I'm having a major issue where my Windows 11 Pro installation won't boot at all on my ThinkPad E14, which also runs Fedora KDE alongside it. I have three drives: C for Windows on an NVME SSD, D drive that's part of the C drive, and E for another SSD where Fedora is installed. The trouble began when I was transferring files to an external drive; my laptop suddenly threw up a BSOD with the error "irql not less or equal." Now, I can't boot into Windows—just get a blue screen with errors involving "amdpsp.sys" and "winload.efi," indicating corruption. I've tried entering recovery mode, but it doesn't lead anywhere other than back to the blue screen. My Fedora setup is working fine, and I can even access the Windows drives from there. I have a Windows 11 25H2 ISO on a USB drive that I could use to create a bootable image if needed. However, I'm short on time, so I'm hoping for a quicker solution. If I choose to reinstall Windows on the C drive, can I do so safely without affecting my D and E drives? Additionally, I'm wondering if a reinstall will fix some weird admin control issues I've experienced recently. Any guidance would be appreciated!
3 Answers
Before you proceed to reinstall Windows, make sure you have a solid backup just in case. Given your recent admin issues, they could indeed relate to the corruption you're seeing now. It might also help to run a virus scan from your Fedora system just to rule out any malware that could have crept in and caused these issues. If you do decide to reinstall, just select the C drive during the process, and it should be fine for the other drives. You'll want to double-check that you're not accidentally formatting or affecting those other installations!
Hey there! It sounds like your Windows installation is having some serious boot loader issues. The errors you're seeing usually indicate corruption, and since you can access Fedora without any trouble, it might be best to start by checking if the SSDs are seated properly. If you're using GRUB to manage booting, it might be conflicting with Windows’ boot process. You might want to try rebuilding the EFI partition for Windows. There's a helpful guide on YouTube that walks you through the process if you need it. Just keep your Linux setup in mind if you're sharing the EFI partition. Reinstalling Windows is an option, and it generally shouldn't impact your D and E drives if you select the correct partitions during installation. But, as always, make backups just in case!
Definitely keep your data safe by backing up important files first. If you’re able, try to look into the Windows minidump files—those can help you pin down the issue more accurately when you're back in Windows. If you can get into Safe Mode, check if you can access the Minidump folder (C:WindowsMinidump) and see if there are any crash logs there. If so, compress those and share them with someone who can analyze them for you. Reinstalling Windows might indeed resolve those pesky admin control issues you mentioned, but make sure you handle the installation carefully!
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