Windows 10: Windows 10 USB not detected

I bought Windows 10 Full Version (USB stick) recently but my BIOS does not recognise the usb stick. I tried booting my own usb drive loaded with windows 8 (using Rufus) but even that was not detected. My motherboard is Gigabyte GA-H61M-S1 Rev 2.2. I have a UEFI Bios interface but when I check BIOS version from System Information (msinfo32) it show "Legacy BIOS". I have previously used bootable usb sticks to install windows but this time my pc seems blind to any and all usb drives.
I have gone through the motherboard manual and a couple hundred forum posts to solve the issue but most of the answers mention BIOS settings that I don't have. I'm currently running windows 10 (upgraded version) but I desperately want a clean installation using the newly purchased Windows.

I am very cofused about UEFI and it's relation with windows 10. I am at my wit's end. HELP please!!!

:)

 

system reset

Also I can't download the windows 10 installation media to my USB flash drive it can't detect that its there. The windows 10 installation media says that no usb flash drive is detected. IT seems to be detecting my flash drive as another hard drive instead
of a flash drive,

thanks,

 

We can't find a USB flash drive. Windows 10 setup error 64-bit (x64)

i have a usb stick, that the windows 7 and the 8.1 media creation tool can detect, but the tool for windows 10 does not detect it.. ?!

 

Hello, as regards booting from a USB device, it seems Gigabyte MBOs have a bad reputation.

see:
ChromaSoft: Solving the dreaded Gigabyte "Won't boot from USB" problem
which suggests sthg you might try.

Also this:
Enable USB Boot in Gigabyte Motherboard - blackMORE Ops

As to whether you need to even worry about UEFI, it depends what firmware you have on your MBO. If it does not include UEFI, and is pre-UEFI- i.e. older- then of course you can't use UEFI.

Perhaps you can look up your exact MBO type and version.
It should also be apparent as to whether UEFI is present by going into your BIOS and looking - and you have your motherboard manual, so that should tell you.

This article is quite clear.
10 things you should know about UEFI - TechRepublic

 

সুরজিৎ, Try the Boot menu Key. It should be F12.


Attach the USB stick to the computer and restart. While restarting, press and hold F12 (that should be your Boot Menu) during the POST screen. You will see a list of all possible locations from where the computer can boot. That is the Boot Menu. Like this image:



If possible, take a camera snap of the Boot Menu and upload it here. That will give some answers to your question.

Also, Boot into the BIOS. Go to BIOS Features. Expand Boot Mode Selection. Like this image:



Take a camera snap and let us see it.

Hopefully the answers to your questions will be available after seeing these two image.

 

Thank you, dalchina. I shall read those articles right now.

Dear Arc, what a surprise. You bengali? I am uploading the screenies. Hope it helps!









N. B. - dalchina, I just finished reading the articles and I tried plugging in the usb during POST but it didn't help! *Sad

 

I would try F7 in Bios setup - optimized default settings. Also make sure you are plugging the USB into a black USB 2.0 port and not a blue USB 3.0 port. Finally - I would not waste the retail product key that came with the Microsoft USB flash drive on a computer that already has a digital entitlement to Windows 10. When asked for a product key, click "I don't have a product key", "skip" or "do this later." Let Windows 10 activate itself with your already saved digital entitlement and save the retail product key for another computer after the free upgrade period ends.

If all else fails - it looks like the DVD drive is detected as a boot option by the Bios - burn a DVD by copying the files from the USB flash drive to a DVD - it should boot the DVD in UEFI mode then.

 

I am running on Optimized Defaults having tried every boot setting imaginable. The USB is plugged into a 2.0 port (front USB, the last time I tried). And, I'm not on "free upgrade". I have Windows 10 Pro running because I upgraded from a genuine Windows 7 installation. It's not about the key. I just want to load a fresh windows. You are quite right, I might save the key for some later use.

 

I would get the least expensive 2 GB or larger USB 2.0 flash drive you can find. Format it as FAT32. Download Kyhi's recovery drive:
Windows 10 Recovery Tools - Bootable Rescue Disk - Windows 10 Forums

Mount the ISO, and copy the files from that to the USB flash drive. See if your computer will recognize and boot from that. If it will, then insert the Windows 10 USB flash drive and you can run setup.exe from it from within file explorer on Kyhi's recovery drive.

Other alternatives - as I mentioned, DVD booting. You can actually do the same thing with Kyhi's recovery drive - burn a DVD from the ISO of his recovery drive, boot the computer from the DVD, then insert the Windows 10 flash drive and run setup.exe from file explorer.

You can create a small partition (8 GB if the Windows 10 flash drive is both 32 and 64-bit or 5 GB if it is single 64-bit) at the end of your hard drive, but it has to be a primary partition. Copy the files from the Windows 10 USB flash drive to the partition. Then in custom boot options you should have an UEFI entry for Windows setup from the new partition and you can run it from there.

I could not get my old computer (that I gave to my father-in-law) to boot from a USB stick no matter what I tried, even though Bios said it was supposed to be able to. I want to say that was a Gigabyte motherboard as well.

 

Select the following settings (marked with red color) in the Gigabyte UEFI BIOS if you want to install Windows 8/10 in UEFI mode.

OS Type or Windows 8/10 Features (look at the screenshots above)
Allows you to select the operating system to be installed.
- Other OS (Default)
- Windows 8/10
- Windows 8/10 WHQL

CSM Support
Enables or disables UEFI CSM (Compatibility Support Module) to support a legacy PC boot process.
- Always or Enabled - Enables UEFI CSM. (Default)
- Never or Disabled - Disables UEFI CSM and supports UEFI BIOS boot process only.
This item is configurable only when OS Type or Windows 8/10 Features is set to Windows 8/10 or Windows 8/10 WHQL.

Secure Boot
Enables or disables Secure Boot function.
- Enabled - Enables Secure Boot.
- Disabled - Disables Secure Boot.
This item is configurable only when OS Type or Windows 8/10 Features is set to Windows 8/10 or Windows 8/10 WHQL.

Secure Boot Mode
Define the Secure Boot mode.
- Standard
- Custom
This item is configurable only when OS Type or Windows 8/10 Features is set to Windows 8/10 or Windows 8/10 WHQL.

 

Hello hotkey,

I just tried your way. This is how my settings were before I followed your instructions.









Then, I changed the settings.





And this was the result.

 

You need to have a Windows 8/10 64-bit USB flash drive that is compatible with UEFI mode. As long as it is FAT32 formatted it should be UEFI bootable.

 

How do I verify this? My Windows 10 USB stick came from Microsoft. It is in FAT32 file system

 

Surojit, your computer does have the UEFI features but the present windows installation does not use it, that others already said.
After following the steps suggested by hotkey the computer is not bootable, that is also the right situation. It converted the system to a UEFI system, but the disk is still Legacy that cannot boot into the UEFI environment.
In this situation, either go for a clean install at once or load optimized defaults in BIOS to use the computer for now; follow the steps again just before you are totally ready for a clean install.

What makes me rub my chick that the USB boot is not appearing in the boot menu. Earlier I have used a 61 series board for a few days; USB boot was right there.
Fat32 is not a problem. See here: UEFI Bootable USB Flash Drive - Create in Windows

Well, after disabling CSM, set all the available options to "UEFI First". In the UEFI environment of the BIOS, you will get an option "Fast Boot". Enable it. After enabling Fast Boot, you will be able to access "USB Support". Set it to "Full Initial". Hopefully then it will boot from USB.

I am uploading the full manual of the motherboard/BIOS Setup in my OneDrive. Please read pages 23 and 24 for more details: Microsoft OneDrive - Access files anywhere. Create docs with free Office Online.

Yes, I am from West Bengal. *Smile