HP ENVY x360 Windows Install doesn't detect SSD

[peon2t]

Hello

I need to install Windows 11on my HP ENVY x360 Convert 13-bd0699nz (4P492EA)

The Windows Setup doesn't recognize the SSD. It's some obscure Intel Optane device.

The HP support website doesn't seem to provide storage drivers for that product...

Different storage drivers I obtained directly from Intel don't work. (Either Windows setup hangs when trying to load the driver or the driver is loaded but the SSD still not recognized.)

The HP BIOS doesn't give proper information about the "situation" of the SSD (e.g. if it's AHCI, RAID or whatever) and I also don't see how to change anything about the situation. The menu options that HP describes in this regard on their website doesn't actually exist in the BIOS on that computer.

Please advise on how to resolve this situation by:

- either provide the information on where I can find the needed storage drivers (as HP seems to think that it's unnecessary to provide them on the device's support page)

- or provide information on how I can configure the storage to work without special drivers (e.g. AHCI) in the BIOS of my device (which seems to lack any kind of necessary options)

- or any other solution that will solve my problem

Thank you.

[peon2t]

Ok, so I found the "solution"... it's an absolutely crazy mess.

First you need to obtain this driver from Intel, because HP doesn't provide it:

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download/19512/intel-rapid-storage-technology-driver-install...

Then you need to extract the actual drivers from Intel's Setup, because Intel doesn't provide the ZIP files anymore that you need. (Open cmd, navigate to the folder where the SetupRST.exe you downloaded from Intel is located, enter "SetupRST.exe -extractdrivers Driver" - Driver is the name of the folder that will contain the extracted drivers, you could also chose another name).

Then you copy that folder to an USB stick, so that you can load the driver from the VMD subdirectory during Windows 11 install. (In my first attempt, the Intel Setup somehow managed to only partially extract the drivers, which is why Windows 11 setup hung when I tried to load that driver... so I actually had the right one, it just didn't extract properly.)

But wait, there's more... now you should be able to see the previously hidden SSD in the Windows setup. But you still can't install Windows on it, because apparently HP created some obscure "GPT protective partition" on the SSD. Which means Windows setup can't install on the SSD and Windows setup also can't remove that partition.

So you need to delete that partition first. (I used Linux to do it, but there are probably other methods.)

THEN you can finally install Windows.

Honestly, it's disgusting to release such a product.