The Windows installation isn't completing properly.
The Windows installation isn't completing properly.
I've encountered this challenge repeatedly over the years with various systems. I'm setting up a 120GB Kingston A400 SSD in my friend's PC to boost performance. They've managed to get by using just a 7200RPM HDD for so long, and I'm puzzled. The problem is that after installing Windows 10 via the media, the process finishes and restarts, only to restart again at the installer. Even with boot override, I see a black screen prompting me to insert proper boot media before pressing any key. It seems like the system isn't recognizing anything. I've searched online and found a video of someone upgrading a laptop with this SSD without issues, which makes me think it might not be a hardware problem. Could there be something I'm overlooking? Any advice or feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Ensure you remove all other disks prior to installing the drive you wish to add to the PC.
Windows probably tries to set its bootloader on the incorrect disk. It tends to do this and briefly stops all other storage devices, as mentioned by @Kilrah, which stops it from installing the bootloader elsewhere.
Have you thought about whether the USB might be damaged? Did you make the bootable drive with Windows Media Creation Tool? Were other drives turned off before installing? Did you clear all partitions from the SSD prior to setting up Windows? Have you attempted to remove the USB after it restarts? Placing the SSD directly into the system may prevent you from seeing if it’s bootable, especially if MBR partitioning is used and CSM is disabled, which could stop Windows from starting.