A disk read error occured when reading bootable USB
I'm trying to install Windows 7 from a bootable USB stick. My other laptop read it properly. However when I try to boot from a defective laptop, it tells me:
A disk read error occured. Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to restart.
I have Windows XP on the laptop: it reaches the Windows boot screen, tries to load Windows then restarts. What can I do? I can't boot Windows 7, so I can't run chkdsk or anything.
82 Answers
Sometimes an USB stick error happens when having a lot of files in root folder. If there's more stuff than actually the files needed to make the Windows install, try to move them to some safe device/computer.
Some times is the file system of the USB and/or operative system. USB sticks are often FAT 32, or FAT 16. In some cases people install Windows XP in FAT 32. I guess your Windows 7 is in NTFS file system, as usual. Might happen some issue related to this.
Did you check that in the defective laptop BIOS menu, you have USB listed in boot sequence/options ? You might have it configured differently or laptop BIOS not supporting USB boot at all.
3If the same USB drive works in another system, then the problem must lie with your XP system. You could try a BIOS update if there is a later version available. If that does not help, make an Easy2Boot v1.91B USB drive and add the Win7 ISO to it (_ISO\WINDOWS\WIN7 folder). Do NOT set the boot order to boot from the USB drive - instead use a F key (e.g. F8, F10, F11, F12 or whatever) to invoke the BIOS Boot Selection pop-up box and then select the USB drive as the boot drive. Use a USB 2 port. As soon as it starts to boot, immediately press and hold down the SHIFT key. This will install the grub4dos USB 2 driver which may be less buggy than your BIOS's USB driver. You should see a message about 1 Device found (0x80). Then select the Windows Install - Win7 menu and try installing Windows 7 usual.
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