How to Fix Dell No Hard Drive Detected Error

"When I start up my computer and it's loading the bios it says something like this: No Device Detected. I don't know what happened to it randomly did this, and it's been doing this for like a week (won't work) its definitely plugged in and powered so I don't know what could be wrong or if its just broke. If I get a new hard drive would it work or is there another reason why it's not being detected or working?"

In general, hard drive not detected issue occurs on my laptops includes Dell, HP, Samsung, and more. This issue can often happen when you start the computer. You can check the 5 fixes to solve "Dell hard disk not detected".

Workable Solutions	Step-by-step Troubleshooting
1. Check BIOS Settings	Shut down the computer and press the power button to restart it...Full steps
2. Run Dell Diagnostic Tool	Shut down Dell. Press the power button to restart it. Keep taping...Full steps
3. Check Hard Drive Connection	Before uninstalling the hard drive, you should backup all your data...Full steps
4. Update Dell Drivers	Identify the Dell product. Scan for the available updates...Full steps
5. Run An Data Recovery Software	Connect the hard drive to another PC via SATA cable and download...Full steps

Why is Hard Drive Not Detected in Dell

There are the culprits why does dell laptop say no hard drive detected:

Hard disk not detected.
Corrupted BIOS.
The hard drive has bad sectors.
Loose or damaged SATA cable.

...

Now let's zoom in on the main part to learn how to fix no hard drive detected in Dell.

Fix 1. Check BIOS Settings on Dell Laptop

Step 1. Shut down the computer and press the power button to restart it.

Step 2. Press F2 many times to enter the BIOS.

Step 3. You can see the Setting menu on the left side of the Dell screen.

dell bios

Step 4. Under the General tab, click Date/Time.

Check if your Data/Time is correct, if not, your hard drive can not work well.

Step 5. Click Boot Sequence to change the boot option.

You can see Boot List Option here. No matter what boot option you choose, you cannot boot your computer right now, so we advise you to change Boot List Option.

Change UEFI to Legacy:

Expand the Secure Boot tab
Click Secure Boot Enable
Turn on Disabled
Click Yes when the warning window pop up
Go to Advanced Options
Check the box of Enable Legacy Option ROMs
Go back to Boot List Option and choose Legacy.

Change Legacy to UEFI:

Go to Secure Boot
Click Secure Boot Enable and choose Enabled
Navigate to Advanced Boot Options
Uncheck Enable Legacy Option ROMs
Go back to Boot Sequence and choose UEFI.

Step 6. Change System Configuration

Expand System Configuration > Click SATA Operation > Choose AHCI > Click Apply button to apply Change > Click OK when Apply Setting Configuration box appears.

Step 7. Exit from BIOS and restart your computer.

Check if Windows is booting from the hard drive in Dell.

Fix 2. Run Dell Diagnostic Tool

If the BIOS settings don't work, you can use the Dell self-diagnostic test to check hard drive errors. Dell ePSA diagnostic tool is used for scanning the hardware and finding the malfunctioning components.

Step 1. Shut down the computer. And press the power button to restart it. Keep taping the F2.

Step 2. You can see the diagnostic screen.

Step 3. Use the Down arrow key to focus on the Diagnostics.

Step 4. Hit Enter button and you can run your diagnostic tool.

It will scan all your hardware on the computer. Check the following box and answer the question:

Were color bars displayed? Choose Yes or No basic on your computer. And then wait for the testing process to be done.

Step 5. Click the arrow icon on the right corner of the screen.

You can check all scanned hardware on the left side. The green check hook means running well, and the red mark displays some wrong here.

dell diagnostic tool

Fix 3. Check Hard Drive Connection from Dell Laptop

Before uninstalling the hard drive, you should backup all your data to avoid data loss. Disconnect all cables connected to the laptop. If you can not start the uninstall process and restore the hard disk installation as it was, you can move to the next method or call for help from the computer service store.

Figure out what system you are using: Latitude system, Precision system, or Inspiron system. Check how to uninstall hard drive released by Dell.com

Check the SATA cable of the hard drive for looseness or damage.

Fix 4. Update Dell Drivers

You can update your dell drivers to make it detectable.

Update drivers through Dell Drivers & Downloads website:

Step 1. Identify the Dell product.

Step 2. Scan for the available updates.

Step 3. Choose driver updates to install.

dell update driver

Fix 5. Run An Data Recovery Software

If none of the above methods can fix the undetectable issue, you can connect the hard drive to another PC and run the Deep Data Recovery to recover your data and fix the issue.

1 - Connect the hard drive to another PC via SATA cable.

sata cable

2 - Download and Run Qiling Data Recovery.

Free Download
Windows 11/10/8/7, 100% Secure

Step 1. Launch Deep Data Recovery in Windows 11/10/8/7. Select file types and click "Next" to start.

Select file types that you want to recover

Step 2. Choose the place where you lost data. Then, click "Scan".

Step 3. After the scan, use the file format filter on the left or upper right corner to find the files you need. Then, you can click the "Preview" button or double-click a file to preview its content.

Step 4. Click the checkbox next to the file and click "Recover" to get back the lost data to a secure place.

To Sum Up

In this article, we've listed five solutions to fix the hard drive detected on a Dell laptop. For my advice, the above two methods are worth trying. If none of them works, you can apply the Qiling data recovery tool to retrieve data and see whether the issue is being fixed.