So, I have win10 installed on a 2Tb mechanical HDD. I have Win7 cd which I then upgraded to Win10 via the free upgrade.
Ok, so first question - if I buy an SSD and add into my case, how do I add my original HDD so that it connects to the SSD?
Second question - do SSD’s have the same connectors as a HDD? I guess it’ll come with cables etc but should still connect to my old mobo?
Lastly - would I have to instill Win7 from my cd and then download the upgrade? It will still let me because I believe it was a time limited upgrade…
Any help would be appreciated as I haven’t built a pc in years so totally out of practice.
To answer the second question first, that depends on what type of SSD you’re after. The highest performing SSD’s right now make use of a unique connection system (NVMe/M.2) that needs to be supported by the motherboard. “regular” SSD’s can use SATA connectors, just like HDD’s do.
To answer the first, you don’t need to make any type of special connection between your new SSD and your old HDD. It just needs to be supported by the motherboard. the bridge built in to your motherboard will allow Windows to use the new storage space naturally, regardless if it is SATA or NVMe/M.2.
I don’t have a definitive answer to the last question. Perhaps it is a possibility to clone your install over to your new SSD. This was something that was considered to be somewhat unreliable back when I made the transition myself, though. It is therefore not something I’ve ever done personally. Perhaps the times have changed or somebody else has more experience with that.
When you do the upgrade, your license is changed to a Win10 key and the 7 key is deactivated.
The best way to do this is to attach your Microsoft Account to your user in Windows 10 - this digitally attaches your Windows 10 key to your MS account.
Then, install on the SSD a fresh run of Windows 10 and when it asks you to make a user, use the option to sign in as your Microsoft Account. It will see its the same hardware profile (same motherboard) and automatically re-activate.
So, would a 480gb SSD be ok? I’m not sure what footprint a Win10 install leaves?
I was thinking about having a 480gb and a 240gb too, is this a good idea? Will the drives come with SATA cables?
And lastly will I need a mounting kit for both as they are smaller than HDD’s?
That’ll be plenty, on my install (windows 10 edu) windows takes about 25GB of space, so there’s plenty left for sims and games.
In good honesty it’s a great idea, even. If you have windows on one SSD and your favorite sim on the other, it will load even faster.
This depends. You’ll have to check when you buy/order. Unfortunately, many don’t.
It depends on your “need”. They are indeed smaller and can’t be mounted in standard 3.5" HDD bays. But since my computer never moves anyway, mine just lies still in its bay without any mounting, and that has been working flawlessly for years
Windows 10 Professional should be under 40GB.
I haven’t checked a fresh install in a while to say specifically. When we get new Dell Workstations it hovers around 35. At work my full-updated C:\Windows directory is 41.2GB, clean it will be smaller.
This is true - splitting the load of OS and game loads between two drives is a smart idea. I’d use the 240 for Windows and the 480 for games.
I have never got any. Usually a new motherboard includes a few.
Yes or No. SSD’s are light, some people double sided tape them inside the case. You can also buy an adapter that will let you put two in a single 3.5” drive bay.
Had a look in my pc and out of the 4 SATA ports 3 are used and I only have 1 HDD and DVD drive, so what could be using the third port? Also there’s a cable going from the DVD drive to the HDD, what’s that? Will i need to connect the new drives and the current HDD together?
Throw in a picture.
The cable between devices may be the power cable - they usually have three or four connectors and daisy chain between devices. The power cable is the wider of the two, the SATA data cable is about 1/2 width of the power cable.
) question, will an SSD reduce or eliminate pauses or stutters in game of the data is being read at a quicker rate?