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    Quick question about the SSD (XPS 15 L521X)

    Discussion in 'Dell XPS and Studio XPS' started by hoodie232, Oct 12, 2012.

  1. hoodie232

    hoodie232 Notebook Guru

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    On the site Notebookcheck.net I read "The SSD cache drive is inaccessible to the user". How can you install programs to it if you can't access it? And would replacing the 32 GB SSD for a 256 GB SSD have the same issues?
     
    hoodie232, Oct 12, 2012
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  2. joshuajag

    joshuajag Notebook Consultant

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    The setting is in the BIOS. By default it is set to Intel Rapid Start Tech and it renders the drive invisible to the user. You can change this setting to AHCI to use the drive as a normal.
     
    joshuajag, Oct 13, 2012
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  3. c0derbear

    c0derbear Notebook Evangelist

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    It's "inaccessible" because you do not directly deal with it - it is not a "storage" area like a disk volume.

    The cache is managed automatically for elements accessed off the main drive, similar to how the cache inside the CPU "accelerates" access to main memory on behalf of the core logic of the CPU.

    If you replace it with a 256Gb SSD you are better off relocating your OS to the new SSD and turning off caching almost entirely.

    It SHOULD be possible to have both a usable partition to host the OS, AND the swap-partition required for Intel Rapid Start, but I'm not sure it's worth the trouble. Hard to say really without trying it both ways.

    I do not believe you can have the intel-based caching in use IN ADDITION to having a usable partition on the mSATA SSD. I have not tried though, so am only 80% sure of what I say in that regards.
     
    c0derbear, Oct 14, 2012
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