Windows Clean Install - Drivers for B360M

[RDW3]

Hello - apologies in advance if I missed this topic in search. Frustration, phone posting, etc has resulted me in just making my own topic

I am trying to do a Clean Install of Windows 10 or 11 (I don't care which one at this point, I'm trying to get anything to work) on a B360M chipset motherboard (Which I believe is Intel 8th Gen when it comes to drivers?)

I have tried various combinations of Windows 10/11 Builds (20H2, 23H2, etc) and at the install, it will NOT recognize my SATA drives (I've tried one on what I'll call a traditional SATA line as well as an NVMe SSD in the M2_1 slot. Every time, it identifies an Intel Series 300 AHCI driver as appropriate (from a separate install USB), it gets 75% of the way through the driver installs and just craps out.

I've tried turning RST on on the motherboard. At that point it identifies a "Premium RST" driver as appropriate and still craps out. I've tried a v17 release (original from Motherboard manufacturer) and newer ones from Intel's website. Happens with multiple builds of Win10/11.

To complicate matters, I don't have access to another WinPC to make images - I've been generating boot files and transferring things to USB sticks via my Android Phone and a Chromebook.

My next step is to try to use an original Win10 2004 build (20H1).

To recap:
B360M chipset
Bios identifies all drives
Craps out during driver install on clean install attempts with Windows 10 AND 11

I'm contacting the PC manufacturer to see if I can maybe roll back the bios version...anything to try to just get this thing back to the way it was ((It WAS working and Windows 11 23H2 has been refusing to install, so I figured this was time for a clean slate...HOW HARD COULD IT BE??))

I'm looking for any advice suggestions at this point.

Thanks!
RDW3

[KevinMorris]

Hey RDW3,

I get your frustration; this can be a tough problem to tackle. Here are some steps that might help:

1. BIOS Settings Check: Ensure that you've disabled Secure Boot in BIOS, as it can sometimes cause issues with recognizing drives during installation. Also, try toggling the SATA mode between AHCI and RST, even if you’ve tried this already—it sometimes requires a fresh reboot to take effect.

2. Driver Injection Method: Since you’re limited to an Android phone and Chromebook, downloading the drivers directly to your USB might be tricky. If you can find a way to make a clean bootable USB from your Chromebook, it might help integrate the latest drivers.

3. Alternative Install Media: If you're still having trouble, try downloading the Windows 10 2004 (20H1) ISO, as you mentioned. This version may have better compatibility with your Intel 8th Gen chipset and should still allow you to upgrade once installed.

4. Disk Partition Wipe: In the Windows setup, access Command Prompt (Shift+F10 during install) and use `diskpart` to clean any existing partitions. Run:
```
diskpart
list disk
select disk 0 (replace 0 with your drive number)
clean
exit
```
This might help Windows detect a clean drive to install on.

5. Reverting BIOS Version: If all else fails, rolling back the BIOS could work, as newer updates sometimes mess with older driver compatibility.

Hope this helps, and good luck with the install!

[RDW3]

Okay...checking back in but I figured I'd update everyone.

I finally got a loaner Win11 laptop from someone and recreated install media using the Windows Media Creation Tool.

Using THAT as a USB clean installer, I was indeed able to see the drives without having to load any additional drivers from Intel or disk.

But, here's a rub that occured

The first time I installed using the Windows 11 USB installer, I deleted all partitions, selected my NVMe drive to be the install and the process began.  However, on the first reboot, I got a BSOD talking about an Invalid IRQ.

I swapped in a standalone SSD onto one of the SATA ports and repeated everything to install to THAT drive.  This time, it got 33% into the install and this time BSOD with a "kernel mode heap corruption" error. 

I find both of those WEIRD, since there were no third party drivers install, this was a pure clean drive, no additional drives or USB devices installed, sooo....???


My final resolution was to use a Windows 10 USB clean install...and it went off without a hitch.  No driver incompatibility issues, failures, etc, etc...

At this point, I'm very reluctant to return to a Win11 install, but...it's working again.