Can't reinstall Windows… laptop's SSD not detected?

When I try to reinstall Windows, I get to the part where I’m supposed to select where to install it, but it only shows my USB drive (the one I’m using for the installation). It’s not detecting my laptop’s SSD. Any idea what to do next?

Changing BIOS or disk setup can lead to data loss. Make sure to back up your data before making changes.

Does your SSD show up in your BIOS? When you booted from your USB drive, did it give you options for UEFI vs. Legacy boot?

Kellen said:
Does your SSD show up in your BIOS? When you booted from your USB drive, did it give you options for UEFI vs. Legacy boot?

When I power on my laptop, I get a pop-up saying ‘default boot device missing or boot failed. Insert recovery media and hit any key, then select boot manager to choose a new boot device or to boot recovery media.’ It only gives me one option to click ‘ok.’

@Paxton
If it’s saying your default boot device is missing, unless you’ve formatted your SSD, it could have come loose or failed. Usually, even if Windows has issues, it should try to boot.

Kellen said:
@Paxton
If it’s saying your default boot device is missing, unless you’ve formatted your SSD, it could have come loose or failed. Usually, even if Windows has issues, it should try to boot.

How could it have come loose?

Kellen said:
@Paxton
If it’s saying your default boot device is missing, unless you’ve formatted your SSD, it could have come loose or failed. Usually, even if Windows has issues, it should try to boot.

Earlier, it was attempting to boot, but I kept getting different blue screen messages like ‘stop code: bad system config info’ and ‘stop code: critical process died.’

Kellen said:
@Paxton
If it’s saying your default boot device is missing, unless you’ve formatted your SSD, it could have come loose or failed. Usually, even if Windows has issues, it should try to boot.

Would command prompt be useful here?

@Paxton
I’m not sure how it could have come loose. Do you know if your SSD is SATA or NVMe? I wouldn’t start with the command prompt. Instead, try getting into your BIOS (usually by pressing the DEL key while booting) and check if your SSD shows up there.

@Kellen
It’s a Lenovo IdeaPad 5 with an NVMe SSD.

Paxton said:
@Kellen
It’s a Lenovo IdeaPad 5 with an NVMe SSD.

If your NVMe is easily accessible, you might try taking it out and putting it back to make sure it’s properly seated.

Kellen said:

Paxton said:
@Kellen
It’s a Lenovo IdeaPad 5 with an NVMe SSD.

If your NVMe is easily accessible, you might try taking it out and putting it back to make sure it’s properly seated.

No, it’s not easily accessible. I’d have to open up the laptop.

@Paxton
Then stick with checking the BIOS. See if it detects the SSD. That way, we’ll know if it’s working or not. If the SSD doesn’t show up, it might be loose or dead.

Kellen said:
@Paxton
Then stick with checking the BIOS. See if it detects the SSD. That way, we’ll know if it’s working or not. If the SSD doesn’t show up, it might be loose or dead.

Can you guide me on how to check that in BIOS? Thanks.

@Paxton
If the SSD isn’t detected in BIOS, it could mean a physical issue or a deeper problem. You might need to check the hardware or get some help opening the laptop to check the SSD connection.

Check your BIOS (usually pressing F2 or ESC when the laptop starts) and see if your SSD shows up in the hardware list (not just the boot list). If it’s missing, it might be dead or disconnected.

If it’s there but doesn’t show during setup, it might be an issue with Intel RST (VMD mode), which requires specific drivers during setup.

@Shan
In the information tab, it’s showing my NVMe SSD (Samsung).

Paxton said:
@Shan
In the information tab, it’s showing my NVMe SSD (Samsung).

@Shan
Yeah, my BIOS doesn’t have this option.

Paxton said:
@Shan
Yeah, my BIOS doesn’t have this option.

What’s the exact laptop model? (Not just ‘IdeaPad 5,’ but a detailed model like ‘14ALC05’).