How to Fix: ASUS Laptop Inaccessible Boot Device (7 Ways)

How Do I Get Past Inaccessible Boot Device on ASUS?

“Hi everyone, my ASUS laptop (Windows 10) appears with the message "INACCESSIBLE BOOT DEVICE" when start-up. What steps should I try next to try to fix this problem? Thanks.”

One of the most common errors experienced by ASUS users is the Inaccessible Boot Device error. It is a typical blue screen of death (BSOD) error, which frequently shows up during Windows startup and happens after a Windows upgrade, Windows reset, BIOS update, Windows reinstall on SSD, etc.

What does the ASUS laptop Inaccessible Boot Device error mean and how to fix it? Let’s keep reading!

What Does It Mean When It Says Inaccessible Boot Device?

Traditionally, Windows maintains an automated self-updating mechanism, which is especially exciting when a new update is rolled out. However, this automatic updating process bears the potential to introduce errors, such as Inaccessible Boot Device upon restarting your PC. This error indication signifies that Windows encountered difficulties when trying to access the system partition during the startup.

There are several common causes of ASUS laptop Inaccessible Boot Device on Windows 10/11:

• Corrupted, outdated, or improperly configured drivers
• Hardware conflicts resulting from system updates or modifications
• Damaged hard drive
• Malware attacks or intrusions

7 Quick Fixes to ASUS Laptop Inaccessible Boot Device

There are some methods on how to troubleshoot Inaccessible Boot Device in ASUS laptop. If you don't know what exactly is causing the problem on your laptop, you might need to try several different solutions.

In situations where your Windows fails to boot, you could try Solution 1 and 2.

Solution 1. Uninstall Recently Installed Packages

If you have configured Windows Update to install packages automatically, it will install new packages without notifications. Notably, recently installed packages can result in the Inaccessible Boot Device error in Windows 10. If you believe some recently-installed packages cause this problem, you can uninstall them one after another with the following steps:

Step 1. Initiate the process by accessing the Windows Recovery Environment. Achieve this by forcefully shutting down your computer and subsequently rebooting it twice.

Step 2. Navigate to Troubleshoot -> Advanced Options -> Command Prompt in turn and await your computer's restart.

Step 3. Within the Command Prompt interface, type dir C: (assuming you have Windows installed on the drive C) and tap Enter.

Step 4. Execute Dism / Image: C:\/ Get-Packages to display all packages installed on the system.

Step 5. For package removal, input dism.exe /image:c:\ /remove-package /[package name]. Then, press Enter.

Step 6. Subsequent to uninstalling the packages, reboot your computer. Then, check whether the error has been successfully resolved.

Solution 2. Undo BIOS changes

If you have incorrectly reset boot order or drive priority, restoring the previous settings will usually solve the ASUS laptop can’t find boot device error. This stop code may surface, for example, when switching controller mode from legacy to AHCI, or from RAID to AHCI (or vice-versa) in the BIOS. Here is how to go to BIOS and undo changes like enabling AHCI mode:

Step 1. Reboot your computer and press F2 or DEL during the boot process to access the BIOS interface.

Step 2. Within the Advanced Options menu, alter the mode of Configure SATA as to AHCI, then save and exit the BIOS.

If you receive this Inaccessible Boot Device stop code and your ASUS laptop does boot, try the following resolutions:

Solution 3. Check for Drivers Compatibility

In instances where you've introduced a new storage device or controller, it's imperative to verify its compatibility with Windows. Otherwise, Inaccessible Boot Device on startup may pop up on ASUS laptop.

If there is an incompatible driver, you can uninstall it by clicking Start -> Device Manager -> expanding the IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers menu -> right-clicking on the targeted controller -> tapping on Uninstall.

Solution 4. Boot Your Computer to Safe Mode

Booting into Safe Mode initiates the loading of fundamental storage drivers, facilitating access to the storage system once more. Hence, it is regarded as an effective remedy for resolving the ASUS laptop Inaccessible Boot Device problem. Follow these steps to access Safe Mode:

Step 1. In Settings, select Update and Security. Then tap on Recovery -> Advanced startup to boot to maintenance mode.

Step 2. At the resulting menu, choose Troubleshoot -> Advanced Options -> Startup Settings.

Step 3. Upon the Startup Settings page, press F4 or the number key 4 to activate Safe Mode.

Once Windows is initiated in Safe Mode, restart your PC to verify if the proper storage drivers are loaded and if the storage device is correctly recognized.

Solution 5. Use Disk Scan Utility

The presence of corrupted files on your computer's hard drive could potentially trigger the "Inaccessible Boot Device" error. Fortunately, fixing corrupted files on hard drive is a simple process with the Windows System File Checker (SFC) utility. Here is how to fix Inaccessible Boot Device by running it:

Step 1. Type Command Prompt in the Windows search box, then right-click on it and select Run as administrator.

Step 2. Type sfc /scannow and press Enter. Wait for the scan process to finalize.

Step 3. Following the completion of the scan, input the command DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth and hit Enter.

Solution 6. Scan for Malware

The occurrence of an inaccessible boot error might be a sign that there is a malware infection within your system. Therefore, checking your system for malware can be an Inaccessible Boot Device Windows 10 fix.

Step 1. Begin by right-clicking on the Start button, and select Settings.

Step 2. Navigate to Windows Security, and then head to Virus & threat protection.

Step 3. Within the Current threats section, proceed by selecting Scan options.

Step 4. Toggle the default option from Quick scan to Full scan, and then click Scan now.

Solution 7. Make Sure Sufficient Free Space on Hard Drive

Both the operating system and certain applications necessitate an ample amount of available space to generate swap files and carry out various tasks. The specific requirement may differ according to the system's configuration, but maintaining approximately 10% to 15% of free space is recommended.

If the ASUS laptop Inaccessible Boot Device issue results from insufficient hard drive storage, consider removing useless files or programs to free up space on your computer.

Bonus Tip: Easy Way to Backup Windows PC for Data Security

Whenever you try to fix the ASUS laptop Inaccessible Boot Device error, there is a potential for not resolving the blue screen of death. At this time, you may understand that prevention is always preferable to treatment. Therefore, creating a backup of your Windows computer using third-party backup software is always considered good practice.

AOMEI Backupper Standard is an all-in-one backup and recovery utility for Windows 11/10/8/7. It lets you automatically back up files, systems, disks, etc., to avoid data loss. In addition, it also allows you to create automatic and incremental backups. And it also enables you to create recovery disk for ASUS laptop for computer restore.

Here we take creating system backup as an example to show you how to backup ASUS laptop files with ease.

Step 1. Run AOMEI Backupper Standard. Choose Backup tab from the left panel, and select the System Backup option in the right panel.

Step 2. The program will automatically designate the system-related partition(s) as the source data. And you only need to decide a destination path to save the backup. You can opt to backup Windows system to USB flash drive, external drive, network share, NAS, cloud storage, and so on.

Step 3. (Optional) Configure a scheduled backup by choosing Schedule Backup at the bottom to automatically backup your files.

Step 4. Click Start Backup to backup your ASUS laptop system with ease.

Conclusion

That is all about how to fix ASUS laptop Inaccessible Boot Device on Windows 11/10/8/7. A blue screen is a common issue on Windows computers, so you can use the strategies provided in this article to get rid of it.

Moreover, it's highly recommended to use professional backup software like AOMEI Backupper to backup your computers to avoid any risk of data loss. It can not only backup Windows systems, but also backup disks, partitions, and files/folders to any desired location hassle-free.