Newly built PC goes into BIOS instead of Windows after download

Darkvexe · 27 Jan 2023

Hi there,

I've finished building my first ever custom PC and am having troubles with getting into Windows. When I turn on my PC, I get to the 'American Megatrends' screen which from there I can get into BIOS. When I downloaded Windows 10 Home onto my PC from a USB 3.0 which I had purchased on Amazon, the computer restarted and took me back to the 'American Megatrends' screen. I tried re-configuring the boot order but still, I couldn't get onto Windows.

The only way that I was able to get onto windows was by clicking on 'Windows Boot Manager' under 'boot override'. But now, that doesn't work either and just gives me a black screen when I click on it.

I've also tried removing and re-installing my m.2 SSD, but no use.

On my motherboard, there is a yellow light on under the 'BOOT' Q-LED which indicates an error. For some reason the labels in my motherboard guide don't match up with the ones on the actual motherboard, The guide says that the 'DRAM' Q-LED should be the fourth one and yellow, but on my motherboard it clearly says 'BOOT' beside the yellow light.

Here is a list of the components:

CPU: Ryzen 7 5800x
GPU: MSI Ventus 3x Plus GeForce RTX 3070
Motherboard: ROG Strix B550-F Gaming Wifi II
RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro DDR4 16GB 3600MHz
Storage: Samsung 970 EVO Plus NVMe M.2 SSD - 500 GB
PSU: Corsair RM750
Cooler: Corsair iCUE H150i Elite Capelix
OS: Windows 10 Home

Is there any way I can get my PC to boot into Windows normally?

NTN · 27 Jan 2023

The issue may be triggered by the incorrect boot order. Just go to check if there is an appropriate boot device available in BIOS. If you find it, set the disk as the primary boot option. If your hard drive listed under boot device cannot be found in BIOS, change this hard disk.
Also unplugging all USB devices (and any other unneeded peripherals) and restarting the computer. If your computer stays on the same loading screen, removing all USB devices can solve the problem.

Do this to force UEFI to re-find the SSD.
Shut down and remove power. Disconnect at the SSD both the data cable and the power connector. Boot the machine, and it will fail with a message to insert a bootable disk or some such. Just shut down. Now your system knows there is no boot device anywhere.
Re-connect the cable at the SSD Now go to the other end of the data cable and move it to the SATA1 port. Boot into BIOS Setup directly and go immediately to the Boot Priority setup screen. Now you should find the SSD again and can set that as your first boot device. But it WILL be recorded in its new location and work. SAVE and EXIT, and it should boot cleanly.

Lower the RAM to 3000 mhz.
You also could try to boot with only one RAMstick if it should happen to be a faulty memory...

And disable Fast Boot!

Plug off your drive, wait a minute and plug it back....

Check your BIOS.
ROG STRIX B550-F GAMING WIFI II | ROG STRIX B550-F GAMING WIFI II | Gaming Motherboards｜ROG - Republic of Gamers｜ROG Global
Download the latest BIOS (or UEFI) from manufacturer’s website. Unzip it and copy to a spare USB flash drive. Restart your computer and enter the BIOS / UEFI. Use the menus to update the BIOS / UEFI.

Windows Repair tool

You need a bootable Windows USB stick...(use a USB 3.0 flash drive not type-C)
How to Create a Windows 10 Bootable USB with UEFI

Connect the flash drive to your PC, and set it as the Primary Boot Drive.
Restart your PC and wait for the bootable device to load. After it finishes loading, choose the Repair your computer option and follow through with the process.
This should fix the existing errors and make the system boot properly.