PC keeps booting into BIOS saying no boot device found despite boot drive working flawlessly before

Troubleshooting Guide: Resolving “No Boot Device Found” Issue on Your PC

Encountering a situation where your computer repeatedly boots into BIOS with a message indicating no bootable device, despite your drives appearing correctly in BIOS, can be perplexing and disruptive. While this issue often suggests a problem with drive recognition or boot configuration, regular components and settings could also be contributing factors. Luckily, systematic troubleshooting can help identify and resolve the underlying cause, restoring normal operation.

Understanding Your Setup

Before diving into solutions, it’s important to understand your current configuration:

• Motherboard: Gigabyte Z590 UD with latest BIOS update
• Boot Drive: Western Digital Black SN850X 2TB (purchased within the last 6 months)
• Additional Storage: Multiple Samsung SATA SSDs
• Operating System: Windows 10, version 22H2, fully updated (not affected by recent problematic updates)
• Noted concerns: Occasional successful boot after multiple attempts, intermittent recognition issues

Common Causes and Troubleshooting Steps

1. Verify BIOS Settings and Boot Priority

2. Access BIOS Setup During Boot: Ensure that your primary SSD is set as the first boot device in BIOS.

3. Check Boot Mode: Confirm that the BIOS is configured for UEFI mode (or Legacy/CSM if applicable). Mismatched modes can cause boot failure.

4. Secure Boot and Fast Boot: Temporarily disable Secure Boot and Fast Boot options; these can occasionally interfere with drive detection.

5. Inspect Drive Detection and Connections

6. Confirm BIOS Recognition: Since your drives appear in BIOS, it suggests basic detection is working. Nevertheless, reseat the NVMe drive and SATA cables, ensuring a secure connection.

7. Swap Slots: If possible, test the drive in different M.2 slots or ports to eliminate slot-specific issues.

8. Examine Bootloader and OS Integrity

9. Boot Repair Tools: Use Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) to run startup repair:

10. Create a Windows installation media using the Media Creation Tool.
11. Boot from the media, select “Repair your computer,” then navigate to Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Startup Repair.
12. Rebuild the Boot Configuration Data (BCD):
13. Access Command Prompt in WinRE.
14. Run commands:
    bootrec /fixmbr
bootrec /fixboot
bootrec /scanos
bootrec /rebuildbcd
15. Confirm drive partition status via DiskPart:
16. In