How to Run Windows 7 on NVMe SSD Drive in a Virtual Machine

In this guide, I will show you how to add a new NVMe drive. This applies to a Windows 7 x64 Ultimate SP1 virtual machine. Moreover, I will use VMware Workstation Pro for this task.

In short, I will clone a SATA disk to an NVMe disk. Thus, you will better understand how to run a VM. You can run it on an NVMe.

How to Use Windows 7 on NVMe Disk on Virtualization Software

Suppose you have a Windows 7 VM. You set it up with VMware Workstation or similar software. When you add an NVMe SSD disk, the system cannot install drivers automatically.

Therefore, you can find the ID of the relevant hardware by Google and install it. You can also install it with Windows updates.

NVMe is a newer technology than the SATA structure. It also works better than SATA. With the latest version of VMware Pro, we can now use this type. However, you may want to use it on an old system. For example, Windows 7 needs some Hotfixes. You must install them from Microsoft Windows.

Microsoft stopped supporting Windows 7 on January 14, 2020. This means they will not support new types like NVMe. That is, this applies to VMs and real PCs. They also won’t release updates for new tech on an OS they no longer support. So, you might face setup or compatibility problems.

Compatibility with Newer Systems

For example, you created a new virtual machine to run Windows 10 with VMware Pro. If you select NVMe in the Select Disk Type window, you face no problems. Then, you will not have any issues during installation.

In other words, the operating system will automatically recognize this disk type. The reason for this is that Windows 10 adapts to new technologies. Because Microsoft still supports this OS.

In short, you can use the NVMe disk type. It works with a genuine, updated Windows 10. Also, you will work smoothly with many new technologies.

There is a most straightforward way to run Windows 7 on NVMe. Here is the method. First, make a clean installation with SATA disk type. Then, add a second NVMe drive. Clone the SATA for the device you added. You can also do this by adding the hotfix into the ISO. This avoids doing it separately.

How to Add NVMe Hard Disk to Windows 7 on VMware

With VMware, you can configure the VM in detail. You can do this after you install an operating system. Also, you can add a second hardware piece. For example, you can add an HDD or network card. If you install an older OS like Windows 95, you need a Floppy Drive.

Steps:

Step 1

Let’s add an extra HDD to the Windows 7 VM installed on the SATA drive. To do this, click any device in the Devices area. Do this while the virtual machine is off. Then, click the Add button in the window that displays the hardware.

Step 2

In the Select a Disk Type window, you need to select NVMe. Also, remember that you can choose SATA instead of it here.

Step 3

Let’s add a disk to a virtual computer, just as in physical environments. Therefore, you need to create a new virtual disk in VMware Pro.

In the Select a Disk window, select the “Create a new virtual disk” option. Thus, you will be able to create a new device for your VM.

Step 4

In the Specify Disk Capacity window, you can specify a drive size. For example, the SATA disk is 30 GB. However, you can set more for NVMe. In this case, you will not encounter any problems in the disk cloning process.

After you configure the virtual drive size, select this option: “Store virtual disk as a single file”. Also, this option allows you to store the disk as a single file.

Step 5

In the “Specify Disk File” window, type NVMeWin7 for the virtual disk name. Plus, you can also type your name if you want to specify a different thing.

Step 6

After adding a new storage unit to the virtual machine, click the OK button. This also allows you to close the hardware window. As a result, you have completed the VM settings.

Installing NVMe Driver Manually

Step 1

After everything, run the Windows 7 x64 PC.

Step 2

Right-click the My Computer icon and select Manage. When the Computer Management screen opens, click Device Manager.

However, in the Other Devices section, you will see the PCI Device. It has a yellow exclamation mark. This indicates a missing driver. You have not installed the driver for the hardware you added.

Furthermore, click on PCI Device and then open the Details tab. Select the Hardware IDS option from the Property section. As a result, you can see the driver’s hardware address in the Value section.

PCI\VEN_15AD&DEV_07F0&SUBSYS_07F015AD&REV_00

Step 3

Download the driver for the Windows 7 VM. Save it to your computer. Also, don’t forget to copy the downloaded file to the VM.

Download Driver

Step 4

Now, double-click on the PCI Device to open hardware properties. Then, click on the Update Driver button.

Step 5

We will install the NVMe driver manually. To do this, click on Browse my computer for driver software.

Step 6

Finally, extract the downloaded Driver file and put it in a folder. Then, select the driver folder and click OK.

Step 7

Specify the location that contains the drivers. After this process, press Next to start the installation.

Step 8

This time, you may encounter an unsigned driver warning. Windows shows this as in the image below. So, click Install this driver software anyway.

Step 9

After installing the Standard NVMe Express Controller driver, check the PCI hardware properties. At this stage, you may find that Windows cannot start the driver you installed. This error indicates the hardware can work. However, it may work on your computer or virtual machine. On the other hand, it means that Windows does not recognize this driver.

Windows cannot initialize the device driver for this hardware. (Code 37)

Fixing Code 37 Error with Windows Hotfixes

Step 1

Enable NVMe support in Windows 7 64-bit SP1 operating system. To do this, first download Windows KB2990941 and KB3087873 Hotfixes. Then, copy these files to your computer and VM. In short, these steps will help you to fix the Code 37 error.

After downloading the Windows 7 Hotfix files, you need to install both hotfixes. First, double-click the Windows6.1-KB3087873 file. Then, you can complete the process by starting the installation.

Download Windows KB2990941 ve KB3087873 Hotfix

Step 2

In the Windows Update Standalone Installer window, you need to install the KB3087873 hotfix. To do this, click the Yes button to start the installation process.

Step 3

Wait while hotfix installs for Windows 7.

Step 4

Similarly, install Windows 6.1-KB2990941 by double-clicking on it. Then click the Restart Now button for the updates to take effect.

Step 5

Wait while Windows is configuring updates, and do not turn off your virtual computer.

Step 6

After your virtual OS has restarted, check the Device Manager. Now you can see the Standard NVMe Express Controller driver. Additionally, it is active and working fine.

Initializing and Partitioning the NVMe Disk

Step 1

So far, you have successfully connected Windows 7 to your NVMe disk. Now, just open Disk Management to set up your new drive. Finally, create a partition and assign it a drive letter.

Click Disk Management. The Initialize Disk window opens. Then, click OK while selecting MBR.

Step 2

To edit your new HDD, right-click on it. Then, click New Simple Volume.

Step 3

When the New Simple Volume Wizard opens, you will see a window. In this window, note something important. You can only create simple volumes on a single disk.

Step 4

In the Specify Volume Size window, we will use the entire volume size. Leave the default value unchanged and click the Next button.

Step 5

In the Assign Drive Letter or Path window, activate the new volume. Then, click the Next button to assign a letter.

Step 6

In the Format Partition window, type the name of your disk in the Volume Label field. Here, please type the name that will appear on My Computer. Then, select the Perform a quick format option. Press Next to quickly format the drive.

Step 7

Once you complete the simple volume on your new disk, click Finish.

Step 8

When you view My Computer, you can see that the NVMe SSD Drive hardware is OK. So, it is ready to use!

How to Copy / Clone SATA Disk to NVMe Disk Using MiniTool Partition

Now, you can clone the Windows 7 operating system on the SATA disk. For this, you can use the Clone method. In this way, you can transfer your information to the newly added NVMe drive.

For disk copying/cloning, we will use MiniTool Partition Wizard Server 9.0 software. Although this program’s version is old, it is still stable today.

Step 1

Install MiniTool Partition software on your virtual computer and then run it. On the program’s main screen, you will see two disks. These are SATA and NVMe.

Right-click on the SATA drive and click Copy.

Step 2

In the Select Target Disk window, select the target disk. This will receive all data from the source drive. Here, select the NVMe drive you just added.

Step 3

Click Yes in the window. This confirms the system will delete all data on the target drive.

Step 4

In the “Review the Changes” window, go to Copy Options.

However, we need to copy all the data. This data goes from the source drive to the target one. To copy in the same way, select Fit Partitions to Entire Disk.

Step 5

After the cloning process completes, you can start your virtual PC. You can start it from the target disk. To do this, define the new disk in the default boot order and Finish.

Step 6

Review all the settings you made. Then, click the Apply button to make the changes.

Step 7

At this stage, close all applications running in the background. Then, click Yes on your virtual PC.

Step 8

Wait while the system copies all data to the target disk.

Completing Clone and Removing SATA Disk

Step 1

Since C drive is in use, the wizard will perform MiniTool Partition cloning after booting. If you are copying data disk to another PC, there is no need to reboot your system. Also, if you are operating on the host, there is no need to reboot.

The C drive usually has the Windows system files. So, the information window says it will copy essential files after starting.

You do this when the program begins. Also, restart your Windows 7 guest PC and finish copying the rest of the drive.

Step 2

At this step, do not press any key to start the MiniTool Partition program!

Step 3

In the Partition Wizard – Boot Mode window, you can see the drive copying process. It is in progress. This process will take some time, so wait. Do not turn off your computer.

Step 4

You have successfully cloned the SATA virtual drive to the NVMe. Now, wait while the wizard makes the final settings for your system to boot.

Step 5

At this point, your virtual computer will restart. If it doesn’t start in 60 seconds, restart it yourself.

Step 6

When you open your Windows 7 VM, click on My Computer and check the drives. In this step, you will see something. Your virtual system opened via the SATA disk. In this case, the other drive is idle. So, you need to delete the SATA one from the VM.

Step 7

Expand the disk drives from Device Manager. Then, check if both types are active. The primary purpose is to remove the SATA drive and shut down the VM.

Step 8

Open the Virtual Machine Settings window. Next, choose Hard Disk (SATA). Then, click the Remove button.

Removing SATA Disk and Final Checks

Step 1

Check that the virtual disk is removed and only the drive is active.

Step 2

Start your virtual computer to check if it will boot from NVMe.

Step 3

You can see that your VM now boots from the NVMe SSD drive.

Step 4

To check if your system only has an NVMe storage device, open Device Manager first. Then, check the drivers.

Step 5

Finally, you can repair VMware Tools on the virtual machine. Before doing so, restart your PC to ensure that everything works well.

Video

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel! Watch on YouTube

Windows 7 & NVMe FAQs

Conclusion

As a result, you can run Windows 7 on NVMe drives in VMware Workstation Pro. In this way, you increase advantages. You gain from advanced storage technology in the old operating system.

In fact, you may see the processes as complicated. Since Microsoft does not support Windows 7, you should install a manual driver. But, with a systematic method, you can make the transition easier.

Of course, first, use a SATA drive. Then, you can increase performance by copying this drive to an NVMe drive. With this guide, you can improve write and read speeds. You can do this for old OSes with the proper steps.

In short, you can benefit from the speed and reliability of NVMe drives. Thanks to this disk technology, you stay compatible. Thus, you optimize your VMs for modern workloads.