now detect the SSD.
2. Check SSD And Hardware Components
A defective hardware component can prevent BIOS from detecting the SSD. So, please inspect the SSD hardware components for any physical faults. Scrutinize all the corresponding ports and be confident they are working correctly.
Furthermore, switch between the SSD ports and see if BIOS detects it. You should only move on to other troubleshooting methods when you’re confident the hardware components are working correctly. You’ll save hours of diagnosis if you realize the SSD is plugged into a defective motherboard connector.
You can confirm all hardware components, including the power supply, with the steps below:
- Disconnect the SSD from the motherboard
- Clean the motherboard connector pins and SATA cable endings
- Inspect the PSU and ensure it has sufficient power to support additional drive
- Ensure that the motherboard port pins are not bent.
- Ensure there are no bends, curves, or creases in the cables.
- Try to reconnect the Sata cable on the motherboard. Double-check that the Sata Cable is correctly plugged.
- If the problem persists, try another SATA port of the power supply.
- Also, replace the faulty SATA Cable
3. Confirm BIOS Settings
Specific settings in the BIOS might be incorrect, thus, causing the BIOS not to recognize the SSD. For instance, you should enable CSM in BIOS settings.
Furthermore, if your Computer is set to memory or CPU overclocking, it may not detect the SSD or hard drive because of overclocking instability.
You should also configure the SSD settings in BIOS for easy detection. You can do all these settings with the simple steps we’ll provide below:
Enable CSM In BIOS settings
- After powering the computer, press the Delete key to jump to the EZ mode.
- Click the F7 button to enter Advanced Mode
- Select Boot and then click on Launch CSM
- Now enable Launch CSM
- Click on F10 to save the settings you change
- Press Ok to reboot.
Afterward, confirm if your computer can now recognize the SSD. If it can’t, set BIOS to the default settings to remove overclocking with the steps below:
Set BIOS To Default Settings
- Press the Delete key immediately after your computer powers on to enter EZ mode
- Press the F5 button to enable the default setting in BIOS
- Click on the F10 button to save the BIOS settings
- Press OK to reboot your computer.
Confirm if the BIOS now detects your SSD. If it’s futile, you’ll need to configure the SSD settings in BIOS. The settings of the SATA controller mode may be incorrect. Hence, you’ll need to configure the SATA controller settings in BIOS.
- Press the F2 keys once your computer starts to boot. (After the first screen)
- Click on Enter menu to enter Config
- Click on Serial ATA and select Enter key
- The screen will display the SATA Controller Mode option. From the option, select the IDE compatibility Mode
Click OK and save the changes. Then, restart your laptop to enter BIOS. The BIOS should now detect the SSD.
4. Update System Drivers
Outdated or missing system drivers can cause BIOS not to detect SSD. This factor is most common when the motherboard and SSD driver are unavailable. So, ensure you update your device drivers accordingly.
You have multiple ways to update your device driver, but we recommend updating it manually through the ASUS website. Follow the steps below to update your system driver:
You can update your system driver from ASUS’s official website as follows:
- Go to the ASUS official website.
- Enter your Model Name in the search bar and click Enter
- When the search results display, choose the Support Option and then select the Drivers & Tools option
- Go to the Product Support site. Where you can download the system drivers.
- Choose the Drivers & Utility option from the product support site
- Press the Drivers & Tools tab
- Please choose your model name and navigate to the option to select the OS version you use
- Download the desired drivers and install them accordingly.
Now, check if your BIOS can now detect the SSD. If it doesn’t, perhaps you should format your SSD.
5. Formatting The SSD
Formatting the SSD can quickly fix the problem. It’s most convenient when using the SSD for the first time. Most users have reported that formatting worked well to resolve the issue. To conduct this procedure, you can follow the steps below:
- Search Run in the windows search bar and click on Enter
- A command menu will display, type in “disk mgmt.msc” and click on Enter. The Disk Management menu will appear on the screen
- Now locate the SSD and right-click on it
- From the option, choose Format
- Choose the suitable format drive options and run the process
When the process is complete, please reboot your laptop and check if the BIOS can now recognize the SSD.
6. Contact Manufacturer Support
If none of the above steps could resolve your SSD problem, do not hesitate to seek the help of a professional or contact your manufacturer’s support for further diagnosis.