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    Some more questions about the AW17

    Discussion in 'Alienware 17 and M17x' started by Chaos92, Nov 21, 2014.

  1. Chaos92

    Chaos92 Notebook Consultant

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    I have tried searching on the forum and these might have been asked before but i couldn't find them anywhere, so here goes.

    Dell is replacing my old system and sending me a config with a mSATA 256gb. I already have a crucial m4 256gb which I had bought for my old system.

    1. Which mSATA drive is dell using? How would it compare speed wise to the crucial m4?

    2. I guess, the best config for me would be to have 1 ssd for OS, 1 ssd for games, and 1tb for storage. So much space for activities! I should be using AHCI mode right? Anything I need to know about this setup?
     
    Chaos92, Nov 21, 2014
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  2. Klk450

    Klk450 Notebook Evangelist

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    Well I'm currently using an SSD for the OS and some games and then everything else on the hard drive that my AW came with, I have it set up in AHCI which from the research I've done and advice from people was the best option.
     
    Klk450, Nov 21, 2014
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  3. Player2

    Player2 Notebook Evangelist

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    What is AHCI .
    Just curious
     
    Player2, Nov 21, 2014
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  4. MogRules

    MogRules Notebook Deity

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    Advanced Host Controller Interface - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

    Basically it is responsible for how your SATA controller responds. The other option is Raid and while Raid will work just fine even if your not actually running a Raid , if you change that option from say AHCI to Raid after you have installed Window then Windows will no longer load. Same goes if you are running Raid and change it to AHCI. You can edit your registry and make some changes to make it load without re-installing but it is a pain in the butt. Not sure if you have to be in Raid to run a HDD in accelerated mode with Intel Rapid Storage tech.
     
    MogRules, Nov 21, 2014
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  5. Player2

    Player2 Notebook Evangelist

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    Thanks for explanation. Thumbs up. The learning never ends here at nbr.
     
    Player2, Nov 22, 2014
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  6. J.Dre

    J.Dre Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    They use LiteOn SSD's. They are a bit slower but you won't notice the difference between the two.

    You don't need to change any BIOS settings for that configuration. Just leave it how it is. FYI: RAID is fine even if you don't use RAID. It does not interfere with anything.
     
    J.Dre, Nov 22, 2014
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    MogRules likes this.
  7. FrozenSolid

    FrozenSolid Notebook Evangelist

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    I use an SSD for my OS and my mSATA to accelerate my data drive and I remember asking the question of whether I can use AHCI and still accelerate my D Drive and I am sure I was told NO, it had to be in RAID. I might of been given some bad advice there so can anyone positively confirm that acceleration will work on AHCI?
     
    FrozenSolid, Nov 23, 2014
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  8. Ashtrix

    Ashtrix ψυχή υπεροχή

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    Why use ACHI when RAID has that functionality, ACHI is a subset to the RAID...
     
    Ashtrix, Nov 24, 2014
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  9. Chaos92

    Chaos92 Notebook Consultant

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    Acceleration will work with RAID only afaik..

    Guys, i wiil have 1 mSATA 256gb and 1 crucial m4 ssd 256gb.
    If i keep only Windows 7 on my system, then i need to disable secure boot and enable legacy bios mode. Am i right?
    But i have read online that we can install windows in uefi mode too..

    Also, what if i install windows 8 on 1 drive and windows 7 on another drive? What should be my settings for secure boot etc then ?
     
    Chaos92, Nov 24, 2014
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  10. MogRules

    MogRules Notebook Deity

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    I am not sure about UEFI, I have always used Legacy with Windows 7 but you can not run Secure boot, it require the GPT file system which Windows 7 does not support. You don't have to be running a raid to use the Raid setting in the BIOS, it will work just fine in Raid even if your not using one, just don't change it later or Windows won't load anymore.
     
    MogRules, Nov 24, 2014
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  11. J.Dre

    J.Dre Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    J.Dre, Nov 24, 2014
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