Fix – Windows 11 No Device Drivers Were Found Error

This guide will make you aware of six different methods to Fix the Windows 11 no device drivers were found error. Now that the latest iteration of OS has been released in a stable state and most of the bugs have been ironed out, many users are looking forward to trying it out on their PC.

In this regard, there exist three different approaches through which you could perform the upgrade- from the Settings menu, via the Media Creation Tool, or by using an ISO file. While the first method passes by without any hiccups, it’s the second and the third methods that are causing quite a few issues.

When users are trying to install Windows 11 via a bootable USB (created either via the official Media Creation Tool or via a third-party app like Rufus), the installation seems to get stuck at the point when it’s time to install the drivers. Users are instead being greeted with the following error message:

“No device drivers were found. Make sure that the installation media contains the correct drivers, and then click OK”. If you are also getting bugged with this issue, then fret not. In this tutorial, we will show you numerous methods to Fix the Windows 11 no device drivers were found error. So without any further ado, let’s get started.

Fix 1: Switch to USB 2.0 Port

While the USB 3.0 Port does give a faster read/write speed, however, in some environments, such as in Windows Recovery or BIOS, your system might not be able to identify the device connected to this port.

Therefore, it is recommended to connect your USB drive to the tried and tested 2.0 port. So try out this tweak and then check if it Fixes the Windows 11 no device drivers were found error.

Fix 2: Use a Standalone USB for Drivers

Windows packs in all the required drivers along with the OS, but as of now, the system is unable to unpack and install these drivers from the ISO file. So your next course of action should be to create a standalone bootable USB device, put in only the drivers there, and then try installing the drivers from that secondary USB. Here’s how:

1. To begin with, create a second bootable USB device using third-party software like Rufus.
2. Then download the SATA drivers corresponding to your chipset: AMD | Intel
3. Now transfer the driver files over to this second USB device.
4. After that, start off the installation using the primary USB device that has the ISO file.
5. Once it throws up the “no device drivers were found” error, connect the second USB device that has the driver file.
6. Now click OK to close the error message. Then click Browse, navigate to the driver files present in the second USB device, and hit OK.
   
7. The drivers will now be loaded and subsequently installed. And with that, it should also Fix the no device drivers were found error on Windows 11.

Fix 3: Manually Set the Active Partition

The issue could also be attributed to the fact that the system is unable to identify the active partition and hence install the drivers. Hence you will have to manually let it know of the same so that it could then proceed ahead with the installation. Here’s how:

1. To begin with, insert the bootable USB drive to your PC that has the ISO setup file.
2. Then restart your PC and start again with the installation process. Once you reach the Choose an option screen, click on Troubleshoot.
   
3. After that, click on Advanced Options followed by Command Prompt.
   
4. Now execute the following five commands (one at a time) in this CMD window. Make sure to replace X with the disk and partition name where you are installing the OS:
   

   diskpart
   list disk
   select disk X
   list partition
   select partition X

   

5. Now that you have selected the desired partition, just execute the below command to make it the active one:

   active

6. Once that is done, you may close the CMD window and proceed ahead with the rest of the installation. Check if it manages to Fix the device drivers not found issue.

Fix 4: Enable xHCI hand-off in BIOS

The extensible Host Controller Interface (xHCI), lays down the guidelines for the interaction of the USB 3.0 controller hardware and software. When it is enabled, BIOS gives full authority to the OS to manage the said ports. On the other hand, if you disable it, then BIOS has total control and the OS has no say in the handling and control of the ports.

In the current scenario, many users were able to achieve success after giving the authority to the OS. In other words, they were able to rectify the device driver issues by enabling XHCI hand-off from BIOS. So let’s enable the Host Controller and then check out the results.

1. Start by powering off your PC. Then turn it back on, and as soon as it is booting up, continuously press the Esc key.
2. This shall bring up the Startup menu. Press F10 to select the BIOS menu from there. Your PC will now boot to the BIOS.
   
3. From there, go to the Advanced tab and scroll to the USB Configuration section.
4. You should now see the BIOS xHCI Hand-Off or BIOS EHCI Hand-OFF option, change its state to Enabled.
   
   
5. Once done, save the changes and then restart the installation process. Check if the Windows 11 no device driver error has been fixed or not.

Fix 5: Disable Secure Boot from BIOS

Secure Boot is basically a security mechanism put in place by Microsoft that verifies the credibility of each driver that is being installed or loaded at boot time. However, in rare instances, it might raise a false positive and could prevent the installation of legitimate drivers as well. The only way to verify and hence rectify this issue is to disable this security check (aka Secure Boot).

1. So start off by booting your PC to the BIOS, as explained above.
2. Then go to the Security tab and you should see the Secure Boot option. Change its state to Disabled and then save the changes.
   
3. However, If the Secure Boot option is not there, then check for it under the Boot/Authentication/System configuration section and then disable it.
4. Once done, restart the PC and you should get the Operating System Boot Mode Change prompt. Type in the requested code and hit Enter to verify the changes that you have made to the BIOS.
   
5. Now proceed ahead with the setup and verify whether the Windows 11 no device drivers were found error stands Fixed or not.

Fix 6: Clean Install Windows 11

If none of the aforementioned methods managed to spell out success, then it could be the case of bad sectors or corrupt data on your C drive. Hence the only way out is to perform a clean install of Windows 11, which will delete all the data in the process. So if you wish to take this route, then take a backup beforehand and then refer to the below instructions.

1. Boot your device to the Windows 11 setup via the bootable USB Device that has the ISO file.
2. Once you reach the Windows Setup screen, press the Shift + F10 shortcut keys to open the Command Prompt.
3. Then execute the below two commands in the CMD window to bring up the list of the Disk Drive names

   diskpart
   list disk

4. After that, type in the below command to select the partition where the OS needs to be installed. Make sure to replace the X keyword accordingly:

   select disk X

   

5. Finally, execute the below command to wipe the selected disk:

   clean

6. Once the drive has been formatted, restart the installation procedure. This time you shouldn’t get the device driver issues.

Conclusion

So with this, we round off the guide on how you could Fix the Windows 11 no device drivers were found error. We have listed six different methods for the same. Do let us know in the comments section which one worked out in your favor.