are hit hardest by the ZIP's removal because they cannot run the new installer to extract the driver files. Intel Community Current "Workaround" Report
This results in the "No drives found" error.
The term "F6" comes from an old convention in Windows installation. In earlier versions of Windows (like Windows XP and Windows 7), you could press the F6 key during the setup process to load third-party drivers—such as RAID or storage controller drivers—from a floppy disk. Even though the process has evolved, the name stuck.
When you reach the "Where do you want to install Windows?" screen and no drives appear, click . f6flpyx64 intel vmdzip
: Select the driver (typically "Intel RST VMD Controller") and click . Your drive should now appear in the list. Troubleshooting Alternatives
Select the matching driver (usually ) and click Next .
However, Microsoft's standard Windows 10 and Windows 11 installation media do not always include pre-installed drivers for the Intel RST VMD controller. When the Windows installer boots into the "Where do you want to install Windows?" partition selection screen, it encounters the VMD controller rather than a standard storage drive. Lacking the appropriate configuration instructions, it displays a blank list with the error: "We couldn't find any drives. To get a storage driver, click Load Driver." are hit hardest by the ZIP's removal because
When VMD is enabled in your BIOS (often under "Peripherals" or "VMD Setup Menu"), the Intel chipset takes low-level control of the M.2 slots. This allows features like:
If you are a technician or a user trying to install Windows, you download this specific zip file. You extract it onto your USB drive alongside the Windows installer. When the error "No drives found" appears, you click "Load Driver," point the computer to the folder containing the f6flpyx64 files, and suddenly—voila! The driver installs, the "traffic controller" opens the gate, and your hard drive appears.
| Driver Type | Purpose | When to Use | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Intel Volume Management Device | Modern NVMe RAID or Hot Plug (11th Gen+ CPUs) | | Intel RST (Rapid Storage) | Legacy AHCI / SATA RAID | Older SATA SSDs or HDDs in RAID | | Microsoft NVMe Driver | Basic NVMe functionality | When VMD is disabled in BIOS | In earlier versions of Windows (like Windows XP
and navigate to the folder on your USB drive where you extracted the driver.
: Once the driver is loaded, your storage drives should appear, and you can proceed with the installation. VMD vs. Non-VMD
When the drive selection screen appears and is empty, click .