Windows won't start properly. Issue resolved.
Windows won't start properly. Issue resolved.
Acer Nitro 5 laptop. Attempted to upgrade to Windows 11 since support for Windows 10 ends soon. Created a bootable USB, started it, removed all partitions, and installed. But after setup, I encountered a 'inaccessible boot device' error during startup. Also tried Windows 10. When I removed the drive and connected it to another machine, everything worked perfectly. Hirens only boots from the internal drive, not any other OS (Ubuntu, Windows 10/11/8.1/7). After the BSOD, I used DiskPart to list disks and found none showing up. No volumes detected. Hirens booted normally. Using NTFS for Windows and bootloader files didn’t help. ExFAT also failed—no bootable devices appeared in BIOS. My BIOS only lets me change boot order and TPM settings, but not switch between UEFI and CSM. Any advice?
It might be necessary to update the laptop’s BIOS to ensure compatibility with Windows 11. There could be changes affecting secure booting, and updating might alter the boot partition, making it unsupported on your Acer device. Acer’s Nitro series supports certain processors, so identifying yours is important.
Some partitions could cause issues on that system after Windows 11 was installed. I’d consider moving your SSD to another device that can access it, wipe all partitions, and then reinstall the drive into your Acer before trying to install Windows again. It’s also worth checking for a BIOS update, since even though 11th generation supports the required features, older BIOS versions might not handle secure boot settings properly. EDIT: The BIOS version I think matches your model is AN515-57, and one of the updates seems to target recovery issues.
As mentioned I have installed on the Acer after removing all partitions and on another device after removing all partitions (I always remove all partitions). On another device Windows installs just fine, however when I plug the drive into the Acer I get the BSOD. There is a BIOS update, I'll give it a go tomorrow when I wake up, but I don't care for Windows 11 anymore I just want a working computer. The above has been done with Windows 11, 10, 8.1, and 7. None booted.