Windows 10: INACCESSIBLE BOOT DEVICE after restoring 256GB M.2 SATA image to 1TB NVMe

So my Asus Q406D 2 in 1 laptop came with a 256GB M.2 SATA SSD, and I want to upgrade it to 1TB. I have a 1TB NVME PCIe Gen 3x4 that was in my Dell that died so I want to put that drive in it. I used Macrium Reflect to make an image of the SATA SSD, I swapped the SATA out for the NVMe, and ran the Macrium PE tool to restore the image to the NVMe drive. After the tool completes "successfully" I restarted the computer and get stuck in an "INACCESSIBLE BOOT DEVICE" and "Windows failed to start" loop. I then tried restarting in the Macrium PE and used the 'Fix boot problems' tool but it didn't help. Windows Startup repair can't do anything running off either the 'Recovery' partition or off a USB drive. I then installed a fresh copy of Windows 10 on the NVMe and it works fine, so there is nothing wrong with the drive or M.2 slot.


I then put the SATA SSD back in it and used Windows Image backup to create a system image which I then restored to the NVMe drive, with the same result. Fast Boot & Secure boot are both disabled, bcdboot says it completes but the issue is still present. From a Windows Installation USB drive's recovery environment, I tried running 'bootrec /scanos' wich says 0 windows installs found 'bootrec /fixmbr' says completes successfully 'bootrec /fixboot' says Access denied 'bootrec /rebuildbcd' also says 0 identified windows installations If I run dir on the C: I can see the Program Files & Windows directories, and in the Windows directory there is what appears to be all the expected system files, so I don't know how it is not detecting Windows. the system partition has an 'EFI\Microsotf\Boot' directory in the structure. How do I get Windows to boot off the NVMe drive!?!

:)

 

M.2 SATA to NVME clone: Windows 10 won't boot

Problem: Windows partition won't boot after cloning M.2 SATA drive to M.2 NVME. Simply returns to BIOS splash screen are restarts boot sequence.

Background: Cloning process was simple raw dd copy. Drive had EFI, Windows 10, and Linux partitions. Cloning preserved exact partition sequence, sizes, and UUIDs.

Linux partition needed minor tweaks to /etc/fstab due to the device names being different (/dev/nvme0n1px vs. /dev/sdax), but boots fine.

The disk is GPT, and I believe the original Windows 10 was UEFI - the Linux installation definitely was.

Boot sequence brings up Linux 'grub' menu first. Choosing the EFI partition then brings up Windows EFI boot menu. Fresh Windows install (see below) boots fine from here, old install fails.

Attempts at solution: I did a fresh Windows install in a spare partition and it boots fine. Using the new Windows installation, I've edited the BCD entry for my original Win 10 install. I have
the correct BCD device, osdevice, and path.

Questions:

• What else needs to be done to make Windows boot again?
• Are there any config file or registry changes that need to be made to account for the SATA to NVME move?
• How do I see boot error messages for a UEFI boot failure? No errors displayed and no log files that I can find in Windows or EFI partitions...

 

about intel optane memory + NVMe™ M.2 SSD

nitially

intel optane memory M10(16,32,64gb)PCIe NVMe M.2 3.0x2 was for accelerating 2.5'SATA mechanical HDD regardless of which generation intel CPUs.

also note :

not talking about Intel® Optane™ Memory H10 with Solid State Storage (32gb+1tb, 32gb+512gb ,16gb+256gb)PCIe NVMe3.0x4 that comes as a single m.2 drive which is mounted on single m.2 slot

but now why

intel optane memory M15(16,32,64gb)(PCIe NVMe 3.0 x4)is-- paired with --PCIe® NVMe™ M.2 SSDs {which is mounted on two differnt m.2 slots on 7th ,8th and 9th gen intel CPUs}

what is the purpose

ex: 512 GB PCIe® NVMe™ M.2 SSD + Intel® Optane™ memory 32 GB on (Intel® Core™ i7 9750H) seen from HPs Omen X 2S - 15 Gaming Laptop.

 

Missing Boot record (Error code: 0xc000000e) after cloning OS from an NVMe SSD to a SATA SSD

Hi,

I'm having a bit of trouble following what you have done so far, but might suggest a trick that might work..

Your one picture says Disk 0 is the new cloned drive, but is showing a 256gb, not 1tb... Not a big deal, but I just wanted to make sure what I mention is correct..

Will the machine boot from the 256gb SSD with the NVMe and new 1tb removed ?

My impression is that you are now working with the new 1tb SSD that was a clone of the NVMe, and the NVMe that had the new 1tb SSD cloned back to it..

This is my suggestion that has worked for me in the past, but not always.. The way windows lays out the partitions in UEFI machines can be tricky.. Sometimes just 1mb of free space before the first partition can break the deal..

If your machine boots properly from the temp 256gb SSD, try this.. It will require that you make an image of the 256gb SSD and use bootable Macrium to restore part of it to the NVMe.. I chose the NVMe for this because it is a copy of a copy.. The best original
you have is now the new 1tb SSD..

Remove all other drives before attempting to boot with the NVMe after doing this..

After imaging the 256gb SSD, try recovering it's first Recovery partition to the NVMe and see what happens.. If that does not work, try Recovering both the Recovery and EFI.. If that fails, try all three of the partitions prior to the Windows partition..

If you still need to create the bootable media, don't even bother messing with the WinPE\Re version.. It is a real pain to create, and in my opinion, does not work as well as the Linux version.. The Linux version pretty much ignores any type of Windows fussiness,
and just does the job you request..

BTW.. Another method might be to wipe the NVMe and reinstall Windows... Then once installed and functioning, image the cloned 1tb SSD, then restore the windows partition to the NVMe overwriting what has just been installed..