Installed Win10 on laptop and it doesn't recognize the mSATA SSD


  1. Posts : 33
    Windows 10
       #1

    Installed Win10 on laptop and it doesn't recognize the mSATA SSD


    I've got a laptop with two SSDs - the main SATA SSD and a small mSATA SSD. I installed Win 10 to the main SSD (Win 10 installer could see both disks). Once Win 10 is installed, it no longer sees the mSATA SSD.

    In Disk Mgmt, I only see Disk 0 (the main SSD), which is partitioned into a 500mb System Reserved partition and the OS partition.

    Device Mgr also only shows the main SSD.

    How can I get W10 to recognize the mSATA SSD? Do I need to install a mSATA driver? Windows Update shows the machine as up to date, and Lenovo's System Update (it's a Thinkpad) also shows as up to date.
      My Computers


  2. Posts : 2,487
    Windows 10 Home, 64-bit
       #2

    Is the mSATA drive seen in the BIOS?
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 33
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #3

    ignatzatsonic said:
    Is the mSATA drive seen in the BIOS?
    Yes, in the Boot Order menu.

    - - - Updated - - -

    I partially ran the Win 10 installer, just up to the point where you enter Custom Install and have to select where to install the OS. At that point, the installer shows the mSATA SSD as Drive 1 Partition 1: mSATA, type: Primary.

    Strange that it is not recognized in the actual OS. It should be a NTFS partition (been a while since I set it up, but I'm sure I would have set it up as NTFS).

    - - - Updated - - -

    Update: Yes, it's definitely NTFS. I booted into GParted, and it sees the mSATA disk as sdb with NTFS filesystem.
      My Computers


  4. TV2
    Posts : 2,221
    W10 Pro 22H2
       #4

    In GParted, can you see a partition created with a drive letter on the mSAta drive?
    Is the mSata module an NVMe?

    Always helpful to see the model # of the laptop and the mSata drive.
      My Computers


  5. Posts : 33
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #5

    TV2 said:
    In GParted, can you see a partition created with a drive letter on the mSAta drive?
    Is the mSata module an NVMe?

    Always helpful to see the model # of the laptop and the mSata drive.
    No, it's an older SSD designed to fit a WAN/mSATA slot on a laptop.

    In GParted, I see the disk and it's partitioned into 1 NTFS partition (no drive letter, but GParted wouldn't show Windows drive letters; it just shows as /dev/sdb1) and a tiny unallocated space (<2mb).

    Thinkpad T430
    Lite-On LMS-32L6M 32gb mSATA SSD

    Maybe it needs a firmware update so that it can be recognized in Win 10? Never had a problem like this in Win 7 - when I installed this same mSATA SSD in the same laptop under Win 7, the OS saw it right away.

    - - - Updated - - -

    I found this 2014 firmware update on Dell's site:
    https://www.dell.com/support/home/us...driverId=JCK4R

    The update is for Vista, Win7, Win8. 2014 predates Win10. Perhaps this SSD never received a firmware update that would make it work in Win 10. That would explain why it worked on same laptop when it was running Win7, and why I can see the disk in BIOS and GParted, but not in Win10. Plausible explanation?

    I emailed the manufacturer, and will report back in case anyone else runs into this.
    Last edited by sten3; 08 Dec 2019 at 14:38.
      My Computers


  6. TV2
    Posts : 2,221
    W10 Pro 22H2
       #6

    Well, this is a long shot, but you could try installing the firmware you show using Compatibility Mode:

    Change Compatibility Mode Settings for Apps in Windows 10

    Let us know what Dell has to say.
      My Computers


  7. Posts : 33
    Windows 10
    Thread Starter
       #7

    Problem solved. I booted into a Linux live distro and was able to see the disk and copy off the files. Then I repartitioned the disk. Now Win 10 sees the disk and I can use it as additional storage in my laptop.
      My Computers


  8. TV2
    Posts : 2,221
    W10 Pro 22H2
       #8

    Good thinking! Glad you got it going.
      My Computers


 

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