Windows 10: Easy SSD Question

I should know the answer to this, as I feel like it should be a common sense question, but here goes. I haven't dealt with newer SSD interfaces yet, beyond the traditional SATA. My motherboard has an mSATA slot. Currently, the system volume is a 500 GB Samsung Evo 850 SATA drive. I was toying around with adding a second SSD to run my Steam games from. If I bought an mSATA drive, would it be as simple as just installing it to the mSATA slot and then booting up to assign it a drive letter (after formatting)?

Mainly, what I'm asking is, am I correct in assuming that I don't need to change my boot order in the BIOS to have the system still boot from the SATA drive? I'm thinking no, since it is currently using UEFI, but I just wanted to check. According to my manual, I will lose access to the 6th SATA port, but that's no an issue for me.

:)

 

easy question probably

Windows 10 will be available at retail after July 29. Some web stores are taking pre-orders now. You will have to check with individual brick-and-mortar stores regarding when they will have it. I don't know why you think the retail version will be
better than the free download. They're the same.

 

easy question probably

I can't find anywhere on the Microsoft website about when I can purchase windows 10 retail at a store. I don't know if I should download the free upgrade because it will probably not be as good as a store bought version.

 

The answer is yes, it it the same as if you install another SSD. However, check the manual if your mSata slot is running with 4 lanes. If not, you might want to get an adapter for it:
Amazon.com: Lycom DT-120 M.2 PCIe to PCIe 3.0 x4 Adapter (Support M.2 PCIe 2280, 2260, 2242): Computers Accessories

P.S. Read the review about this adapter to get more explanation.

Here's an example of the difference between 2 and 4 lanes of a sm851:

 

There are 3 kinds of mSATA. Original mSATA, m.2 and m.2 x4. There are also two protocols used, AHCI and NVME. There are also several different form factors (based on the length and width). The most recent is 2280 (22mm x 80mm) (but there is also 2230, 2260, and several others. Finally, there are 4 different "key" types (A, B, E and M). There is also NGFF which is sort of the old name for m.2.

I know it's confusing. Read this article.

Understanding M.2, the interface that will speed up your next SSD | Ars Technica

Also read the Wikipedia article.

M.2 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

It's definitely an mSATA port, but I don't see anything in the manual to describe how many lanes it has. Either way, this won't be the OS drive. It's a Samsung PM871 256 GB that I plan to use for my Steam Library. I'll have to do some research, or maybe just benchmarking, to figure out the lanes. Here's a link to my board:

GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket 1155 - GA-Z77X-UD3H (rev. 1.1)

 

Is this an issue for a SATA M.2 drive?

It clearly is important for a PCI-E M2 device. I'm unfamiliar with a Samsung "sm851" drive. The SM951 is PCI-E.

I'm unaware of any issue with the number of PCI-E lanes assigned to the M2 port if a SATA 6Gb drives is used. (The specs in post #4 show that one of the standard SATA ports is disabled if a SATA m.2 drive is used. It appears that particular M.2 port may not support PCI-E drives at all.)

 

Yeah, the Gigabyte Z77X-UD3H only has a standard (version1) mSATA. I had that board, was pretty good. I think using the mSATA disables one SATA port though.

 

Your memory serves you well. It disables the last SATA port (5). Currently, I have a Blu-Ray writer plugged in to that port, so I'll have to move it up one.

 

Hi,

That drive will perform and install just like any other SSD. It's not the fastest on the block but other than that...
Nothing mysterious about it .*Smile

Cheers, *Wink

 

FYI, The benefit of having a PCIeX adapter is running the M.2 at 4x instead of 2x. In addition, it'll free up the Sata port.

 

Hi,

That is a Samsung OEM drive. Are you sure the company you buy it from is going to honor the warranty ?

Cheers, *Wink

 

The bios controls which one to boot first on. Windows would only go for the one that has the Boot Loader on it. The one that you are using for games and downloads, should not be marked as a Primary or Boot. Windows would only load off of the second drive if you have mirrored the first drive on the second for in case something happens to the first.

I am thinking that you extended your Primary partition over to the second one to make it one large partition that is split between the two.

 

That was just an example to compare between 2X and 4X. I don't have this model. Look in my specs, I use M.2 Samsung SM951 bought from Amazon.

 

A lot of the M.2 SSD's are OEM right now. Samsung still has to honor the warranty. The whole reasoning behind the OEM hardware when it started, was that it was cheaper and allowed you to install it in your computer to replace the same piece of hardware and not lose your PC or laptop warranty if you did that. Also it allowed users to get Software at a discounted price if you bought the OEM hardware.

Now that manufacturers and Microsoft can no longer force you under the rules that you were held against in the early days when this started, you can still score you decent buys with the OEM hardware.