Error auto-sensing internal hard disk, no bootable device available (XPS M1330)

Question

Hi,  I cannot boot into Windows anymore. The error - Error auto-sensing internal hard disk, no bootable device available' comes up.  I've removed & reinserted the disk tray but the error persists.Even in the BIOS the hard drive doesn't show up and  cannot be detected by Diagnostics either. I removed it from the laptop and connected it to my desktop and its working fine. So my guess is the problem is not with the disk. The laptop is out of warranty. Any solutions ? Thank you for any help.

DELL-Ravi Ch · Answer

Hi tjacob1981,

Good work on troubleshooting. I would suggest you to try flashing the BIOS on the system. Please enter your service tag # on the link below, select the operating system, and then download the BIOS from the BIOS section onto the system and install it.

http://dell.to/18r60nI

Also, there seems to be an issue with the hard drive slot on the system board. You will need to replace it.

tjacob1981 · Answer

Hi Ravi,

I cannot flash the BIOS using the exe file because I cannot boot into Windows. Is there anyway I can do it using a flash drive ?

I'm guessing the hard drive slot alone cannot be replaced, am I looking at a motherboard replacement ?

ejn63 · Answer

Having the drive appear in a desktop doesn't mean it's OK - it could well be the entire cause of the problem.  What do the Dell diagnostics (F12 at powerup) show about the status of the drive?

tjacob1981 · Answer

Hard drive results - not applicable. In BIOS - System - Device Info - Primary Hard Drive - {none}

ejn63 · Answer

The drive is toast - replace it before going further (in fact, the system is old enough that unless it's just a bad drive, it's not really worth repairing - particularly if a mainboard replacement is required).

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