Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

[analist]

The install worked when the Asrock E350M1 was on UEFI version 1.2, and still works on an Asus E35M1-M.

Unfortunately, I have to use bootable UEFI usb flash drive, because I want to install Windows on a 4TB hard drive.

The install process goes without any problems if I create a normal, MBR usb installer with Rufus.

I created the bootable UEFI usb flash drive using this guide: UEFI Bootable USB Flash Drive - Create in Windows

When I try to install the OS, random restarts happens during the install:
- sometimes before the circle of dots starts to spin
- sometimes during the spinning of the circle of dots


Sometimes I got bsods (IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL or DPC_WATCHDOG_VIOLATION), sometimes restarts.

Here are the things I tried:
- different flash drives (in different usb ports)
- different hdd (160GB)
- different UEFI usb flash drive creator (ISO2Disc)
- changed the Advanced->Storage Configuration settings to every variations that is possible (SATA mode:IDE mode, AHCI mode, SATA IDE Combined mode, SATA Agressive Link Power Management)



http://www.asrock.com/mb/overview.asp?cat=Download&os=BIOS&Model=E350M1

Any idea, how to fix this?

[- wardog -]

Re: Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

Weird.

Double check you did as verbatim when at Option 1 "Step 4. Set Rufus with the settings below:"

You are punching the F(x) key at boot, during POST, and selecting "UEFI: (usb stick)" right?

I've seen mention that some Windows install media was missing the EFI folder and or file(s) therein. Not sure if you used the same media or not there in this attempt but worth looking nonetheless.

Not sure if this is a/the "cause' or not but worth mentioning. BIOS 1.8 notes that "Note 2: BIOS P1.80 updates Instant Flash, so if you would like to update to P1.80 or later, please update it under DOS or Windows.". Not sure this would have any effect but ....

[parsec]

Re: Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

If all you needed to do is have your 4TB drive formatted as GPT, you found an interesting way to do that. I'll explain what happened, although you probably won't go with this "fix", or may not be able to use it.

The UEFI bootable flash drive you created with that guide is meant for use in creating a UEFI booting Windows 8 installation, not to simply cause a Windows installation to format the OS drive as GPT. The older versions of the BIOS for your board were not able to be configured for UEFI booting, so all the installer you created did was cause GPT formatting.

While that installation media will format your 4TB HDD in GPT format, now that the 1.80 UEFI/BIOS version was installed, your board can now UEFI boot, rather than Legacy/BIOS boot. You're right that the UEFI/BIOS update changed things, but it is not broken. You just need to set a UEFI/BIOS option correctly.

In the UEFI/BIOS, look for an option called "CSM", usually in either Advanced, ACPI, or in the Boot menu. If there isn't a CSM option, you'll need to use the Secure Boot option.

If you have the CSM option, it will be enabled. Set it to disabled and try your Windows installation again (with one MAJOR hurdle to deal with, I'll talk about that below.) If you only have the Secure Boot option, set it to enabled, and the same potential issue will still exist.

Did you notice what the description for UEFI 1.80 includes? This is the important part:

Note 1: "Ultra Fast" is only supported by below conditions.
1. OS Windows 8 is installed on GPT format.
2. Graphics supports UEFI GOP.

You did not list any of your PC's hardware besides the board, so nothing to go on. Are you using the onboard graphics, or a video card? If a video card, what model?

As stated in the 1.80 description, the video source using with UEFI booting must support a UEFI video protocol called GOP. If you use the onboard graphics, they should be GOP compatible. A video card is another story, it probably isn't, and the result will be no video to the monitor.

That UEFI booting Windows USB installation media seems to be locked into a UEFI booting installation, once the board's BIOS can be set for UEFI booting. Another possible downside of this for you is this installer also creates an MBR boot partition on the OS drive. You may have it on your other installations done with that installer. But if you were UEFI booting, and switched it off via CSM or Secure Boot, the MBR partition will be used to boot, and there goes your full HDD capacity, at least for that boot.

Ignoring all of the above and NOT changing CSM or Secure Boot, the Windows installation package you used to create the UEFI USB flash drive should have the ability to start a CMD command line window, where you can run the diskpart command, and format your HDD as GPT. After that, you just do the Windows installation, but not with the UEFI USB flash drive. Use whatever you used to create the USB flash drive.

[analist]

Re: Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

Thanks for you answer.

Double check you did as verbatim when at Option 1 "Step 4. Set Rufus with the settings below:"

I'm pretty sure that uefi flash drive is correct because I used this flash drive to install win 8.1 on an Asus E35M1-M, which has the same AMD E350 APU on board.

You are punching the F(x) key at boot, during POST, and selecting "UEFI: (usb stick)" right?

Of course.

I've seen mention that some Windows install media was missing the EFI folder and or file(s) therein. Not sure if you used the same media or not there in this attempt but worth looking nonetheless.

I tried creating an uefi usb flash drive using two different .iso (professional, enterprise), both have the efi folder in the root directory. (If the efi folder is missing the uefi setup doesn't start, because the \efi\boot\bootx64.efi is file which the board's uefi loads.)

Not sure if this is a/the "cause' or not but worth mentioning. BIOS 1.8 notes that "Note 2: BIOS P1.80 updates Instant Flash, so if you would like to update to P1.80 or later, please update it under DOS or Windows.". Not sure this would have any effect but ....

The motherboard came with a UEFI 1.2, I installed Windows on it using an uefi flash installer. I upgraded to UEFI 2.1 using this new os install. After the reboot, the windows wouldn't load. (Unfortunately I don't remember the exact error message, I didn't think it would be relevant later. :) ) It was a strange tha t the uefi upgrade screw up an os boot process, but because it was a new os install, it didn't matter. So I tried to reinstall the os, but it setup constantly restarts/freezes on me.

[analist]

Re: Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

If all you needed to do is have your 4TB drive formatted as GPT, you found an interesting way to do that.

Ignoring all of the above and NOT changing CSM or Secure Boot, the Windows installation package you used to create the UEFI USB flash drive should have the ability to start a CMD command line window, where you can run the diskpart command, and format your HDD as GPT. After that, you just do the Windows installation, but not with the UEFI USB flash drive. Use whatever you used to create the USB flash drive.

This will not work, the non-UEFI booted Windows Setup is not able to install on GPT partitions. (Error message: windows cannot be installed on this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style.)

In the UEFI/BIOS, look for an option called "CSM", usually in either Advanced, ACPI, or in the Boot menu. If there isn't a CSM option, you'll need to use the Secure Boot option.

If you have the CSM option, it will be enabled. Set it to disabled and try your Windows installation again (with one MAJOR hurdle to deal with, I'll talk about that below.) If you only have the Secure Boot option, set it to enabled, and the same potential issue will still exist.

Anybody gotten the DVD to boot UEFI? - Microsoft Community
Result: reboot during Windows Setup, during the circle of dots.



The same media (flash drives, dvd) works flawlessly in UEFI on other computer.

I'm really close to pinning this one on Asrock.

[parsec]

Re: Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

This will not work, the non-UEFI booted Windows Setup is not able to install on GPT partitions. (Error message: windows cannot be installed on this disk. The selected disk is of the GPT partition style.)

Microsoft claims that is not true, and I have not tried it in a long time. Given you have UEFI firmware, you should be able to use the EFI boot loader. So you are choosing the UEFI entry for the USB flash drive in the boot order list, which you seem to be given what you said below. Assuming no other problems, the board or really the new BIOS version has a problem when the EFI boot loader is used.

[/FONT]




Anybody gotten the DVD to boot UEFI? - Microsoft Community
Result: reboot during Windows Setup, during the circle of dots.



The same media (flash drives, dvd) works flawlessly in UEFI on other computer.

I'm really close to pinning this one on Asrock.

It's looking that way, given your experience with the other PCs. Plus if you tried to install Windows 8 with CSM disabled, your installation media should have worked.

The guide you used to create the UEFI bootable USB drive has a section that describes how the Windows 7 DVD installation folders and files need a modification to work correctly when creating the USB drive. That is:

On the USB flash drive, "copy" the efi\microsoft\boot folder up one level into the efi folder as efi\boot.

You may have done this already, I don't know. There are newer BIOS versions for this board, no mention of anything related to GPT or UEFI in any of them, another thing to try (or waste time) before blaming the board.

[analist]

Re: Win 8.1 install from UEFI usb flash drive to Asrock E350M1

Microsoft claims that is not true, and I have not tried it in a long time.

Hmm, thats interesting. Quote from this page: Windows and GPT FAQ

Q. Can Windows 7, Windows Vista, and Windows Server 2008 read, write, and boot from GPT disks?
A. Yes, all versions can use GPT partitioned disks for data. Booting is only supported for 64-bit editions on UEFI-based systems.

Given you have UEFI firmware, you should be able to use the EFI boot loader. So you are choosing the UEFI entry for the USB flash drive in the boot order list, which you seem to be given what you said below. Assuming no other problems, the board or really the new BIOS version has a problem when the EFI boot loader is used.

The boot never was the problem, the win 8 installer booted just fine both uefi and mbr mode, but during the uefi install, I experienced bsod every time.

There are newer BIOS versions for this board, no mention of anything related to GPT or UEFI in any of them, another thing to try (or waste time) before blaming the board.

I'm on the latest bios, 2.1.

I'm guessing I will wait for the next bios upgrade, I'm not in the mood to put more hour into an os install.

Thanks everyone for the suggestions.