Windows 11/10/8/7 Won't Boot from SSD

"I recently replaced my computer system disk with a new SSD disk. Now the problem is that I cannot boot from the SSD, how to solve this issue?"

If you are running into the same problem and trying to fix it on your own, follow the three solutions here.

Fix 1. Boot Windows from BIOS

Fix 2. Rebuild SSD and set to active

Fix 3. Fix BCD and boot

Causes of Windows not Booting from SSD Error

The cases mentioned above are two real problems that happen to SSD users on Windows 11/10, 8 or 7 computers. Most of them don't know how this problem happens and none of them have solutions to fix these troubles. If you are one of them, don't worry. We have solutions for you. Let's figure out why or how does your computer cannot boot on SSD drive first. Why does this error show up? Basically, this error occurs in these situations:

System disk upgrade: computer won't boot from new SSD after upgrading disk from HDD to SSD.
Windows system error/failure.
Computer fails to boot after the system update.
SSD disk internal error.
The SSD is cloned and won't boot.

After you have figured out the reasons, you are able to solve this case. Here are some tried and true solutions to deal with the SSD booting error. If you'd like a fresh try, you can follow this page to Install or Migrate Windows OS to SSD without boot issue.

Solutions 1. Set Windows to Boot from SSD via BIOS

If your computer cannot boot after upgrading or replacing system disk from HDD to SSD, the proper reason for this problem is that you may fail to reset the boot order in BIOS. To change the boot mode, you can refer to the following to configure it:

1. Use a SATA cable to connect the SSD to your computer.

2. Restart your PC. Continuously press a specific key (usually F2, F8, F12, Del) to enter BIOS Setup.

3. Then, use the arrow keys to select Boot Option. Here, you can change the boot order to boot from the cloned SSD.

Solution 2. Rebuild the SSD and Set it as Active

For this case, we suppose your SSD is MBR. Once MBR (Master Boot Record) disk is damaged, the system cannot be booted. In this situation, to rebuild MBR rather than reinstall the Windows will be much more convenient and time-saving. You only need to do two things: rebuilding the MBR and setting it active.

Qiling Partition Master has already offered the function to rebuild MBR in the case of boot failure due to MBR problems.

Free Download

Note: Since your PC cannot boot from the SSD properly, connect the MBR hard disk to another working computer for repair. Or create a WinPE bootable disk to make your computer bootable.

Step 1. Create a WinPE bootable disk

1. Prepare a disc or drive, like a USB drive, flash drive, or a CD/DVD disc. Correctly connect the drive to a bootable computer. Then, launch Qiling Partition Master, find the "Create bootable media" feature and click on it.

2. Choose USB or CD/DVD according to the device you connect to the computer, then click "Proceed".

Step 2. Boot Qiling Partition Master Bootable USB

1. Connect the bootable USB or CD/DVD to your PC.

2. Press F2 or Del when you restart the computer to enter the BIOS screen. Set and boot your computer from "Removable Devices" or "CD-ROM Drive". And then Qiling Partition Master will run automatically.

Step 3. Rebuild MBR

1. Launch Qiling Partition Master, click "Fix boot" on the tools page.

2. Select the disk whose MBR is damaged, and click "Proceed" to rebuild MBR.

This rebuild MBR feature can fix the master boot code problem, and it can solve your problem if the Windows Operating System are not booting too.

Solution 3. Fix the BCD Error to Make the SSD Boot

MBR and GPT SSD have different steps, find the solutions respectively to solve the BCD error and then boot from your SSD.

1 - The SSD is MBR.

Step 1. If the system partition doesn't have a drive letter, assign one for it.

1. Open Disk Management under Storage by right-clicking Computer/This PC > Manage.

2. To assign a drive letter if one has not already been assigned, select the partition, click Add, click the letter that you want to use, and then click OK.

Step 2. Run Command Prompt as administrator.

Here, we suppose the system partition is E: Then, run the command:

bcdedit /store E:\boot\bcd

Check that the System and boot pointers are correct after running. If they are not correct, use the /set command to fix them. For example, if the system partition should be M: it becomes E: You can follow this to fix it:

Bcdedit /store M:\boot\bcd /set {bootmgr} device partition=M:

2 - The SSD is GPT.

Step 1. Set the partition ID as basic ID.

The BCD mode on the GPT system is similar to the MBR, except that the GPT system disk is an EFI partition. You need to modify the partition ID to the Basic data partition ID by using the Diskpart set command on the EFI partition.

set id=ebd0a0a2-b9e5-4433-87c0-68b6b72699c7

Step 2. Assign the drive letter and view BCD information

Then assign the drive letter. If the assigned drive letter is M:, then run the BCD edit command to view the BCD information.

bcdedit /store M:\EFI\Microsoft\Boot\BCD

If the partition is pointed to an error, use the /set command under BCD edit to modify it correctly. The modification is the same as that in the MBR. If there is a startup problem after modifying the BCD correctly, you need to check the Active partition is set for the MBR disk while the GPT system disk needs to add the startup item. If you still have the problem, you can also contact us.