How to boot directly to an added SSD

[LancairDriver]

Looking for help with UEFI boot settings... I want to boot directly to an added SSD (and also learn how to undo this change).
BACKGROUND
I purchased a used HP 17-cn0013dx computer recently. It is working well. Originally running Windows 10 Home, Windows Update had updated it to Windows 11. I added a PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD for more storage space and to speed up operations. After this the SSD was visible in the Disk Management utility, but it was not partitioned or formatted yet.

I attempted to do a fresh install of Windows 11:
first with a USB set up with Windows Media Creation Tool (got "Selected Boot Device Failed"),
second with a different USB set up with Windows Recovery (it booted to the existing HDD, not the new SSD), and
third with the 2nd USB set up with Windows Media Creation Tool. This got to "Where to install?" and then "Couldn't find any drives", so went to "Load Driver" and got driver from HP's web site, put it on USB and browsed to it. But "Driver not signed." I gave up on a fresh install.

Next attempt was to clone the existing drive. I downloaded AcronisTrueImage to the existing drive, installed and ran it. It found the correct target disk (new SSD) and cloned to it in about 30 minutes. It then advised to remove the source drive and install the cloned drive in place of the source drive; but this is not possible due to different hardware.

Eventually I booted to the new drive with the following sequence:
Press Power button
F9 Tap Repeatedly until Boot Menu appears
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| Please select boot device
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| OS Boot Manager(UEFI) - Win. Boot Mgr. (HDD device)
| Boot From EFI File
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Select "Boot From EFI File" [ENTER]
New menu appears:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| Select a File System
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| SYSTEM,...\SATA(1,...)
| SYSTEM,...\NVMe(2,...)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Select "SYSTEM,...\NVMe(2,...)" [ENTER]
New menu appears:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| File Explorer
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| <EFI>
| <System Volume Information>
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Select "<EFI>" [ENTER]
New menu appears:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| File Explorer
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| <..>
| <Microsoft>
| <Boot>
| <HP>
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Select <Boot> [ENTER]
New menu appears:
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| File Explorer
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
| <..>
| bootx64.efi
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Select bootx64.efi [ENTER]
Wait while system boots [ENTER]
Password [ENTER]
Wait for Desktop to appear

[Paul_Tikkanen]

For a clean install of W11 the driver I zipped up and attached should work.

The Windows boot manager determines which drive the PC is going to boot from and as long as you have an operating system on the 2.5" drive it will always want to boot from that drive first and not the SSD.

What I recommend you do is to temporarily disconnect the 2.5" drive and install Windows on the NVMe SSD.

You may want to consider using the HP cloud recovery tool to make a bootable USB recovery drive that will reinstall Windows, the drivers and the software that originally came with your notebook on the SSD.

Here is an info link for how to use the utility.  You will need a 32 GB USB flash drive for this.  The recovery image should have the Intel storage controller drivers included.

HP Consumer PCs - Using the HP Cloud Recovery Tool in Windows 11 and 10 | HP® Support

You can download the software from the Microsoft store.

HP Cloud Recovery Tool - Free download and install on Windows | Microsoft Store

If you have to use the utility on another PC, you will have to enter your PC's product number in the tool's search window in order to proceed.

Your PC's product number is 37P29UA#ABA

So, you may want to create the recovery drive now before you disconnect the 2.5" drive.

Run the notebook for a while off the SSD, restart it shut it down, put it through its paces and then after you are satisfied that everything is working properly, you can connect the 2.5" drive back up.

If the Windows boot manager switches back to the 2.5" drive, then you will have to use the Dispart utility to clean the disk and reformat it, and use it for storage only.

If you have bought a notebook with a NVMe SSD and a 2.5" drive from the factory, the 2.5" drive would not have had an operating system on it.

[LancairDriver]

Paul, 

Thank you for your answer.  It is most helpful to know that the Windows boot manager always prefers the 2.5" drive.  

I plan to postpone removing the 2.5" drive to install Windows, as it is currently quite stable running Windows 11 from the SSD.  Also, the case on this model is quite difficult to get open.  (It took me over an hour the first time.)  

I will set up the HP Cloud Recovery Tool as you suggest.  I may also do a system image backup, as that would restore Windows 11, rather than the original software, which was Windows10.  

Thanks for the product number - I had looked up the Product ID in Settings > System > About - not the same at all.  

I have downloaded your zip files.

Thanks again!

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.