HOW TO: Windows Installation Thread (includes SATA III, SSD Upgrade, RAID0 Discussion)

Thats what I was thinking!!
So my issue now is how do I keep my files on the HDD while getting rid of the OS thats on the HDD?
Ive already made a complete backup.

 

Quoted from the owners lounge. Thanks Katalin.

 

Hey guys,

I bought m18x with just the 500 gb drive.
I want to buy a 256 GB SSD and use it as my main drives to run programs (windows, photoshop etc) while using the 500gb drive as primarily for storage.

My question is..how do i get the windows that's pre-installed on my 500gb drive ONTO the new SSD drive?

THANKS!

 

I would do a clean install, that's what I will be doing this weekend with my M4. Its really the best way to avoid any problems.

 

If you want the factory image including AlienRespawn, use a program like HDclone4 by Miray. It will clone your 500 hd to a 256 ssd and do all the adjustments for you. It dose a very good job the standard edition is fast. I have cloned over a dozen drives with no problems.

 

Acronis True Image or if you have 1 Seagate HDD then you can get a free version of Seagate tools that will make the migration over. Its very simple to use and works awesome.

 

Just did this yesterday. Here are the steps i took

1. Create AlienRespawn USB
2. Take out Original HDD
3. Install only SSD Drive,(AlienRespawn does not let you choose which HDD to Restore too Doest matter if you have it in SATA0 Slot or Not)
4. Boot from AlienRespawn USB and Restore
5. Shutdown Install Original HDD in second Slot
6. Boot up and Kill the Orignal HDD

Enjoy Life.

 

Apologize for reviving a 2 month old thread. I was wondering, as i have never attempted a RAID configuration before, if it would be wise or even make a difference for me to install my 500GB SSHB drive along side my 500GB that is coming in my new M18x? I have never used two HDD's before in one computer so this is all new. I would imagine i could just make an AlienRespawn of the drive when i get the computer, then install my SSHB drive as my main drive. Use the Respawn dvd to go back to stock and then use Windows 7 to format the 500GB drive that came with the computer? would that then allow me to just install everything on the secondary HDD?? Is this more beneficial then doing a RAID config, since im not using complete SSD?

 

Yes, there is already a thread for this. There are several, but here's a link to one of the better threads...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...d0-questions-troubleshooting-discussions.html

I just moved your post to the above thread.

 

Cool. Thanks for the redirection!

 

Bumping thread to the top for forum noobs.

 

Critisism taken. And accepted. Thanks for redirecting me here.

 

Hello guys,
i know this topic has been covered before but as a matter of fact i still don't understand many things.

At the moment i have a Momentus XT 500GB Hybrid Drive, i want to buy a SSD and use it for Windows while keeping the Momentus for storage.

1) I open the laptop, put the SSD in the second HD bay then i have to install windows on it. If I Launch the recovery boot option (F8) can i use AlienRespawn to install Windows with the Alienware default settings on the SSD? Can the hidden recovery partition be used to recover the system on the secondary drive (the SSD) instead of recovering on the first drive (the Momentus)? Or should I install Windows from a DVD using the product key that is written on the bottom of the Laptop?

2) Which SSD should I buy to have a fast 120GB or 240GB drive?

3) I know that the M18X comes with SataIII 6Gbit controller, is it compatible with ATA600 or only Ata300?

4) Do i need to buy any cable to connect the SSD to the motherboard?

5) Is it complicated to open the M18X and put the SSD in?

My main problem is installing Windows on the SSD, i don't have here the discs coming with the laptop, i work in Denmark but the discs are at home in Rome.

Any help is very appreciated

 

Ok i already found my answers, but i still have one question.

Once i receive my SSD, I open the laptop and unscrew the 4 screws holding the HDD bay, till here it's ok.

When i have to place my new drive TOGETHER with the old drive does the bay allows 2 drives or do i have to buy another bay?

To make a long story short, inside my M18X (which came with a single hard disk) do i have everything to fit a SSD as well?

Hope to hear from you guys

 

The bay should have a top and bottom area for two drives.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Thanks so much, so i suppose i just need 4 screws and that's it.

 

Well I don't have mine yet however I would imagine the screws should already be there.


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the 4 screws holding the HD bay are there of course but i meant the 4 screws to tie the SSD to the metal mount.

 

I believe a placeholder frame is in the bay that is not being used. You can take that out and use the screws that were used for that "fake" HD placeholder.

 

Coolio, thanks so much!
I am reading that there are some problems with the Vertex 3 SSD and the M18x, looks like i should put the drive in Port1 instead of Port0 otherwise i would get half speed. Is it true? What i know is that i should put the drive on Port1, then set it to AHCI into the BIOS, then install the factory image with my USB pen. That should do the job but i am scared because of those BSOD and half speed issues i am reading around.

 

Can anyone please help me figure out why my 18 is going blank on start ups? Because Im posting in this section because I wanted to know if when having a SSD and a HDD (non RAID) causes the start up screen to display a raid configuration window where i have to press Ctrl and I to bring up the options.

Is this normal?

When I have taken out the SSD it starts up fine. (without a blank screen)

After long periods of when the 18 is off like hours it starts up with a blank screen and does 8 beeps, then I take out my SSD and it works fine. I havent tested booting up after long without the SSD yet though.

Customer Support is saying they cant help me until ive put the configuration to factory, I need my SSD, I dont understand why the system should act up when these parts are user-upgradable.

 

Ok guys, just finished installing everything with all the windows updates.

This OCZ Vertex 3 MAX IOPS Edition 240GB is incredibly fast, but i have one question for you guys.

At the moment the configurations is the following:
Port0 = AHCI / OCZ Vertex 3 (OS + softwares)
Port1 = AHCI / Momentus XT Hybrid (storage disk)

Using CrystalDiskMark i get only 480-227 MB/s in read and write, i know that the disk should be able to go 550-500 maybe i did something wrong???

The disk is already very fast but i am scared that i am not squeezing all the speed out of this SSD.

 

Actually i just tried ATTO and it gives me 547-503, who should i trust???

 

ATTO uses compressible methods to test the speeds which is what the Max IOPs is great at. CrystalDiskMark is usually lower as it uses random incompressible data. You're fine. Those scores look fine to me.

 

So why people says that the SSD on Port0 drops to SATA2 speed? I didn't experience this...

 

Its a mobo fault. If you havent had it happen, great. Its not the SSD as Johnksss and others have found out. John had a mobo replaced and his ssd's that WERE dropping to sata II worked fine at sata III with a new motherboard.

 

I should also say that i updated the mobo bios to A05, but i am gonna take a close look to the SSD performance for some weeks just to be sure to not have speed drops.

 

I installed my two SSD's after I got the laptop yesterday and the cable that attaches with that lock to the motherboard, that cable slid out, the lock was not secure. I did not know how that lock worked and I though the cable broke from the motherboard....Scared is an understatement, thank goodness I figured out the locking mechanism.

So I ran atto this morning as Mushkin suggests that tool to get they're advertised speeds and I'm working at expected speeds (over 500x2 mb/s, depending on the file size of course).

And I'm running A05 also.

 

I have purchased a Crucial M4 SSD ( Newegg.com - Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)) for my M18x. I'm a little new at this and I've gone through all the posts, but I just want to be clear on the steps.

1) Clone the HDD to the SDD
2) Take out HDD, insert SDD (I'm putting the HDD in a different computer)
3) Profit?

Do I need to change any settings in the Bios? I'm not too clear on whether my SDD should be Raid 0 or Raid 1.

 

I don't recommend cloning from HDD to SSD. It can be done, but the performance sometimes suffers. Windows 7 recognizes when it is being installed on an SSD and sets things up in a way that is better optimized for SSD. If you decide to clone, you need to leave your BIOS set the way it is now. The factory default is RAID0 even with a single drive installed, and there's actually a good reason for that. If you clone the drive and then change the BIOS to a different setting, your chances of not being able to boot Windows is pretty great. In most cases you will get a BSOD.

I recommend setting up Windows with the BIOS set on the RAID0 factory default. Some set up with AHCI, but there is no real advantage to that. If you later purchase another identical SSD and want to set it up as RAID0 you can use Intel Rapid Store Technology to do that from within Windows without doing a clean install. If you set it up in AHCI mode, the only path to an SSD RAID0 setup is a clean install.

 

Using Easeus, I scaled back the size of my hard drive RAID 0 on my original SSD drives from 476gb (SAMSUNG 810's) to 450gb (just under the Intel 510 max).
This way the source image was smaller than the target drive. Then image worked just fine. Once up and running, I just used Easeus to re-expand to full amount of space for my new Intel 510's.

 

quick question, are kingston hyperX SSD's any good?? i can get a 120gb for $230 each (reg$310).. and maybe getting two for raid?.... would it be worth it?

Kingston HyperX Solid State Drive SATA III, 120GB Bundle at Memory Express

and would this make the hyperX ram more worth it?

Kingston HyperX PnP 8GB DDR3-1866MHz SODIMM Dual Channel Kit (2 x 4GB) at Memory Express

sorry for the noob questions... ive been using the 500gb ssd "hybrid" that came with the m18 ... lol

 

The SSD looks good For the ram I got these also from memory express they have better CL timing and are way cheaper Corsair Vengeance 8GB DDR3 1866MHz SODIMM Kit (2 x 4GB) at Memory Express

 

ty for the link +1

 

Anytime man

 

I'm going to be installing a crucial 128gb ssd tomorrow in a m18x that currently has a 750 GB HD in it. So can I leave that drive in and just add in the SSD. Or rather move the HD to the other bay and put the SSD in it's place?

After reading through some threads, it seems these are the steps? (found in another thread):

(1) Create Restore DVD's from factory Drive in case things go bad
(2) Power Down + Install SSD
(3 optional) SSD Firmware depending (I never updated mine)
(4) Enter Setup : Change Boot Option in Bios To SSD as Primary, as well as AHCI Mode (win 7 explodes if you change this after).
(5) Install Win 7
(6) Follow Driver Guide
(7 Optional) Follow Alienware look and feel guide (can't find it but it's here somewhere)

using this guide for drivers? http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...er-install-order-guide-alienware-systems.html

and this look and feel guide?
http://forum.notebookreview.com/ali...ook-feel-after-clean-install-windows-7-a.html

On another note, would there be a performance gain to using another 128GB SSD instead of the 750gb HD?

Thanks

 

This step is not necessary. I install with the BIOS set to RAID0 and this is the way Alienware ships systems even with a single drive. There is nothing to be gained by setting the BIOS to AHCI except 1 or 2 seconds of not seeing the "Ctrl+I" screen.

The advantage to installing with the BIOS set to RAID0 is that you can later add a second matching SSD and using the Intel RST software to create the RAID0 array within Windows and not have to do a complete reinstall. Once Windows is installed, you cannot change the BIOS from AHCI to RAID0 (or vice versa) without having to reinstall Windows.

There is no need to change the boot priority unless you install the SSD in the HDD1 part of the caddy instead of HDD0 spot by mistake.

Yes, especially if you set it up in RAID0. However, 256GB of storage is not enough for many of us. You can buy a special caddy to use the optical drive bay for a third hard drive and put the optical drive in an external enclosure. DR650SE has a setup like that and I plan to eventually do the same so I can run SSD RAID0 and still have enough drive storage space.

 

Awesome thanks for the info. Just read up on RAID0, wish I ordered another SSD now!!

In the mean time, until that one comes, I can just remove the 750HD in there now and put the SSD in it's place, set to RAID0 and then when the other drives comes, open back up, put it in the other slot and then run the intel storage software and then it's done?

 

Yes, if you set up your SSD with the BIOS set to RAID0, then you can simply use Intel RST within Windows to create the RAID0 with the second SSD installed.

To clarify, if you install Windows in AHCI mode on your single SSD and 750GB HDD, you will need to reinstall the OS. That is why I recommend always using RAID0 in the BIOS regardless of whether or not the system is configured for RAID0. Intel recommends doing this as well. There is nothing to be gained by using AHCI mode except for not seeing the RAID Configuration (Ctrl+I) screen during post.

 

I did RAID, 2nd drive is coming tomorrow! thank you

 

Cool Get ready for awesomeness. I'm jealous. It will take a little while for the RAID conversion to finish. On regular HDD it takes about an hour. It will most likely be much faster with SSD, but I'm not sure about that.

 

about the RAID controller screen before the BIOS load up, is there anyway we can update it to a newer version? I am currently at 10.0.48 or something I think.

 

Wow you weren't kidding! Installed the 2nd drive today and also intel RST and set up as RAID0 - super easy. I ran a benchmark before and after. The only differences are a second drive had been added as RAID0 and also drive caching enabled and windows write cache buffer off.

The difference looks too good to be true!

Spoiler

before:



after:

Thanks for the suggestion

 

About 10 mins! Speaking of which, on the RST tool it shows I have 238 gigs, but in windows explorer under C: it says 119...is that normal?

 

How do my speeds look with ssd in port 1 with sata3 speeds.
Write scores seem low?

 

Nice! See why I'm jealous now? It seems too good to be true, but it's not. I think your Windows Explorer just needs to be refreshed. Look in the Disk Management console and it should show 238GB there also. Sometimes Windows Explorer trying to remember old info, but it should clear up shortly. Try rebooting a couple of times.

What firmware do your M4 drives have?

Here is what my single Crucial M4 runs, which is essentially the same as Shawn was getting with the single SSD. The write scores do seem a bit low, but they might not be for your SSD. What is the spec supposed to be? Did you try disabling LPM?

 

I just installed a single SSD and attempted to clone my RAID 0 boot partition to it.

Didn't work at all. Apparently when you install Windows to a RAID, it wants to boot from that point on from that RAID, so switching disks to a single AHCI drive causes a BSOD upon bootup.

In addition to that, installing the Intel RST software causes my machine to hang on boot now. Must have something to do with the fact that I'm no longer running a RAID now...

 

I figured it out, RST doesn't extend your volume, you have to do it manually. So I went to windows disk management and extended the volume and boom 238GB

 

Predictable, bro. No need to set your BIOS on AHCI. Try putting the BIOS back on RAID like it was intended and it might boot. (The BIOS can be set to RAID with a single drive configurations.) You cannot switch between RAID and AHCI without doing registry tweaking or reinstalling the OS.

If you had a RAID0 setup before with two HDD and factory recovery partition, etc., that is where the BCD files are located. If files from the recovery partition did not clone correctly, it would never boot under any circumstances.

Even if that works, I recommend doing a clean install of Windows 7 on the SSD so that it is properly optimized. Windows recognizes an SSD and sets itself up slightly different during installation. Leave the BIOS set to RAID if you reinstall. You can later add a second SSD and create a RAID0 from within Windows without having to do a clean install. If you decide to install an SSD RAID array later you will need to do a clean OS install to change to RAID0.

There is no advantage to having the BIOS set to AHCI... none whatsoever, except for not seeing the Ctrl+I screen. Is there a special reason that you want to switch to AHCI mode?

 

I actually had it on AHCI, did a fresh reinstall, then got to talking with some highly knowledgeable folks on the Norton forums (I got Norton Ghost 15 with my SSD, thanks Samsung!), and got the same information that you just mentioned. I decided to bite the bullet and try restoring a backup from the 9th of February.

I did this, set the controller back to RAID mode, and bam, the BSOD was gone. Windows still didn't boot, but that was because I still had one of the old RAID members attached. When I removed it, Windows booted up just fine. I'm took the time to put both my old HDDs back in my system, reset them to NON-RAID disks, and put one in + my SSD.

Now I'm restoring my D: drive at bearable speeds, thanks to ESATA and an external 3.5" drive I had laying around. Actually, I have tons of HDDs just laying around... it's like a damn HDD graveyard in my house

Anyways, I'm back to my previous installation and the boot time for Windows isn't really all that much different. Maybe a tad slower because I had a months worth of programs installed, but read/write speeds are still high and my partition (which was properly aligned before) is still properly aligned.