parkc wrote:
1) Do you guys have a specific ssd you prefer? i was looking at Samsung.
2) I understand the steps of how to physically install the hardware and navigate the bios, but i'm at a loss when it comes to what to do with the OS. I would like to do a clean install of windows 8, But i dont know where to get windows 8 to install it. Do i use a recovery disk? or a brand new windows 8 disk? (id prefer not to purchase a new OS). I read another thread about using a flash drive, but i still dont understand the full process, and how thats different from a disk.
3) I would like to use the 1tb HDD that the computer came with for general storage. How do i wipe it clean and transfer the important things i might need from the new sdd?
4) Do i need to worry about partitions for anything?
Before you go through with anything, it's recommended you back up your recovery! You can do this via the "create a recovery drive" tool or the Windows "Create a system image" tool using a USB drive or DVDs (respectfully).
1. Samsung drives are great! The 840 Pro tops the charts in performance and overall satisfaction. The 840 EVO drives are better bang for the buck, although as Nillaz pointed out, they do not perform as well as the Pro series, nor are they as reliable.
2. Essentially, your best bet will be to use the built in recovery and clone your existing drive to the new SSD. You can use the factory reset before or after cloning; personally, I would advise using the recovery before cloning. For cloning software, Clonezilla and EaseUs Todo backup are free programs you can use. Other noteworthy programs are Norton Ghost and Acronis True Image.
3. Again: cloning.
🙂 A
full install of Windows 8 won't be as feasible unless you purchase a new copy, so your easiest route is to use the built in recovery.
4. Not if you're cloning. You simply use the cloning application to mirror the entire contents of the drive over to the SSD, then you navigate into BIOS to change the Hard Drive BBS priority so that the laptop boots off of the SSD (or you can physically swap the placement of the drives so that the SSD is in the primary bay). Then once you've booted into Windows with the SSD and have confirmed everything seems to be working, you can format your hard drive and use it for whatever.
🙂
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