How To Upgrade Your Laptop With a Solid State Drive

Glenn Connot

Stephen Gubenia

WRTG 393

6381

Prof. Sarbani

Vengadasalam

October 4, 2014

1

IntroductionThis manual details the process of upgrading the hard disk drive (HDD) in your laptop to a

more efficient solid state drive (SSD). This manual was written for avid computer users

who are familiar with upgrading basic computer hardware and desire to improve their

laptop’s performance. The process detailed within is for cloning your current HDD onto a

new SSD and then replacing the HDD with the SSD. This manual does not cover the

process for installing a SSD as a secondary drive. This manual also assumes that you are

running one operating system on your laptop. The process for cloning your drive is

different if you have a drive partitioned to dual boot two operating systems, and is beyond

the scope of this manual.

SSDs contain no moving parts making them more durable than HDDs which contain several

spinning disks and movable read/write heads. This makes them ideal for laptops that may

get bumped around a lot or experience shock during frequent transport. SSDs are typically

faster than HDDs. They do not change the speed at which software runs, however, the lack

of movable parts also means faster booting and application load times. This will give you a

faster overall feel to your system. SSDs also tend to use less power than HDDs which

means slight improvements to battery life.

Getting Started

Selecting the Appropriate SSDThere are 2 important things to consider when shopping for your SSD:

1. Physical size of HDD currently installed - SSDs come in two sizes (2.5 inch

and 1.8 inch) and two thicknesses (7mm and 9.5mm). Most laptops are

designed to accommodate a 2.5 inch, 9.5mm hard drive. Some newer laptops

are being sold with 1.8 inch SSDs installed, but since this manual is designed to

cover upgrading from a HDD to a SSD, a 2.5 inch SSD is most likely the size that

you will need. A 7mm thick SSD will fit into a 9.5mm HDD slot, but a caddy may

be needed to support the SSD in order to prevent damage to the SATA ports. A

9.5mm SSD will not fit into a 7mm HDD slot. You should check the size of your

current HDD to ensure that you buy the proper size SSD.

2. Desired memory capacity of SSD – SSDs are more costly than HDDs. You will

have to decide if you want to spend the money to purchase a SSD equal in

2

memory capacity to your current HDD, or if you want to scale down the contents

of your HDD before transferring data to your SSD. You may not be utilizing the

total memory of your current HDD which means that you would not need an SSD

equal in memory capacity of your HDD, but instead equal to the total memory

used. Check to see how much memory is actually being used on your current

hard drive by clicking on Start Menu > Computer and looking at local disk C:/.

This will tell you how much memory you’re SSD will need to be able to transfer

the total contents of your HDD. If it is not in your budget to buy a SSD equal in

size to your HDD, or at least large enough to transfer the total contents of your

HDD, than you will need to store data on an external drive or remove your

optical drive and install a second hard drive. Installing a second drive is beyond

the scope of this manual so we will assume that you are either purchasing a SSD

equal to or greater in size than your current HDD, or that you are backing up

your data on an external drive and paring down the data to be transferred to the

SSD.

Necessary EquipmentBefore you get started you will need to gather a few items first. It is best to have

everything that you will need prior to beginning the installation. These items include:

1. Your laptop with current HDD. Make sure to download and install any

updates for your operating system, and that you are running the latest service

pack.

2. The product manual for your laptop. Not every laptop is designed to allow

user access for hardware upgrades, for example some older Apple MacBook Pro

computers. It is important to make sure that you will be able to access your

computer’s hard drive.

3. Flat surface to work on. There are many small screws and other items that

can roll easily so having a flat surface will decrease the chances that you may

lose any important parts.

4. Container for screws. There will be many small loose screws while you

disassemble your laptop. It is important to not lose any screws. A small cup or

bowl or a Ziploc bag works well to prevent screws from rolling away and getting

lost.

3

5. An anti-static or electrostatic discharge (ESD) wrist strap. If you do not

have an ESD wrist strap than make sure to discharge any static charge by

touching a metal object to ground yourself. Static electricity can damage

sensitive computer hardware and render your laptop useless.

6. Cloning software. There are many freeware versions of cloning software

available for download or premium versions available for purchase. Whatever

version you choose, make sure that the software is fully installed on your system

and that you have scanned for any available updates or service packs to the

software.

7. You’re new SSD.

8. Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) to USB adapter or

external USB drive enclosure with USB cable. This will be necessary to

connect your new SSD to your old HDD in order to clone your HDD onto your

new SSD.

9. Small screwdriver. Most laptops are assembled using small Phillips head

screws. Check the underside of your laptop to determine the necessary size and

type of screwdriver.

10.External hard drive or online data backup service. It is important to back

up your current hard drive so that you do not lose any important data. If your

new SSD contains less memory than your old HDD you may need to back up

your files and scale down the amount of data for transfer. Once you backup all

of your files on the external hard drive or online service you will want to remove

music, movies or any unnecessary personal files from your current HDD before

beginning the cloning process.

Important Notes Before Beginning

Read over your computer’s warranty and make sure that you understand all

terms and conditions. Many manufacturers’ warranties are voided if any work is

performed by anyone other than an authorized computer repair technician. If

you have an older laptop, chances are your warranty has expired already so this

may not be a concern.

Review the safety instructions in your computer’s product manual.

For PC users the recommended operating system for this upgrade is Windows 7

or later.

4

Preparing Laptop for SSD Upgrade

Defragmenting and Backing Up DataBefore you begin you will want to defragment your current HDD.

NOTE: This is a great time to clean up your computer and delete old unused files. You may

want to spend some time deleting any old, outdated, or unnecessary files. Make sure to

empty your recycle bin when you are done.

There are two methods to defragment your hard drive:

1. Click on Start menu > Control Panels > System and Security > Administrative

Tools > Defragment your hard drive

2. Click on Start menu and type “defrag” into the search bar and then click on

“Disk defragmenter.”

Once the disk defragmenter program has completed you will want to back up your data.

You should already be backing up your data regularly either by using an external hard drive

or online back up service.

Selecting Data for TransferIf your SSD is large enough to transfer the entire contents of your HDD, then you can move

onto the cloning and installation process. If your SSD is not large enough to transfer the

entire contents of your HDD, then you will need to scale down your HDD and decide what

data to transfer. You will obviously need to transfer any applications that you use. In

addition to applications you should only transfer frequently used files. Audio and video files

can easily be stored on and accessed from an external drive. All archived files or other

files that you do not frequently access should also be stored on an external hard drive.

Scaling down the contents of your HDD before cloning onto your SDD will ensure that you

have plenty of room for updates and future applications and files.

5

Transfer Data from HDD to SDD1. Insert the SSD into to the external hard drive enclosure (See Figure 1.1) or plug

into the SATA end of the SATA to USB converter cable (See Figure 1.2).

Figure 1.1. Insert SSD into external enclosure. Figure 1.2. Connect SSD to SATA to USB converter.

2. Plug the USB end of the external hard drive enclosure or the USB end of the SATA to USB converter cable into any USB port on your laptop (See Figure 2.1). It will take a few minutes for Windows to recognize the device. Make sure the device is visible to windows by clicking on Start > Devices and Printers (See Figure 2.2) and checking to see if the device is listed.

Figure 2. Plug USB cable into port on laptop. Figure 2.2. Check if device is listed.

3. Launch the cloning software and chose the clone disk option (See Figure 3). Follow the prompts on the screen to complete the cloning process.

Figure 3. Start cloning software.

6

INSTALLATION

Installing an SSD is a quick and easy procedure and will only take about 5-10 minutes. For

this procedure, you will need a small Philips-head screwdriver, an anti-static wristband, and

the SSD.

NOTE: If your computer has an empty second hard drive bay, you may install the

SSD into that bay without removing the hard drive. If this is the case, ignore the

step 5. You may have to provide a hard drive caddy if the empty hard drive bay

requires one. Once installation is complete, you will need to configure your

laptop to boot to the SSD instead of the original hard drive.

NOTE: If you have trouble locating any computer components in these

instructions, refer to your laptop owner’s manual or contact the manufacturer.

STEPS

1) Turn off the laptop, remove the battery ( See Figure 4), and

remove the AC adaptor.

Figure 4: Bottom side of laptop with battery. AC adaptor is already removed.

Battery

7

2) Put on your anti-static wristband. This will prevent static electricity

from destroying the sensitive electronic components of the laptop. Connect

the clip to the metal frame of the laptop or VGA connector, and put the

Velcro band around your wrist.

3) Remove the access panel from the bottom side of the computer.

Most laptops have one or more access panels, such as the one in the Figure

5. Using the screwdriver, remove the screws and set the access panel

cover to the side.

Figure 5. Bottom side of laptop with battery and access panel removed. Note this laptop has two hard drive bays.

4) Locate the hard drive. See Figure 5. Your laptop may have one or two

hard drive bays. Locate the hard drive bay with the hard drive you want to

replace, or an empty bay. If the hard drive is secured in the hard

drive bay with screws (See Figure 6), remove the screws and set

them aside in a safe container where they will not be lost.

Primary Hard

Drive

Access

Battery

Secondary Hard

Drive

8

5) Remove the hard drive. Carefully slide the hard drive out of the hard

drive bay and the SATA connector (See Figure 6). Carefully remove the

hard drive (Figure7).

Figure 6. Primary hard drive bay. This hard drive is held in place by four screws.

Figure 7. Empty hard drive bay after hard drive is removed. Note the SATA connector orientation.

Screw

ScrewScrew

Screw

SATA connector

SATA connector

Slide Hard Drive

Out

9

6) (OPTIONAL) Remove the hard drive caddy from the old hard drive.

If the laptop hard drive uses a hard drive caddy like the one in Figure 5,

remove the caddy and install it on the SSD before proceeding.

Figure 8. Hard drive caddy and new SSD. The hard drive caddy keeps the HDD/SSD secure.

7) Install the SSD. Carefully insert the SSD into the hard drive bay. Slide

the connector side of the SSD into the SATA connector (See Figure 9), being

careful to ensure the pin orientation matches the SATA connector.

Figure 9. Installing the SSD.

8) Secure the SSD. Reinstall the screws to hold the SSD in place.

Slide SSD In

10

9) Replace the access panel.

10) Replace the battery and reconnect the AC adaptor. The laptop is

now ready for its first boot with the new SSD.

CONFIGURING YOUR SSD

Before you can use your new SSD, you may need to configure the laptop to use it. If the

SSD replaced the primary hard drive, it will probably not need to be configured, and will

boot to the SSD by default. If it does not boot to the SSD, or if you added the SSD

in a secondary hard drive bay, you need to configure the BIOS.

To configure your laptop to boot to the SSD, turn on the laptop and prepare to press F2 to

enter BIOS configuration. The computer will boot up fast, so be prepared to press F2 on

the splash screen (See Figure 10). The splash screen varies by computer manufacturer,

but usually features a logo of your laptop manufacturer with the option to press F2 and

other options for setup and boot menus. Your computer might refer to BIOS configuration

as “Setup”, “System Setup”, or a similar name. Press F2 on this screen.

Figure 10. Typical boot splash screen for a Dell computer.

11

Once in BIOS configuration, find the boot menu (See Figure 11). At the boot menu,

change the boot priority so the SSD’s location is first on the list (See Figure 12). Select

Save and Exit (See Figure 12).

Figure 11. Find the Boot menu.

Figure 12. Place the SSD, in this case "Second Hard Drive", at the top of the boot priority order, then Save and Exit.

12

Your laptop will now boot to the SSD. The laptop should boot to your operating system in

less than 30 seconds. If it does not, check the BIOS again to ensure it saved the correct

settings. If it does not boot to the SSD, contact your laptop or SSD manufacturer

for help.

CONCLUSION

An SSD typically provides a large performance boost to any laptop, consumes less energy,

and is more durable than a traditional HDD. With a newly installed SSD, your laptop should

boot faster and access files more quickly. The laptop should utilize other system hardware

such as the CPU and RAM more effectively, providing a slight performance boost across the

board. After you finish installing the SSD, re-run the Windows Experience Index

assessment or a benchmark performance test and see the difference the SSD has made.