Windows PE does not recognize the main storage device (disk/hard drive}

Question

Windows PE does not recognize the main storage device (disk/hard drive}

Snookred 31

I'm trying to run Windows Preinstallation Environment (WinPE) on a new Dell laptop. The media was created by Windows ADK Version 10.1.28000.1 which was just released (November 2025). When I run the "List Disk" sub-command for DISKPART it only finds USB storage devices. There is nothing displayed that would correspond to the storage device on which Windows is installed.

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Answer 1

Marcin Policht 112.5K MVP Volunteer Moderator

As per https://actiphyhelp.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/13451320042649-Solution-for-a-problem-where-a-hard-disk-is-not-recognized-in-the-boot-environment

Visit the hardware maker's website, download the storage controller driver in ".inf" format. Note that drivers in "Setup.exe" format cannot be added to Windows PE-based boot environments. When in the Windows PE-based boot environment, navigate to [Utilities] -> [Driver Loader], load the downloaded driver, and check if the hard disk is detected.

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin

Snookred 31 Reputation points

2025-11-22T20:20:08.7066667+00:00

The computer is a Dell DC15250 with Windows 11 Home. It looks to me like the storage device is a "MVMe 2500 Micron 1024GB" which I suspect is a Solid State Drive. When I go to the Dell website there are some downloads that are *.exe files which are described as firmware updates.

I'm not familiar with .inf formatting for driver files but I don't see anything that looks like it fits the description in the referenced articles. While it may make sense to apply applicable updates, my immediate motive was to create an image file that could be used to restore the computer to its originally operating state. In that, acquire a .wim format image file before making any changes to the system.

Possibly I need to post some kind of inquiry on a Dell forum but would welcome further advice.
Marcin Policht 112.5K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2025-11-22T22:24:01.57+00:00

If your intention is to create an image backup, then follow https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/discussions/windows11/how-can-i-create-a-full-system-backup-for-windows-11-computer/4369277 and then use the Windows RE to restore it https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-recovery-environment-0eb14733-6301-41cb-8d26-06a12b42770b

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin
Snookred 31 Reputation points

2025-11-23T17:32:14.52+00:00

I have not been able to find any device drivers for the main storage device, which is a Micron SSD, on the Dell website. The only drivers said to apply to storage devices are firmware updates. Furthermore, it also appears that there are no drivers in .inf format. Although I must admit I am not familiar with what that would be. However, I can say that all of the drivers I can find are provided as Windows executables (i.e., *.exe form).

I have posted a question in the Dell forums inquiring about device drivers that may be available in .inf format for my storage device. However, it does occur to me that the driver is installed on my laptop which causes me to question what might be the possibility of extracting it in the proper (.inf) format. Any ideas about that?
Marcin Policht 112.5K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2025-11-23T20:54:44.1666667+00:00

You don't need Windows PE to accomplish your goal of being able to create/restore image based backup. Instead, use the approach described in https://techcommunity.microsoft.com/discussions/windows11/how-can-i-create-a-full-system-backup-for-windows-11-computer/4369277 and then use the Windows RE to restore it https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-recovery-environment-0eb14733-6301-41cb-8d26-06a12b42770b

If the above response helps answer your question, remember to "Accept Answer" so that others in the community facing similar issues can easily find the solution. Your contribution is highly appreciated.

hth

Marcin
Snookred 31 Reputation points

2025-11-23T21:36:45.2433333+00:00

It will take some time to fully review the material you referred me to which I plan on doing.

However, I've been using Windows since its' inception. I think it was when NT came along that I had developed my own system for setting up my computers. Briefly it amounts to altering the hard drive (now an obsolete term) to create separate partitions for the operating system (i.e., Windows) and other data. Other data has 2 basic categories. First is what I'd call my work product (i.e., data files that I create and want to keep). The other is temporary data, typically created by either Windows or other installed application programs.

Then I create multiple partitions used to boot the Windows OS. By having multiple Windows partitions when things go bad, as the always do, I have an immediate way to restore proper behavior by simply rebooting and using an alternative instance of the same Windows System. Note: The one system that has become very reliable and seems to be immune from bad things that require restoration from happening is Windows 7.

In order to do that I need to create partition images that can be separately restored. The program that allows for creating and restoring image (.wim) files is DISM (prior to DISM coming into existence I used ImageX) which needs to run from a separate device from the one being created or restored. The device is usually a bootable thumb drive that runs WinPE.

This takes a little effort to get Windows setup such that libraries have symbolic links that point to the alternate partitions and various environment variables are changed to refer to the desired locations but the DISM (create/restore) part has always been quite easy.

I'm a bit skeptical about the ability of the method you referenced to accomplish what is needed.

However, the good news is that I still have a month plus to return this computer if I can't get it to work the way I prefer.