Operating System Not Found: Causes and How to Fix It

Operating System Not Found is an error message that may appear when your computer fails to boot up, indicating that it cannot locate the operating system on the hard drive.

This situation can be caused by several issues, such as the BIOS not detecting the hard drive, a damaged or corrupted hard drive, a compromised Master Boot Record (MBR), or a misconfigured partition.

This article explores these common causes in detail and provides a comprehensive guide on how to diagnose and resolve the issue, ensuring your system returns to normal functionality. We’ll cover various methods to troubleshoot and rectify this error effectively.

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Causes System Not Found Error

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The BIOS will locate a system on your hard drive to boot when your machine is starting up. The computer offers you a troubleshooting warning if there is no system because it is unsure where to go. The primary explanations for the absence of the Windows operating system are listed below.

The BIOS, which is a program that starts your computer, doesn’t see the hard drive.
The hard drive is broken or has problems.
The Master Boot Record (MBR) on the hard drive, which helps the computer start, is damaged. Sometimes certain software or actions can cause this damage.
A wrong partition (section of the hard drive) is set as active, which confuses the computer.
The partition that should have the MBR and help start the computer is not set as active anymore.

Methods to Fix Operating System Not Found Problem

The following are different methods to fix Operating System Not Found:

Method 1: Check BIOS Settings

If your Windows 11/10 doesn’t recognize the hard disk, showing “Operating System not found” when starting up, you need to check your BIOS settings:

Step 1. Turn on your computer and immediately press F10 or F12 repeatedly until you enter the BIOS SETUP UTILITY.

Step 2. Look at the listings for Primary IDE Master, Primary IDE Slave, Secondary IDE Master, and Secondary IDE Slave to see if the hard disk is recognized.

Step 3. If it shows “None” or “Not Detected,” switch these settings to “Auto” to try and fix the issue.

Restart your computer after making these changes to see if the problem has been resolved. If you’re still facing issues, you might need to explore other solutions or consider replacing the hard disk.

Method 2: Checking Your Hard Disk for Problems

To check if there are any issues with your hard disk, you can follow these straightforward steps:

Step 1. Turn off your computer and pause for 5 seconds.

Step 2. Press the power button to turn your computer on and immediately start pressing the F10 key to access the BIOS Setup menu.

Step 3. In the BIOS menu, use the Right or Left Arrow keys to find the “Primary Hard Drive Self Test” option, which might be listed under Diagnostics or Tools.

Step 4. Select this option and press Enter to begin the test.

The hard drive will go through a “Quick Test” followed by a “Comprehensive Test.” A status bar and the time left for the test will be displayed during this process.

If all the tests are completed successfully, your hard drive is in good condition.
If any of the tests fail, you should get in touch with the manufacturer of your hard disk or computer to ask for a replacement if your device is still under warranty.

Method 3: Activate Windows Partition

If your Windows 11/10 doesn’t start and shows “Operating System not found,” it might be because the Windows partition is disabled. Here’s how to reactivate it:

Step 1. Turn on your computer and boot from a Windows installation media. On the “Install now” screen, choose “Repair your computer.”

Step 2. Select “Troubleshoot,” then “Advanced Options,” and finally “Command Prompt.”

Step 3. In the Command Prompt, enter the following commands one by one, pressing “Enter” after each:

Diskpart
list disk (This shows all the disks. Identify the disk where Windows is installed.)
select disk [number] (Replace [number] with the number of the disk where Windows is installed.)
list volume (This will list all the partitions on the selected disk.)
select volume [number] (Replace [number] with the number of the Windows partition.)
active

After completing these steps, restart your computer to see if the issue is resolved and the operating system is detected.

Method 4: Fix MBR with Windows Installation Disc

The “Operating System not Found” problem may occur if your Master Boot Record (MBR) is corrupted by viruses or other activities. If you have a Windows installation DVD, you can resolve this by doing the following:

Insert the Windows installation disc and boot your computer from it. Navigate to the Windows Setup menu and select the option to open Command Prompt through the Recovery options.
In the Command Prompt, type the command bootrec /fixmbr and press Enter. If prompted to confirm, type ‘Y’ for yes and press Enter again to allow the command to write a new MBR.

After these steps, restart your computer to see if the operating system loads correctly.

Conclusion

Operating System Not Found is an error message you might see if your computer can’t start because it can’t find the operating system.

This problem can happen for several reasons like the computer’s BIOS not recognizing the hard drive, the hard drive being broken or having errors, issues with the Master Boot Record (MBR), or a partition set up incorrectly.

This article will go through these common reasons and give you step-by-step instructions on how to find and fix the problem, helping your computer work properly again. We’ll show you different ways to solve this error easily.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Does “Operating System Not Found” Mean?

This error message appears when your computer’s BIOS can’t locate the operating system on any of the connected hard drives during startup. It means the computer cannot find the necessary software to boot up.

Why Does the “Operating System Not Found” Error Happen?

This error can happen if the computer’s starting program doesn’t see the hard drive, the hard drive is broken, the starting code on the hard drive is damaged, or the wrong part of the hard drive is set to start the computer.

How Can I Fix this Error?

You can check if the hard drive is listed in the computer’s setup menu, run a hard drive check, make sure the right part of the hard drive is set to start the computer or use tools to fix the starting code.