Very puzzled about what could be happening with my MSI B450 Gaming Max Mobo.
Very puzzled about what could be happening with my MSI B450 Gaming Max Mobo.
You're experiencing unusual behavior with your BIOS settings. There are a few things happening here. First, when you connect your external HDD via the 2.1 port, the system bypasses your M.2 drive and attempts to boot from it. When using the USB 3 port, the process varies—sometimes it tries to boot from the external drive, other times it doesn't. Your M.2 NVMe drive should normally be prioritized, but it seems to be being overridden. Additionally, your onboard SATA HDD is in the boot priority list only when set as primary, which you haven't done yet. The issue likely stems from incorrect boot order configurations or conflicting settings. Review your BIOS menu for correct drive priorities and ensure your external drive is properly recognized. If needed, adjust the boot sequence carefully to avoid conflicts.
You're asking how to adjust your setup so the system prioritizes the M.2 drive first. The current boot list only allows starting with the M.2 or the internal HDD, and the Onboard HDD is only visible in that view. Regarding the second issue, your computer attempts to boot from the external drive even when no OS is present, which seems unrelated to storage—it might be a bootloader or firmware behavior. Since you're new to this BIOS environment, it's normal to prefer the classic blue-on-white interface over the more modern design.
This has never happened before. I often connect external drives during startup and haven’t noticed anything unusual. It might be useful to attach the images directly in this discussion rather than having people download them, as that can be cumbersome. If you’re unable to find a fix, simply unplug the USB before starting the PC and reconnect it once Windows is up. I understand it’s not the best approach, but it could work temporarily. Alternatively, if you prefer not to remove the USB, consider using a hub with individual power switches (I own one), so you only need to turn it off before booting instead of disconnecting.
BIOS is confirmed as current on the MSI website. The internal HDD appears only in HDD BBS Priority Boot Options and under Storage settings, not elsewhere such as Fixed Boot Order Priority. It cannot be selected from any dropdown menu. The external HDD shows up for Fixed Boot Order Priority but nothing else, including in HDD BBS Priority Boot Options—it lands around #5 or #9 in the Boot Order list. Disabling them still lets the system attempt to boot from the external drive if connected via USB 2.1, though this happens inconsistently with USB 3 connections. Neither drive is configured as a boot disk; they are both treated as storage devices. I’m unsure why the Onboard HDD can’t be placed in the Fixed Boot Order even when M.2 is prioritized. The order also bypasses everything if the external drive is connected to the front USB 2 port, and sometimes skips earlier entries if it’s plugged into the USB 3 port. This behavior has never been observed before, even my brother-in-law, an IT professional, is puzzled by it.
I rely on my external drive frequently... the internal one currently has nothing significant. This machine is fairly new, with a 1TB M.2 slot, so I haven't yet added anything to the internal HDD. Updated: I found a newer BIOS release, but the only details are: "Updated AMD AGESA ComboAm4PI 1.0.0.5 - Fix HDMI audio lost issue when using AMD RX570 vga card." Would updating the BIOS help resolve my problems?