Trying to do fresh Win10 install from USB but can't in UEFI mode

So I thought it would be a good idea to do a fresh non-Dell install of Windows 10 before setting up my XPS. I have the 512GB SSD model. By default it was set to UEFI boot with secure boot on. First I used the Windows 10 media creation tool to create a bootable Win10 USB. Oddly, when trying to install Windows I realized it wouldn't work unless I booted into Legacy mode. So I switched it and finished installing Win10 thinking I could just switch back to UEFI mode after. Win10 installed fine, with the exception that most drivers for things like wifi weren't installed.

But in regards to switching back to UEFI boot mode apparently I was wrong. Doing so brings up some Dell screen saying PCI-E Hard drive not found. Then kicks me back to reboot. I figured I'd go back, reinstall again this time in UEFI mode. But now when I go back into the Win10 USB to reinstall Windows the hard drive doesn't even show up at all. I thought maybe I needed to install the Intel Raid Storage Drivers so I tossed those on another USB but browsing for them doesn't find anything.

Should I just stay in Legacy mode? Not sure if there's a big difference.

 

Switch to ACHI mode in BIOS. Solves the problem. No need to run in RAID mode.

 

Dimsdale is confusing the ahci/ide setting found on desktop motherboards

For your situation.... Just stay on legacy BIOS mode. No difference between legacy BIOS and uefi.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

 

UEFI offers secure boot, which matters. Guessing the Legacy setting was for ACHI, not RAID.
Optimal settings are UEFI and ACHI (with no extra drivers) or UEFI and RAID (with "F6" load of the Intel RST drivers). You just need to extract the RST drivers to the USB stick and remember the location. So use the "f6flpy-x64.zip" from https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/25165/Intel-Rapid-Storage-Technology-Intel-RST-RAID-Driver and extract that folder to the root level of your USB Windows 10 installer.

 

Uefi secure boot does not matter.

It is intended to prevent a laptop from booting off of unsecured devices, like external USB flash drives. It is intended to protect against bootloader or boot sector attacks.

If this is your own personal laptop, you intentionally do NOT want secure boot. You want the flexibility of booting off of USB flash drives if you have the need. And since you're reinstalling Windows, you have the need.

Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk

 

Thanks guys, really appreciate the help! After wasting 3 hours trying all kinds of combinations with the USB it was ACHI setting that was causing all my issues. It was defaulted to Raid.

Windows installed nicely.. Though I wasnt sure if I still needed to download all the Dell drivers off the support site. I installed what I could and avoided everything Dell related. I noticed a few drivers though would not install and aborted:

- Thunderbolt Controller Driver
- Intel Wireless Display Connection Manager Application
- Intel Rapid Storage Technology Driver
- Intel(R) Thunderbolt 3 Firmware Update
- Touch Firmware Update Utility

I would assume these would have been installed either during the Windows installation or through an update. I didn't see any issues in device manager. Are any of those a concern?

 

Expect more hours of your life to be wasted with this thing, lot's of issues

 

cheers to the early adopters who are ironing out the kinks for the rest of us ...