Windows 10: SSD Upgrade

It only takes a few minutes to do this, and you are guaranteed to have the latest each time.

 

If I remove the old Windows 10 HDD, install a new SSD and clean install Windows 10 on the new SSD then I should still have an activated version of Windows 10 - is that correct? What happens if I then reinstall the old Windows 10 HDD - will Windows 10 still be activated?

 

Correct on both questions.

 

When I swap between the Windows 10 installations on the HDD & SSD (on the same laptop/PC), does Windows 10 reactivate each time the disk is replaced or are both disk installations independently recorded by Microsoft as activated? It's good to know I can clean install on a new SSD but still go back to the old installation for temporary use if the SSD installation needs to be fixed.

 

The only thing that requires re-activation is if you replace the Mother Board. Any other devices such as SSD/HD/DVD etc... are OK.

 

Is this activation done on the fly each time you run the PC or is the activation stored in a file on disk or the registry? I'm guessing an activation file or registry reference must be written to the new SSD when Windows 10 is first clean installed - is that correct? The original HDD already has an activated copy of Windows 10 for the same PC so I guess that already has an activation file / registry entry?

 

Yes, digital entitlement is stored in the file: C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\ClipSVC\tokens.dat as a store licence.
There are registry (WPA key) dependencies as well though, that store the encrypted hash of the licencing files.

 

This thread has sold me the idea of upgrading my Dell 1TB HDD to a 512MB SSD with a clean install due to various issues since upgrading from Windows 8.1, an over complicated UEFI partition structure and the fact it is so easy to activate the new clean Windows 10 installation yet still have a working Windows 10 system on the old HDD.

What 2.5" 512MB SSDs for a Dell Inspiron 7537 do people generally recommend? I've used Intel and Sandisk SSDs before on a desktop PC with no problems. I can buy a SanDisk Ultra II 480 GB or Samsung 850 EVO 500 GB for about £100. Would these be OK?

 

The Samsung 850 EVO 500 GB works a treat on my 7548.

 

The Samsung 850 EVO 500Mb looks a good option based on test reports, price, Amazon customer feedback and the 5 year warranty. The Samsung Magic SSD software has a "RAPID" Option which claims to improve performance. However, this inserts a low level device driver filter and many people report BSOD problems and other issues. Do you use the RAPID option and has this caused any problems? I've had problems before with Acronis software installing low level driver filters which were very hard to remove.

 

Last time I tried, the option to enable RAPID mode was grayed out, incompatible with new SSD. Only time I used it is to update the firmware. However, it is good as is without RAPID mode enabled.

 

The latest release of Samsung Magician software (v 4.9) will enable RAPID mode for the EVO 850.

More on top of what topgundcp said:
I don't use RAPID mode - I tried it and, after watching my system performance/behavior for about a week (NOT paying any attention to the benchmarks), concluded I was perceiving no benefit from it in any of the usages I put my system to - presumably, there would be a more perceivable benefit if you do things that require a deep queue depth. I ran into no problems with my 7548 while RAPID mode was enabled. I disabled RAPID mode, mainly in the interest of the K.I.S.S. principle plus an abundance of caution, and have no need to investigate it again at the moment. Others at TF have asserted that they perceive benefit from RAPID mode. Obviously, YMMV.

I keep Samsung Magician installed but not running at startup or in the background - only running it in case I have reason to check the performance benchmark or want to check for a firmware update.

BTW, the Acronis behavior you mention AND its developmental progression and upgrade pricing structure after I began using it back in '06 or so put me off of it entirely. I've used Image for Windows/Linux/DoS (Terabyte) as my second tier backup/imaging software but, having added it within the last 6 months or so, Macrium Reflect as my PRIMARY backup/imaging tool ever since then.

 

If you look at my specs. I am now using a M.2: Amazon.com: Samsung SM951 256GB AHCI MZHPV256HDGL-00000 M.2 80mm PCIe 3.0 x4 SSD - OEM: Computers Accessories as my C drive. using Samsung SSD 850 as my storage for backup image.

The m.2 is actually designed for Laptop and more expensive but will beat any SSD with speed. So if your laptop has a slot that supports M.2 and you are willing to spend more money then that's the way to go.

A new version of M.2 from Samsung is: Amazon.com: Samsung 950 PRO -Series 256GB PCIe NVMe - M.2 Internal SSD 2-Inch MZ-V5P256BW: Computers Accessories

 

Thanks for the above advice. I'm going to buy a Samsung 850 EVO 500MB SSD next week and do a clean Windows 10 installation on my Dell laptop. I'll need a SATA drive since I don't believe my Dell Inspiron 7537 laptop has a M2 slot. I don't plan to use RAPID mode. Hopefully, all my Windows 10 issues will then be behind me? I'll keep the old almost working Windows 10 installation on the old HDD for a while then wipe it and put in a USB HDD caddy for use as a backup drive.

 

Yes, I saw the other post that you had problem upgrading to 10 and decided to stay out since there were so many advices given and did not want to add more confusion.

So if your Windows is running smooth and the problem is just only the partition scheme not organized the way it should, You can re-arrange those partitions and copy back just only the C: Drive so you won't have to re-install all the third party softwares. Follow this link:
Solved Help With Partition Management - Windows 10 Forums