A required CD/DVD device driver is missing. This is an error message you do not want to see when doing a clean install. It’s even scarier when you are using a jump drive and not a dvd to do it. I had to make sure I added this one to my blog. Unfortunately, I left it sitting in drafts. I probably wasted probably an hour and a half on this stupid error.
When installing Windows 7 from a USB I continuously got this error message saying “A required cd/dvd device driver is missing. I felt it strange for two reasons. The first being i was using USB and not a cd/dvd drive. The second being I have used this particular flash drive numerous times without fail.
I searched many different sites looking for an answer but I kept being pointed in the wrong direction. Thankfully the answer turns out to be quite simple.
Unbeknownst to me, you can’t use a USB 3.0 plug to install from a USB 2.0 device. I had no idea the notebook even had USB 3.0 which made it more frustrating to me.
Obviously the error message is too generic and not very intuitive but remember if you see it, it may be as easy as choosing a different USB port.