Setup was unable to create a new system partition (NEW SSD)

Hello

I'm trying to install a fresh copy of Windows 7 onto my brand new Kingston HyperX 240GB SSD. I keep getting the same error "Setup was unable to create a new system partition or locate an existing system partition. See the Setup log files for more information".

I am trying to install Windows 7 x64bit Ultimate version via a USB (plugged into USB 2.0) the image was tested on another computer and found to work.

Methods I have attempted from reading other threads:

Letting Windows Setup configure everything for me.
(Try to install on an unallocated space,
Try to install after creating a new partition,
Try to install after formatting the partition created before)

Create a new partition via DiskPart:
DiskPart <ENTER>
list disk <ENTER>
select disk 0 <ENTER>
clean <ENTER> (Also tried Clean All)
create partition primary align=1024 <ENTER>
format fs=ntfs quick <ENTER>
assign <ENTER>
active <ENTER>
exit <ENTER>
exit <ENTER>

I've tried having the SATA drive settings in AHCI and IDE mode as well as IDE compatibility mode

Have attempted to plug into SATA 3.0_0 and SATA 3.0_1 on the motherboard.

Have unplugged ALL other drives including the DVD drive.

Attempted to install Windows with the SSD plugged into another computer

Bios can see the SSD as well as read/write create partitions etc, and as mentioned this is a brand new SSD

Hello,

Thank you for your reply, unfortunately this did not solve the error, (got stuck in a new loop regarding not having an installation disk/driver errors)

As a new idea I burnt the image to a DVD and encounter the same error

In the end I installed a windows 8.1 image and that worked with no problems, just didn't like Win7 for some reason!

Thanks for the help anyway :)

I too had this issue pop up and was able to narrow down the problem.

After some 100+ successful installs of the same image booting from USB, I recently got a new computer at work when suddenly I was getting this error. Again, I already knew the image I was using was good. BUT the USB stick I was using (Kingston DT R3.0 G2) was brand new (never used to install a system).

I spent hours doing just what you did changing every setting I could, manually formatting and partitioning the drive, remove the USB at random places during the install, turned off ahci for SATA, etc.... because surely the problem isn't the USB drive... Finally in a last ditch effort I simply grabbed a generic 30GB micro center USB stick I had lying around and loaded up the bootable image. Tried it. It worked. (NOTE: I reset my MoBo settings and deleted the partitions using the windows install manager before trying the generic USB stick... just to make sure I did not "accidentally" solve my problem without knowing what the problem was)

I am fairly confident that this issue is a "bug" relating to the compatibility of Windows 7 and newer USB 3.0 sticks.... BUT I have seen people having the same problem with windows 8. If all else fails, try another USB brand to install from (generic is best?).

asendic said:

I too had this issue pop up and was able to narrow down the problem.

After some 100+ successful installs of the same image booting from USB, I recently got a new computer at work when suddenly I was getting this error. Again, I already knew the image I was using was good. BUT the USB stick I was using (Kingston DT R3.0 G2) was brand new (never used to install a system).

I spent hours doing just what you did changing every setting I could, manually formatting and partitioning the drive, remove the USB at random places during the install, turned off ahci for SATA, etc.... because surely the problem isn't the USB drive... Finally in a last ditch effort I simply grabbed a generic 30GB micro center USB stick I had lying around and loaded up the bootable image. Tried it. It worked. (NOTE: I reset my MoBo settings and deleted the partitions using the windows install manager before trying the generic USB stick... just to make sure I did not "accidentally" solve my problem without knowing what the problem was)

I am fairly confident that this issue is a "bug" relating to the compatibility of Windows 7 and newer USB 3.0 sticks.... BUT I have seen people having the same problem with windows 8. If all else fails, try another USB brand to install from (generic is best?).

Exactly.....
Was trying the same with a new bootable USB 3 16 GB stick. No chance. Got the error over and over.
Made a bootable older SanDisk 4GB (probably USB 2) and copied all my win7 home prem. setup-files and THERE WE GO!!!
Strange.

asendic said:

I too had this issue pop up and was able to narrow down the problem.

After some 100+ successful installs of the same image booting from USB, I recently got a new computer at work when suddenly I was getting this error. Again, I already knew the image I was using was good. BUT the USB stick I was using (Kingston DT R3.0 G2) was brand new (never used to install a system).

I spent hours doing just what you did changing every setting I could, manually formatting and partitioning the drive, remove the USB at random places during the install, turned off ahci for SATA, etc.... because surely the problem isn't the USB drive... Finally in a last ditch effort I simply grabbed a generic 30GB micro center USB stick I had lying around and loaded up the bootable image. Tried it. It worked. (NOTE: I reset my MoBo settings and deleted the partitions using the windows install manager before trying the generic USB stick... just to make sure I did not "accidentally" solve my problem without knowing what the problem was)

I am fairly confident that this issue is a "bug" relating to the compatibility of Windows 7 and newer USB 3.0 sticks.... BUT I have seen people having the same problem with windows 8. If all else fails, try another USB brand to install from (generic is best?).

Thank you so much Ascendic. I had the exact same issue, and was at sea with clueless Dell support. when i stopped using kingston dtr3.0 g2 64Gb USB, and used a cheapo generic noname 4Gb usb stick, everything worked. I never would have copped that. Thanks again

I was having the same problem but I discovered that I hadn't set my USB as the primary boot device. After I did that it was all good to go. And the USB drive is a brand new SanDisk.

asendic's solution worked for me too. When I switched from a USB 3.0 to older USB 2.0 stick, the error message went away and I was able to successfully install Windows 7.

I had the same problem on an HDD and the solution was to clean it through diskpart, not creating any new partitions, then a restart and install windows in the unallocated space. Easy solution but it took 1 day to find :)

Ohh and one detail: Install the windows from a DVD, not from a stick. Installing it from the stick didn't work for me, even if it was plugged in the USB 2.0 port.

Is it possible that the message actually means what it says, that the really basic disk device driver that is included with the install disk doesn't have the capability of creating a system partition?

I encountered this message on a Dimension 3000 that I'm resurrecting. I added a 1000 GB SATA disk, as the original IDE disk has only 40 GB (LOL). When I started the install from the Home Premium DVD that was originally used to upgrade, it informed me that only the 40 GB disk was available. (HINT: it didn't have the driver for the SATA disk.) I said to myself, OK, I'll install it on the 40 GB disk and use backup/restore to get it onto the SATA drive. But, lo and behold, I got the "can't create system partition" message.

To make a long story short, none of the solutions suggested worked. I eventually had to use the emergency restore disk from the backup program (I had a valid backup), and that solved my problem. But it occurred to me afterwards (I don't have time to experiment at this point) that perhaps the install disk's generic drivers are not sufficient. It provides the ability to add drivers from a "floppy disk", not sure what the options are if there is none...anyway, if the officially sanctioned driver for the specific disk for your system is provided, that this problem might be solved more easily than the various workarounds suggested.

Jon Campbell
Software Engineer and amateur at PC internal stuff