Windows 10: Laptop shows "Media not Present" and fails to boot Windows.

I have a Toshiba laptop that suddenly failed to boot up. Screen shows "Media not Present" and prompts me to insert a boot disk of which I don't have. I opened up the casing and checked connections and cleaned any dust/dirt that I could find very little that was concentrated around fan motor. I still can get to the "BIOS" screen, but what do I do when I get there. How can I fix this problem and bring my laptop back to life?

:)

 

Installation media boots to command prompt

I've just booted from known working install media to see exactly what it does when booting. The sequence of events is...

1. Windows logo on a black screen
2. circling dots appear beneath the logo
3. light blue 'Please wait' screen with circling dots
4. a command prompt window (very briefly)
5. the initial Setup page appears

Do you see steps 1-3? If so, it appears you have stopped at step 4, suggesting that something on the disc cannot be read.

Does the disc boot properly in another machine? If so, try cleaning the laptop's drive lens then try booting from the disc again.

If not, make new install media with Microsoft's Media Creation Tool, either as a bootable USB, on an ISO that you can burn to another disc. At Step 8 in Option One of this tutorial you can choose between making a USB or an ISO.

Download Windows 10 ISO File

 

BSOD Recovery Media Fails

Hi,

This issue might have occurred when the boot files are missing or corrupted.

I suggest you re-built the boot record by following the below commands and check if it helps.

You will have to use Windows 10 installation media to follow the steps to boot into Recovery Environment and try to rebuild BCD.

Step 1: I suggest you to create an installation media for
Windows 10 using the media creation tool:

Installing Windows 10 using the media creation tool

Step 2: After preparing the installation media, insert it hard reboot the device and follow the below:

• Boot into Windows Recovery Environment using the Windows 10 installation media.
• Click on Repair your computer.
  
• Click on Troubleshoot and in the Advanced options.
• Select Command Prompt. Type the following commands into the prompt and press Enter key after each command.
  • bootrec /fixmbr
  • bootrec /fixboot
  • bootrec /scanos
  • bootrec /rebuildbcd

5. Restart the computer.

NOTE: Modifying BIOS/ complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) settings incorrectly can cause serious problems that may prevent your computer from booting properly. Microsoft
cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the configuring of BIOS/CMOS settings can be solved. Modifications of the settings are at your own risk.

Hope it helps. Reply to the post with an updated status of this issue for further assistance.

 

Clean Install of Windows 10 Fails to Boot without Installation Medium Present

I am trying to create a fresh install of Windows 10 on my laptop's NVMe SSD, however I am unable to do so successfully. (I will eventually add a second SSD to the laptop that contains Linux, but that drive is physically removed from the laptop during the
Windows 10 install.)

Procedure:

1) Format an 8GB USB with the NTFS format and created a fresh copy of the Windows 10 installer.

2) Insert the USB into the target laptop and run through the installation process

3) After the installation process is complete, restart the laptop

Results:

If I leave the USB plugged in, the laptop will boot back into the installer screen and prompts me to install Windows (again).

If I remove the USB, I get an error that no bootable drives are present

If I shutdown the computer and enter the BIOS when I restart with the USB installer plugged in, I have the option in the boot manager to select whether to boot from the USB installation medium or boot into Windows on the SSD.

Problem:

I cannot boot into Windows without the original installation medium (USB) present. It seems that the installer is placing the boot manager on the USB instead of on the SSD!

Mitigation Steps:

• Tried two different USB sticks in case one installer was somehow corrupted.
• Verified in my BIOS that I have SATA set to ACHI
• Verified that I have secure boot disabled
• Reinstalled Windows 10 at least 5 times

Questions:

• What do I need to do to resolve this problem and get a usable version of Windows 10?
• Is there a way to explicitly partition the SSD and select where the bootmanager is placed?
  

Related Forum Posts:

• Windows 10 isn't booting without an USB connected
  
• Reinstalled windows 10 won't boot without disc