Note: Disabling VMD will turn off Intel's hardware-level RAID and power optimization features for the drive, but it allows Windows to detect the drive using generic NVMe drivers without performance degradation for single-drive setups.
When you reach the screen asking, "Where do you want to install Windows?" and no drives are visible, click .
Comprehensive Guide: How to Install Intel Rapid Storage Technology (F6-FLPY-x64-nonVMD.zip) rapid intel storage technology f6flpyx64nonvmdzip install
Intel distributes multiple IRST driver packages. The naming convention of f6flpyx64nonvmd.zip tells us exactly what it is:
If you are installing Windows on a single NVMe drive on a modern Intel laptop or desktop, and you see no drives, use f6flpyx64nonvmdzip . If you are building a RAID array, use the standard VMD driver. Note: Disabling VMD will turn off Intel's hardware-level
Disclaimer: Always download drivers from official Intel or motherboard vendor websites. Third-party driver sites may contain malware.
This change has caused widespread frustration. While SetupRST.exe is a valid driver installer, it is a standard Windows executable that is designed to be run from within a working operating system. It is not directly usable for pre-loading drivers during a fresh OS installation, especially when you are creating installation media on a different operating system (like macOS, Linux, or even another Windows PC). This seemingly small change has made the process of preparing a Windows USB drive much more complicated. The naming convention of f6flpyx64nonvmd
When dealing with a desktop environment where Intel VMD is disabled in the BIOS, using the allows the OS installation wizard to discover raw hardware components without relying on platform-level visualization mapping. Step 1: Download and Extract the F6 Driver Files