Qubes-OS install: Creating LUKS on /dev/nvme0n1p3 seems to never finish

Question

I'm trying to install the latest(4.04) Qubes OS from an USB-Stick I made with Rufus on a 256GB M.2 SSD. The motherboard has Intel VT-d enabled and I have flashed the latest BIOS (January 2021) with microcode updates included. So far, the computer has no network connection.

The install has been going well - no problems - until the "Begin installation" phase. It starts, and in the meantime I created my user. But the progress bar is stuck at

Creating luks partition on /dev/nvme0n1p3

and after 30 minutes it's still at the same position. I can access all the consoles and info, but I don't see any progress at all.

1. Is this normal for a Qubes-OS install?
2. How long is this supposed to take on a 256GB M.2 SSD?
3. If the whole disk is some kind of "initialized", could I circumvent this with a boot option?

P.S.: top shows that anaconda is using 100% of CPU.

Answer 1

As it turns out, this seems to be normal behavior. The progress bar did not move for 45 minutes, and the computer stayed responsive - without any visible sign of activity.

The SSD was a Samsung M.2 EVO 970.