np9150 disassembly/hard drive options

i know i've seen it somewhere but none of my searches turned it up, so can anybody show me/point me to some instruction on how best to remove the bottom of a 9150 (not the plate that reveals the chips, i.e. the "component bay cover") without snapping any plastic? there's the little hooks that need to be gently nudged forward or backward or inward or outward or something.

the reason being is that i'm trying to investigate my drive options. apparently if you don't order an msata from the factory, you're NOT sent model c. which now has me confused because models a & b have a different subwoofer placement than model c. so does model c permit you to have--three drives? it seems i can only have a sata III drive and a second sata II drive with the 12.7mm optical bay caddy. at first i assumed that model c's only difference was that it shipped from the factory with the optical bay caddy, but why is the layout/shell/subwoofer placement different? i've apparently been under the mistaken impression that i could have all three at the same time a msata, a drive in another dedicated bay, and yet a third drive in the optical bay. or is that only with the 9170? but then again and if i'm not further mistaken, i wouldn't really need an msata if i already have windows installed on a ssd because i'm already enjoying ssd/sata III speeds, no? (and yes, i know those are two separate things.)
[EDIT: models a & b are the p151em/np9130 and p150em/np9150, and model c is the p170em/np9170. this paragraph makes little to no sense. ]

more remedial still, if i did add a hdd to the optical bay, can i install all of my non-windows programs on that drive without issue? i've never installed any programs on a drive other than the drive that contains windows (and suppose i've never thought of attempting to) because that's always been my external.

 

model A & B are the 15" and model C is the 17" so a totally different layout.
check the user manual that is on the drivers cd you should have received.

the 15" can have 3 drives. the internal normal drive. replace your cd/dvd drive with a caddy and have a second drive. and also a msata drive

im guessing the 17" can have 4 drives as it has two standard drives and then you can add the caddy and msata.

im not sure if the msata has to be added at the factory at time of build as i know nothing about these.

 

Removing the cover is simple. You just remove the 5 screws and push the cover back, then lift off. It's obvious when you see it. You can access the GPU, CPU, wifi, msata and 2 of the rams slots from there. To access the main drive, there are 2 screws holding down the cover. Remove them, and there it is. The screw that holds in the optical or caddy is in there as well. Just make sure the battery is removed first if you are working on the components.

 

ah, thanks. makes sense. models a, b, c and 9130, 9150, 9170. you get a hard copy of the manual too which is pretty unclear on the msata.

reread op. but if the msata bay is located underneath the so-called component bay cover, i guess i needn't dig any deeper.

still would like to know how to get the bottom plate off without snapping any hooks though...

 

check the picture out. its all in the user manual

edit

user manual for 9150 at bottom > http://www2.sagernotebook.com/pages/notebooks/download.cfm?ProductType=9150

 

The bottom cover is the component cover as it contains the components I mentioned. Your OP is unclear.

 

i don't know if i can be much clearer than that. forget it. thanks anyway.

 

There are only 2 covers. The one for the main hard drive, and the one for the component bay which has the CPU, GPU, bottom ram slots, and mSata slot.

For the hdd bay (smaller cover) take out two screws and there is a small round indent where you can put your finger nail in to pop the cover out. For the larger cover, you take out the 5 screws and slide it towards the rear of the laptop, as mentioned above.

Wifi is actually under the keyboard with the other 2 ram slots.

 

Yeah, sorry, my mistake about the wifi.
It's one great thing about these machines, the internal components can be accessed very easily. I know my last ASUS was a nightmare to access.

 

where do you think i found the proper name for the "component bay cover?"

i didn't recognize the msata slot when i had the component bay cover off so thanks for pointing that out. i'm actually trying to disassemble the thing beyond those two covers. that's why i referred to the piece i'm at now as simply the bottom. i remember reading somewhere how to remove the entire bottom cover. in addition to being screwed to the upper portion, it also has the annoying plastic hook-like things that have to be gently pried apart a certain way.

who said anything about the wifi, any of the other internal components, or your asus? if you're unsure as to what i'm asking, it might be better to let somebody else try to help me out.

so my question, even though i'll likely figure it out myself, about how to disassemble the machine beyond the COMPONENT BAY COVER and the HARD DISK BAY COVER stands. also still curious, even though i could look it up elsewhere, about installing programs on the non-windows drive.

 

I think we were all unsure what you were asking there, as all the drives can be accessed by removing the component cover and drive cover, and my previous comment was a reply to that correction about the wifi and a comparison as to how much easier it is to disassemble than other laptops. Sorry if that was in some strange way upsetting for you. As it happens, the msata slot is between the battery and one on the fans.
As for installing programs on another drive, that's always an option when you install something. Just specify another drive letter when asked where to install.

 

Tmets answered your question correctly, he just mistakenly placed the wifi on the bottom, instead of the top. No need to get all snippy.

Why are you trying to take it apart further than the 2 covers on the bottom? To do anything 'normal' you do not need to take off anything more than those 2 covers, and potentially the keyboard.

 

... as promised. see pages of the pdf 37-38, 42-43 (gotta love how figure 15a is upside down), and 47-53 ending with a schematic of the BOTTOM. thanks again for all your help, doods. and no, MrDJ, that's not the user manual (of which both a hard and electronic copy came with the machine).

 

attitude.com

your headder says, 9150
the link i supplied say sager 9150
you said nothing about SERVICE manual so i supplied the USER manual.
service manuals are not readily available to the general public.

what seems to be the problem you have with replying to certain posts on here.
we are not a technical helpline here so a little courtesy goes a long way especially when you dont fully explain exactly what you want in the first place. we are not mind readers ya know.

as you can tell im having a bad day at work.
too many ill patients coming into casualty

 

aww, mods deleted the REAL attitude-infused post. and MrDJ, no worries. you know my style. i'm a pretty moody guy, especially when trying to figure something out. but all's well that ends well.

 

yup, sure do mattcheau

im chilled now as at home away from the mad house.
why are so many getting sick

 

Hey mate, Funny, I posted this awhile back however I assumed there wasn't much demand for it

http://www.pcw.fr/pdf/P170EM_ESM.pdf