Dell XPS 9560 issues with Samsung 960EVO M.2 SSD upgrade

Hello,

I have been struggling for a couple of weeks now attempting to install a Samsung M.2 SSD (PCIe) in my new Dell XPS9560. GoNz0 and custom90gt were giving some advice but nothing has worked so far. My XPS 9560 came to me couple of weeks ago with 32gb SSD and 500GB SATA HD and the NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) GTX 1050 video card, I received a Samsung 960PRO M.2 SSD (PCIe) and could not get it to work, so I exchanged for a Samsung 960EVO m.2 SSD (PCIe) and as of this morning,I cannot make this one work either.

The BIOS (UEFI) version I am using right now is 1.7.0 (previously was on 1.6.2?) and have rolled back to 1.3.4

Neither the 960PRO or the 960EVO are seen by the BIOS following POST, SATA operation is set to AHCI but none is shown in the System Information, Device Information section of the bios.

I know for 100% that the m.2 drives are/were properly seated and fastened. The 32gb SSD shows up in the bios as m.2 SATA and the 500GB HD shows as Primary HD regardless of AHCI or RAID On when they are installed. I have never seen anything show in the M.2 PCIe SSD-0 position (which is where I expected to see the samsung 960's)

I have exhausted Dell's support and also had Samsung on the phone for about an hour, both pleasant but were not able to resolve the issue.

I had planned to follow GoNz0's http://forum.notebookreview.com/thr...ean-install-guide-custom-iso-download.789769/

but without the 960 M.2 SSD showing, I cannot complete the WIN10 install, I have the F6 drivers but even when successfully installed, the 960 M.2 SSD is still not detected and WIN10 install cannot be completed...no drive detected :-(

Interested in first hand successful HOW TO for a Samsung 960EVO M.2 SSD into a Dell XPS 9560,I must be missing something and would greatly appreciate a step by step to be sure I didn't miss something in the process.

thanks!!!

grim

 

I've run a few Samsung SSDs with 9550 & 9560, including SATA and nvme.

The 32GB SSD is junk.

A few things that work for me:

- The 2nd big SATA bay can be a problem for install. My notes tell me not to format the 2nd SATA drive until all drivers and programs are installed. You can find simple instructions on how to do that after the fact.

---- Alternatively, you can physically disconnect the cable to the 2nd SATA drive until you get things working.

- I do a manual install for fun with Rufus. Getting the Windows via Techbench now I think requires a bit of effort.

---- In Bios I use UEFI, legacy disabled, secure boot, AHCI.

---- During install @ drive partitions, I kill all partions.

 

pressing, thank you for the reply.

Yes, I did not do anything but remove the 2.5 SATA HD when I attempt to do the 960EVO M.2 SSD install. I leave the 2.5 SATA completely out of the equation.

I cannot get the Samsung 960EVO M.2 SSD to appear in the "BIOS" the
BIOS is set UEFI, legacy disabled, secure boot, AHCI
BIOS is 1.7.0
in the BIOS the M.2 PCIe SSD-0 appears as - none

I have no drive appearing so no partitions to kill. I wish I did That is my basic problem, it seems that no matter what I have done, the 960EVO is not "seen" following the POST by the BIOS

1. From BIOS, SATA operation is set to AHCI, UEFI, legacy disabled, Secure Boot. Exit

2. Power on
3. F12 to enter setup
4. Select BIOS
5. Enter BIOS and view system information, Device Information, all drives show as "none"

Should I not see the Samsung 960EVO in the M.2 PCIe SSD-0 where it is physically installed? What else do I need to do to get that?

Thanks!!!

 

Look at BIOS>system configuration>drives. Maybe try selecting all the boxes

 

All boxes are checked. Have also tried with just the m.2 sata 0 checked. No joy

 

Should I not see the Samsung 960EVO in the M.2 PCIe SSD-0 where it is physically installed?

 

Yes as discussed in my thread my uploaded picture shows just that, it lists it by it's serial number not Samsung xxx

All I can think is either a broken motherboard but the chance in that is slim as the sata based shouldn't work. I do think it is somehow expecting the sata 32gb and not switching over to PCIe based m.2.

You did go back with the old twin drive config and remove the 32gb as the cache drive didn't you?

 

Things to also try, bios defaults (both options with a reboot between to check if it shows)
Hold the power button down for around 30 seconds until the laptop starts to do stuff, this will force a full BIOS reset, wait until it finishes and see how it went.

 

Hi GoNz), yes you did show that in your photo! Thank you. One thing that wasn't clear to me, is did it appeared following the first POST after install while in BIOS?

Agree, I do not suspect a broken motherboard, would expect other issues to manifest in the Dell shipped condition...I have been leaning to maybe a PCIe conflict or issue. I do not see how to make any setting change in the BIOS reference PCIe other than to check or uncheck that drive box. it is checked as are the other choices.

Great question, I did not, I think that I short cut that step and simply powered off after changing the drive to AHCI. Does that Intel setting accessed through Windows find its way back into the BIOS/UEFI? I will go do that now! Thanks again!

 

I never checked if it showed in the BIOS the 1st time but it would have done

From experience older boards had this option and for this to work as it does it has to talk to the BIOS, new board no longer have the BIOS option as the intel RST software will pass the command over to the BIOS.

Simply switching BIOS from RAID to AHCI will not stop the cache drive.

If you still have windows installed on the 2.5" drive please replace that and the 32gb, set BIOS to RAID again and make sure intel RST is installed then open it and find your way to the cache drive settings (I can't remember how to get to it but you don't have many options in the RST suite) and enable if it isn't (reboot) or just disable it if it is enabled, reboot once to allow the changes then reboot again and swap to AHCI mode. After that shut down, remove both drives and stick the EVO in and cross your fingers.

 

OK,

from Windows, Intel disabled the cache and made the SSD available as a separate drive, both the 32GB and the 500gb SATA HD visible in computer management, drives

reboot to BIOS, BIOS set to drives to AHCI

UEFI and Secure Boot ON

powered off

removed 32GB SSD and removed the 500GB SATA HD

Power supply disconnected
POWER OFF Button 30 SEC hold.

BIOS Factory Setting and BIOS Default attempts both performed consecutively

Power on, to BIOS

System Information, Device Information, Drives = none

 

It's got to be a bum slot or something. Sata uses a different pinout then NVMe.

Where are you located? Maybe someone near by can help you troubleshoot. Heck if you're close to me I have a ton of m.2 SSDs we could try.

 

Hello!

Yes, of course still have the 32GB SSD and eth 2.5 SATA HD with original Windows and system config. Booted (BIOS set to RAID) and from Windows10 launched the Intel RST, killed the cache and disabled the cache drive. rebooted to Windows successfully and checked the effect and can see both the 32GB and the 500GB drives in the Drive management console in computer management (the 32 GB was unallocated of course)

powered down.

removed the 32GB SSD and the 500GB SATA HD and powered on to BIOS, set drive as AHCI, still UEFI Safe Boot ON, powered off.

inserted the 960EVO M.2 SSD (PCIe) and powered on to BIOS

view System Information, Device Information, all drives show as "none"

.
.
.
When the 32GB SSD is installed and the the Intel RST cache is disabled (or enabled) the drive is seen at M.2 SATA

I have so not been able to get any 960EVO (or PRO) M.2 SSD (PCIe) to show in the M.2 PCIe SSD-0 position. PCIe issue???

Really hoping to find a member of this forum, with the exact same HW configuration that I have, who has successfully installed the Samsung 960EVO (or PRO) M.2 SSD (PCIe). I think I have tried the "Should work" scenarios.

Considering just doing a straight SATA SSD and calling it, unless otherwise proven, this seems like a Dell BIOS UEFI issue and probably related to the PCIe...what else is left to try???

 

I am in middle TN! you aren't a retired 5SFG guy are you???

 

3 for 3 that don't work, I am going with @custom90gt on this, can you call for service and explain 3 nvme drives do not work, you are entitled to upgrade it and a function that is included doesn't work.

 

No I was in 19th group in Colorado. I just sent you a PM, if you can't find someone in TN that can help you I may be able to.

*on edit* it just seems so weird. I never had an issue with my 960evo, and I know @iunlock had a 960 evo in one and a 960 pro in another without issue.

 

custome90GT helped me out by providing two drives for me to test! (a Sandisk 64GB M.2 B+M keyed, and a Toshiba 256GB SSD 4 lanes PCIe M keyed).

What I have learned: The B+M keyed drive 60mm long SanDisk powered up and was detected in the BIOS, no issues (other than its size so I had to improvise temp hold in position) It showed in the M.2 SATA slot, worked fine.

The M keyed Toshiba was not see by the BIOS/UEFI and I went through all of the same hoops that I did with the Samsung PRO and EVO M.2 PCIe SSDs without a hint of success or different behavior.

My conclusion is that my 9560 does not fancy the M.2 PCIe SSD. But it is good with M.2 SATA. I do not know if this is specific to my 9560 and if so I am not certain as to why. I do have the Nvidia GTX 1050 installed and perhaps a PCIe conflict in channels/lanes available??? I have no other theories, the BIOS version is current and cannot for the life of me figure out why M.2 PCIe SSD are not detected.

Maybe Dell knows but they are NOT sharing.

Thanks all!!!

 

Its worth looking into this article https://www.ramcity.com.au/blog/m.2-ngff-ssd-compatibility-list/189
Maybe BIOS update/ Samsung SSD FW update in AHCI mode will be helpful.

 

The RAMCity link is definitely a good source, thank you. Content of the link you provided seems to jibe with what I wrote, that this may be an incompatibility based on number of PCIe lanes. The BIOS update has been completed as stated, and previous versions of BIOS/UEFI attempted to no avail. Also, the issue is not confined to the Samsung M.2 PCIe drives but was also with the Toshiba noted above. I think that Dell's mobo and possibly a future BIOS/UEFI hold the answer. My whole quest for info on this was originally about the small probability of someone with first hand knowledge and experience using my identical system configuration and successfully (or not) upgrading to a Samsung NVMe 960 Pro M.2 SSD. Many helpful contributions with references of similar upgrades but no one with a XPS15 9560 (nvidia 1050 installed) successfully running a Samsung NVMe 960 Pro M.2 SSD.

The generosity of the members here in seeking information, providing recommendations and the above and beyond help even sending me two known good drives to try and troubleshoot has been remarkable! I am very grateful, especially to custom90gt and GoNz0 and all contributors and to you for the link of additional info...I noted the 9350 reference and the Dell thread that follows, B+M keyed M.2 drive was used, not M keyed 960Pro.

I threw this issue over the fence to Dell again with more detail (most of which obtained through this work with custom90gt and GoNz0) and will see if they reply. I may just accept that for now, this XPS15 9560 is just not going to work with a NVMe PCIe SSD (M key).

 

Also Vasudev, I noted in the link you provided a caveat:
"Be aware that depending on your combination of motherboard/cpu, there are limited PCIe lanes available. So, if you are thinking of installing 4x PCIe GPU's in a monster SLI setup, and then want to install an XP941/SM951/960 Evo/Pro in the M.2 socket and expect it to run at full speed, then it wont!

So check your manual if you are planning to use your new M.2 SSD in a rig with more than 1 GPU. You've been warned..."

In my case I mentioned the Nvidia 1050 is installed perhaps eating into the PCIe lanes available???

 

One more thing I forgot to add, did you try switching the SATA operation to AHCI and most of the time that will detect the drive.
I had similar problem where the dell shipped PCIe drive and 850 EVO suddenly disappear and all disk check incl. SMART,chkdsk and HD Sentinel Test yielded saying The drive is in perfect condition.
Then I tried cleaning the gold contacts of SSD and the slots, guess what the issue never occurred again. Use a clean cloth or microfiber cloth. After cleaning I did a power reset as well.

 

Yes, ACHI for the SATA. No it didn't work.

 

I think 2 M.2 PCIe/SATA, One GPU and a 2.5" SATA won't eat much PCIe lanes.

 

Any 9560 with an i5 or i7 has the 1050 in it and they don't have any issues with an NVMe SSD. It's for sure your motherboard. My 9560s (2 of them) worked with the following drives: the Toshiba I sent you, a 960 Evo, a PM961, a SM951, a 950 Pro, and a hynix. None of these drives had issues and both 9560s had a 1050. You can say that you've had your laptop professionally troubleshot and we've come to the conclusion that your MB is fubar.

 

+1

 

Dear Customer,
Welcome to Dell Email Technical Support.
I see that you are using a XPS 9560 system with windows 10 as operating system.
I have checked with the system specifications and I see that the system will support the following hard drive options.
Table 1. Hard drive options
Options Dimensions
Hard drive One 2.5-inch drive
Solid-state drive One M.2 drive

Hence, going with the system configuration only M.2 SSD will work on this system but not the M.2 PCIE SSD. Hence, the system is working as designed.
Good day!

Regards,
Hemankshi Sharma
Technical support
Shift Time-10:00 AM to 7:00 PM CST
Week Off: Friday and Saturday

 

Here we go again, another ****wit at dell.

 

Yeah that's a load of bull****. Your board is messed up and you need to talk to someone who knows wtf they are talking about.
Let the "tech" know that I've had 2 9560's that had the 32gb cache (sata) drive and both worked with PCIe SSDs without issue.

 

I did follow up and here is their response:


Thank you for the response.

The below specifications of the unit indicate that the system would be compatible with a M.2 Form Factor with PCie 3.0 Interface working on SATA protocol. However this does not mention that this unit is compatible with an M.2 Formfactor with PCIe 3.0 Interface working on NVMe Protocol.
I see that the Samsung 960 Pro and Samsung 960 EVO both M.2 Form Factor with PCIe 3.0 Interface working on on NVMe protocol which I am afraid is not compatible with this unit.
On the other hand Sandisk 64GB M.2 B+M keyed is a M.2 Form Factor with PCIe 3.0 Interface working on SATA III protocol which would be compatible and working on this system as indicated in the below specifications.
Also, any technical documentation of a device would include items in specific which would be compatible, the list of items which would not be compatible would be extensive for any electronic item and it would not be feasible to accommodate the same. Any item mentioned in the specifications, if not working can be brought to our notice and we will be glad to get it sorted.
Please refer to the manufacturer specifications of the SSD mentioned for the protocol details (NVMe/ SSD).
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this might have caused to you. Please do get back if you need any Technical help on this unit.
Dell has a standard 21 Day return for a unit, However if you wish to return the unit as this does not meet your requirement, Please feel free to call customer care to see if this could be accommodated.
Thank you for your Email.
Good day!

Regards,
Hemankshi Sharma
Technical support
Shift Time-10:00 AM to 7:00 PM CST
Week Off: Friday and Saturday

 

I reread this thread. Given what you have done here and my experience running a bunch of SSDs with both the 9550 & 9560, I'm with @custom90gt and @GoNz0 (for a change).

You need a motherboard swap.

Edit - escalate to manager at Dell.

 

Their response is still total bs. I am pretty pissed off, care to share that tech's email and I'll send an email to her.

 

You need to ask for a manager or someone who knows their head from their rear. Have the tech look up the motherboard model numbers. She will see there is a yh90j for an i7, something for an i5, and another for an i3. There is no i7 with NVMe and i7 without NVMe, etc.. If she comes back with some more crap you need to escalate it.

 

Shoit hot Pressing, please shoot me a photo of your bios page showing your xps15 9560 with your 960 pro or evo m.2 pcie SSD installed, I really want to shove this back up Dell!!! I am the most disappointed Dell customer in this thread for sure!
Thanks!!!

PS not sure if I hate the ipad3 I typed this reply with more than the Dell 9560 I bought for my wife

 

Sadly I believe that Pressing returned his 9560... You don't need any proof for dell. The fact that they use the same board in every system (only difference is the soldered on CPU) shows that there is no provision for sata vs nvme support. Ask to talk to someone who understands the fundamentals of being a tech.

 

Sorry @grimah1w as @custom90gt is correct. Unfortunately, I returned the 9560 i7 and sold the nvme drives.

I did a bunch of ultra-low latency benchmarking for the huge (40GB+) virtual instruments I play live.
My 9550 i5 with an 850 EVO provides the same ultra-low latency performance. It runs a lot cooler and is much cheaper.

You don't need any photos. These are industry-leading SSDs from the same suppliers Dell uses and they are plug and play for others here.

With Dell you just need to be persistent and escalate to manager or next level and they will react. Be polite but firm. Customer service is pretty good if you are assertive.

 

The problem is he shouldn't have to be assertive. They should be able to resolve a simple issue like this. Such BS.

 

That is the problem.

Unfortunately, the squeaky wheel gets the oil at Dell.

 

Email and ask for the manager directly over that idiot to phone you. In fact just phone support and ask to speak to someone else and demand they are taken off the case as they do not know what the hell they are talking about. The motherboard auto switches between the NVMe protocol and SATA on that M.2 port, end of.

 

How did you do it? Anything special??? jeeeez this should not be this hard, but am I missing something? a jumper or something???

 

I really wish that I could get this resolved with Dell but I have been stonewalled at every turn. As I wrote, last week's contact with Dell the tech supervisor on duty insists that NVMe SSD are not not compatible with 9560. To top it off yesterday, I received SAMSUNG 850 EVO M.2 SSD SATA 6Gb/s...guess what, the F'ing XPS15 9560 will not detect it POST in the BIOS.

To recap, the system as delivered is fully functional, SO Dell pretty much is telling me to F.O. as delivered the 9560 I have includes the 32GB SSD operating as cache RAID 0 SATA 500GB hard Disk. When in Windows and I disable IRST acceleration I can see the 32GB SSD as an unallocated Diver, reboot into the BIOS and the 32GB SSD appears in the M.2 SATA position - system information page of the bios and the 500 GB HD is in the "Primary Hard Drive" position, M.2 PCIe SSD-0 position shows "(none)". Power off and remove the 32GB SSD unplug the 500GB HD, then insert the SAMSUNG M.2 SSD (850 EVO SATA III or the 950 EVO PCIe NVMe) doesn't matter....none of them are detected. Either I don't have something set correctly in the BIOS or the BIOS itself may not be doing something it should, or ???.

When I tried custom90gt's 64GB SSD keyed B+M just like the 850 EVO 1TB drive I have, custom90gt's SSD appeared in the BIOS just fine as M.2 SATA drive
The issue is at the BIOS POST nothing to do with Windows (yet?). anyway if I cant detect the drive, I never even get to the starting line.

Is there something that is done when the 32 or 64 GB SATA SSD is on board that sets some BIOS or "driver" setting that is preventing the larger format (1TB) drive from detecting or keeping a PCIe SSD from functioning??? Mine is an i5 quad core ... chipset issue?


Thanks!!!
BTW -- as a separate issue regarding Dell and this experience:
Not only will Dell not answer my replacement SSD not being detected issue or confirm compatibility they will not address my issue because in its delivered condition it functions properly. They have stated that they are under no obligation to facilitate my upgrade of hardware. They suggest seeking a local technician or have also suggested buying a different Dell product.
I am not going to do either. I will warn anyone thinking about buying Dell product to consider my experience which began a couple of days after I received my ordered XPS 15 9560 and began to attempt to install an upgraded M.2 SSD.
I will not repeat this business.

 

I think you should tell them to take it back or threaten a charge back. It's a problem with that xps as there are no settings or anything. I never had any issues with any of my 1TB drives in mine. In fact I get another 9560 tomorrow that I will test them with...

 

This is madness considering they only need to cross reference the replacement board numbers for the FHD and QHD spec with NVMe. Once they see they are a match they have lost.
Can you post the 1tb drive to @custom90gt
That will confirm it.

 

Sure, I'll take pictures with my PM961 in bios. I have screenshots of AS-SSD and Crystal Disk Mark, but nothing of the bios.

Not to mention that it shouldn't matter what drive is in there, I don't get how dell can't figure it out.

 

back on with dell customer service this time but he is trying to patch in to tech support at higher level...
at this point i am registering the complaint and seeking a replacement

GoNz0 can you elaborate on, "need to cross reference the replacement board numbers for the FHD and QHD specwith NVMe."

 

F'ing buffoons!!! I hate Dell!!! Customer service dodged and punted to tech support, wasted an hour on the phone with another Dell assclown and have him tell me that it should work but they will only do warranty "repair" for the 32gb SSD and 500gbSATA HDD. and suggested a local technician. as if removing a dozen torx bit screws and some small Philips screws then reinserting is specialized task. The M.2 drives I am attempting are good drives, they show in another device.

 

Another hour now on the phone with Dell tech, got a supervisor, checking on line for acceptable upgrade SSD compatible with 9560, tells me SAMSUNG PM961 which is 950EVO, swear to God, cant make this up. Told him tried that it will NOT detect POST in the BIOS. Dell's own site shows, M.2 256GB PCIe NVMe Class 40 Solid State Drive at $250.00 Obviously invalidating the crap told to me the evening of the 18th of Jan and how NVMe is not compatible for use on the XPS15, and same as you have said. Still I am getting the line from Dell that since the 32gb SSD and thr 500Gb HDD are working, their job is done. gfy

 

I believe PM961 is close to 960 EVO but doesn't beat it.
Most compatible SSDs I have across Dell is SM,PM,950 pro, 960 evo/pro, Crucial MX300, Toshiba XG3/5, SK Hynix PC3000 or something, WD/Sandisk PCIe drive should work w/o any issues.
I think Gonzo can help in adding SSDs I missed.

 

I got the Samsung 850EVO working also in the 9550 and 9560 no issues

 

Has to be a mobo issue???

Current mobo/bios detects the 32gb toshiba and the sandisk 64gb B+M keyed ssds but NOT the samsung: 960 Pro, 960 EVO , Toshiba 256GB SSDs all M keyed nor the 850 EVO (m.2) B+M keyed

thinking mobo replacement???

 

Well did you try BIOS update through Dell GSet WinPE or similar? If the mobo detects 32GB Toshiba then I feel something in BIOS is preventing you from using your aftermarket drives.