Fix HDD Not Showing During Windows Install 🔥 Disable RST / VMD / RAID

Understand Why Setup Shows No Drives

You boot from the Windows USB, reach the "Where do you want to install Windows?" screen — and the list is completely empty. On most modern Intel laptops and PCs the disk is not dead. The storage controller is running in Intel RST (Rapid Storage Technology) / VMD mode, and the Windows installer does not include that controller's driver, so Setup simply cannot see the drive. There are two clean fixes: give Setup the driver (Step 3), or change the controller mode (Step 4).

Check the Drive in BIOS First

Restart the PC and enter the BIOS/UEFI setup (the exact key varies by brand — F2, Del or F12 are common). Open the storage or NVMe information page and confirm the drive is listed there by name or capacity. If BIOS can see the drive, the hardware is fine and the problem is only the driver or the storage mode — continue with Step 3 or Step 4. If the drive is missing even in BIOS, it is a hardware or connection issue: reseat the drive or get it checked, because no Windows setting can fix that.

Load the Intel RST VMD Driver at Setup

On a second computer, download the Intel Rapid Storage Technology driver (the "F6" driver package) for your exact laptop or motherboard model and extract it so the driver files — iaStorVD.inf, iaStorVD.sys and the .cat file — sit together in a folder. Copy that folder onto the same USB you are installing Windows from. Back at the empty drive screen, click Load driver, then Browse, open that folder and select the Intel RST VMD controller entry. Click Next — the driver loads and your HDD/SSD appears in the list.

Disable RST / VMD — Switch the Storage Mode to AHCI

The second fix changes the controller itself. Enter BIOS/UEFI setup and find the storage setting: on many Intel systems this is the VMD Controller option (set it to Disabled) or the SATA/NVMe mode (change it from RAID / RST to AHCI). Save and exit, then boot into Windows Setup again. The drive now appears using Windows' own built-in AHCI driver — no driver loading needed.

Check the Disk with DiskPart

Still not sure whether Windows can see the disk at all? While you are in Windows Setup, press Shift + F10 to open a Command Prompt and run:

diskpart
list disk

If your disk is listed here, the hardware and connection are fine — Setup just needs the RST driver from Step 3 or the AHCI mode from Step 4. Close the Command Prompt and continue. If the disk does not appear even in DiskPart, go back to the BIOS and hardware check in Step 2.

Finish the Windows Installation

Once the drive appears in the list, select it and continue the installation as normal. If you used the AHCI route, leave the BIOS storage mode exactly as you set it afterwards — the Windows you just installed now boots with that mode.