Windows 11 Installation

Lenovo ThinkStation PX, P8, P7, P5

Table of Contents
Overview ................................................................................................................. 3
Section 1 – BIOS Setup .......................................................................................... 4
Section 2 – Windows 11 Installation ........................................................................ 9
Section 3 – Windows 11 Setup ............................................................................. 15
Section 4 – Offline Windows 11 Setup .................................................................. 19
Section 5 – Install Device Drivers .......................................................................... 22
Revision History .................................................................................................... 23

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Overview
The purpose of this document is to provide high-level guidance for users to
adequately install a retail Windows 11 operating system on the ThinkStation PX,
P8, P7, and P5 platforms.

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Section 1 – BIOS Setup
Prior to installing any operating system, it is important to make sure BIOS
recognizes the storage devices appropriately.
Here are some key items to look for within BIOS setup.

At the Lenovo splash screen, press the function key F1 to enter BIOS setup.

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Select ‘System Summary’ from the main BIOS setup page.

Scroll down through the list until you see the type of drive(s) you are intending to
use. Note, drives may not show up here if they are part of a RAID array.

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Select ‘Devices’ -> ‘Storage Setup’ to make sure the drive is enabled.

For PCIe drives, select ‘Devices’ -> ‘PCI Express Setup’ and select the slot for
where the drive is physically installed. In this example, the M.2 drive is installed in
Slot 1.

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Make sure the drive is linking properly.

Here’s an example of BIOS not recognizing a PCIe drive.

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Select the ‘Exit’ menu option -> ‘Load Optimal Defaults’ to load BIOS defaults.
Note, in the P8 BIOS, this option is called ‘Load Factory Defaults’

Select the ‘Exit’ menu option -> ‘Save Changes and Exit’ to reboot the system.

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Section 2 – Windows 11 Installation
Here are some step-by-step instructions on how to get a Windows 11 operating
system installed on the ThinkStation PX, P7, P8, and P5 systems.

1. Obtain a copy of the Windows 11 installation media. If the Windows 11

media is an .iso image, extract the .iso image to the root of a freshly
formatted FAT32 USB memory key.

2. Insert the USB memory key into one of the USB ports on the system and
power on the system.

3. At the Lenovo splash screen, press the function F12 key to enter the BIOS
startup menu and select the USB installation media from the list.

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4. At the Windows 11 setup screen, select the Language, Time, and
Keyboard Layout from the dropdown menus and select ‘Next’.

5. Select ‘Install now’.

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6. For a multiple Windows 11 version operating system media, select the type
of Windows 11 operating system to install. In this example, “Windows 11
Pro for Workstations” was used.

7. Check the box next to “I accept the license terms” and select ‘Next’.

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8. Choose the type of installation to perform.

- To upgrade to Windows 11 from an earlier version of Windows, select

the “Upgrade” option below.
- To perform a clean OS installation, select “Custom: Install Windows
only (advanced)” option below. (This option was selected below!)

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9. Select the drive to install the operating system on from the list below and
select ‘Next’.

Note, some drives and RAID controllers may not be native to the Windows
11 operating system and may require a proprietary driver to get them to
show up here. If so, load the proprietary driver to a USB memory key and
select ‘Load driver’ from the screen below.

10. The Windows 11 operating system will begin to install on the drive selected
above.

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11. After the installation completes, the system should automatically reboot.

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Section 3 – Windows 11 Setup
The following steps demonstrate how to begin the Windows 11 operating system
setup on the ThinkStation PX, P8, P7, and P5 systems with network access.
1. Select the appropriate location from the list below.

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2. Select the appropriate keyboard layout from the list below.

3. Select an optional second keyboard layout or ‘Skip’ below.

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4. Systems that are connected to a network with an Ethernet cable will try to
automatically connect. Systems without an existing connection that have a
wireless adapter will require input to select the desired wireless network and
necessary security settings.

Once the system has connected to the selected network, continue the setup
process, making the appropriate selections at each step.

Note, some versions of Windows 11 will allow users to continue the setup
process without an active network connection, for more information on the
offline setup of Windows 11 refer to Section 4.

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5. Once all of the setup selections have been made, wait for any updates to
install or select ‘Stop update and go to desktop’ to postpone installing
updates. Proceed to the desktop and enter the PIN or password.

6. Completed setup with the Windows 11 desktop screen.

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Section 4 – Offline Windows 11 Setup
The following steps demonstrate how to begin the Windows 11 operating system
setup on the ThinkStation PX, P8, P7, and P5 systems without network access.
These steps may not work on all versions of Windows 11.
1. At any point during the Windows setup process before the ‘Let’s connect
you to a network’ page, press 'SHIFT+F10' to open a Command Prompt.

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2. Enter the following command ‘OOBE\BYPASSNRO’ in the command line
then press ‘Enter’. The computer will automatically reboot and restart the
setup process. Repeat steps 1-3 from Section 3, once users get to the
‘Let’s connect you to a network’ window, a new option ‘I don’t have internet’
will appear.

3. Select ‘I don’t have internet’.

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4. Once the ‘Continue with limited setup’ option is selected, continue the
setup process, making the appropriate selections at each step.

5. Completed setup with the Windows 11 desktop screen.

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Section 5 – Install Device Drivers
Once the OS installation is complete and Windows 11 has been setup, it is
important to make sure all device drivers are installed properly. Any missing
drivers can be obtained from the Lenovo Support Site or through Lenovo Vantage.
Additionally, any third-party peripherals that have been installed in the system
may need an appropriate device driver from the vendor support site.

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Revision History
Version Date Author Changes/Updates

1.1 2/8/2024 A Panteleev Added support for P8.

Updated Section 3 and 4
1.0 4/19/2023 J Moebs Initial launch release.

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