SSD’s are an essential part of every PC build, but if you are a new builder you might have
some questions about installing them. In this video I’ll walk through installing both M.2
and 2.5-inch SATA SSD’s and give some tips to consider - let’s get started.
This video is sponsored by SK hynix, the maker of fastest-in-class SSDs. SK hynix developed the
world’s first 128-layer NAND-based consumer SSD and is the world’s 2nd largest memory
manufacturer. But what really sets them apart is incredible performance at affordable prices,
surprising power efficiency, and 5-year warranties. In fact,
SK hynix makes PCWorld’s top picks for best all-around SSD and best NVMe SSD.
Grab the Gold P31 or S31 on Amazon and give your PC a big upgrade!
Luckily, installing an SSD is easier than picking an SSD
or even understanding how they work. Now I’m not going to cover any of that here,
but if you want to watch more on the topic of SSD’s check out the links in the description.
Assuming you already have an SSD in hand, let’s get to installing! I have both an M.2 NVMe SSD and
a 2.5-inch SATA SSD from SK hynix here, but the steps should apply to almost any model. I’ll start
with the M.2 SSD because it’s a bit more tricky to install and there are some things to research
before you do it. Also I’m going to install this drive in a motherboard outside of a case but this
can be done even if you’ve already built your PC. It’s just easier for me to show it this way.
The first thing you want to do is find where the M.2 slot is on your motherboard.
In order to orient ourselves I’m considering the side of the motherboard with the back IO
connections to be the left side. With that in mind you are looking for a slot about
one inch wide that protrudes from the motherboard about a quarter of an inch.
It is not always labeled.
Now every motherboard is different, but the most common locations are below the CPU
and around the PCIe slots in the lower half of the board. If you are struggling to find the placement
you can always consult the part of the manual that shows the motherboard layout. Some motherboards
even have a pre-installed shield in place that serves double duty as a nice piece of visual flair
and a heat spreader. This will obviously have to be removed before you access the M.2 slot.
If your motherboard supports two M.2 SSD’s you’ll need to consult your manual to see which slot is
the recommended place to install your boot drive. Each slot might offer different performance levels
while others might turn off a PCIe slot if used. Basically read the manual first.
Once you’ve found the right slot, find the screw about 3 inches to the left that is inserted into
a standoff. The standoff is there because when the drive is inserted there will be a gap between
the SSD and the motherboard, so the standoff plays a crucial role of keeping the drive flat.
If your motherboard doesn’t have the screw or standoff look in the box it
came with where there might be in a small plastic bag. If your motherboard features
an M.2 shield you will need to find two screws that mount it to the motherboard.
Now it’s time to touch something metal like a piece of furniture in order to ground yourself,
and then grab a screwdriver. Unscrew the screw from the standoff and place it somewhere
safe - you do not want to lose a screw or have it roll around on your motherboard.
For those of you with shields, unscrew it from the motherboard but take note
of the underside where there should be a thermal pad with a piece of plastic over it.
Do not remove the plastic yet, just place the shield somewhere safe.
Now, the most common M.2 size is 80 millimeters, like this Gold P31.
To confirm, you can hover the drive over the slot and take note of the length. There are other sizes
of M.2 drives available and if you happen to have one of them you’ll need to use pliers to loosen
and move the standoff to the appropriate length. Once it’s in the right position make sure the
stand off is screwed in fully - you don’t want it spinning while we are trying to install the screw.
For those of you with shields you most likely don’t have a stand off
specifically to screw the drive into. Instead there should be a
brace of some sort for the drive to rest on while the shield holds it in place.
In either case the next step is to insert the drive. What I’m considering the top of the drive
there is usually a sticker that is ok to leave on - it's actually recommended. The side with the
gold contact points is what we are going to insert, and the side with the semi-circle cut out
is what is going to be held in place by the screw. Note the notch where the contact points are,
you’ll want to line that up with the slot on the motherboard with the top of the drive facing you.
Insert the drive firmly at about a 15 degree angle until there is no more give and let go.
If you have a screw and standoff based system you’ll want to press down on the drive so
that it lies flat and the semi-circle cut out lines up with the standoff.
While holding the drive flat insert the screw and tighten it to a comfortable point.
Take care to not overtighten or you risk damage to the drive, the screw, or the
motherboard. If you’ve installed it correctly the drive should not shift in place at all.
For those of you with shields you’ll have a bit more to wrangle,
so take your time through these next steps. Since there is no screw to keep the drive flat
you’ll have to hold it down while you place the shield over it or get help from someone
who can lay it flat while you handle the shield. If you would like to do a dry run without taking
the plastic off the thermal pad that is a great idea, just be sure to not leave it on permanently!
When you are ready, take the plastic off and lower the shield straight onto the drive.
It’s important to lower it straight onto the drive because the thermal pad is tacky
and may cause the drive to slide out of it’s slot if you shift it after it’s adhered to the shield.
If that does happen don’t panic. Carefully remove the SSD from the thermal pad and start over.
The hardest part here is lining the screws up to the standoffs so one trick is to hold the
screws in place on the shield as you lower it. This allows the screws to touch the standoffs
before the thermal pad touches the drive. Once the screws are lined up lower the shield into
place and tighten the screws down. Again, no need to over tighten them, it just needs to be snug.
And with that, your M.2 NVMe SSD is installed and ready to use!
The last thing to note here is that there are some M.2 SSDs that feature their own
built-in heat sink. If your motherboard has a shield you don’t want to place that
over the included heat sink, just store the shield somewhere safe in case you need to use it later.
The Gold P31 I used does not have a built in heat sink but don’t fret, it’s still an
energy efficient SSD that emits low heat and should perform great in any configuration.
Now let’s move on to installing a 2.5-inch SATA SSD. This installation is much more
dependent on the PC case you are using and where you want to place it - which varies
wildly. So instead of an exact step by step guide I’m going to cover the basics that
will always apply to every installation. Once again I’m assuming you already have a drive in
hand, if not check out the link in the description for help deciding what to buy.
The two most common options for installing the drive in a PC
is either to put it in a hard drive cage or to secure it to the case itself. Drive
cages usually have some sort of method to attach the drive to the tray that slides into a cage.
Mounting it to the case can either involve screwing the drive to the metal
or putting the drive into a tray first and then attaching it. Either way take care to
make sure you have enough cable length to safely route the cables inside the case.
When installing a 2.5-inch SATA SSD you will always need two things: a SATA data cable and
access to a SATA power cable. Most motherboards include a SATA data cable in the box, this is
used for data transmission from the drive to the motherboard. Look for a long, thin, and flat cable
- sometimes with an L-shaped connector at the end. The SATA power cable, which provides power to the
drive, will be included with the power supply and usually have multiple connectors in-line.
In order to use the SSD you will need to have both
cables attached and secured to the drive at all times.
Plugging in both cables is simple - look for the end of the drive that
has the connections and note there are two. The shorter port is for the interface cable
and the longer port is for the power cable. And if you look really close, each port is keyed with
a tiny notch that indicates the correct orientation for the cable to plug into.
Because of this there is only one way to install the cable, so line them up and insert firmly.
The interface cable includes a primitive locking mechanism that gives a subtle click when inserted.
The power cable does not lock in so be sure to press it in all the way for a secure connection.
The interface cable will then need to be plugged into the motherboard.
In this orientation you will find the ports on the right side of the motherboard, somewhere
between the middle and the bottom. There will most likely be multiple ports to choose from so now is
another time you should consult your manual. To get the maximum bandwidth out of your SSD
you’ll want to connect to the SATA 6Gb/s ports but the slower 3Gb/s ports will work fine as well.
In this example you can see that this motherboard features six SATA 6G ports, and
they are stacked - so three columns of two ports. Typically you’ll want to use the ports in order,
so if the numbering starts at one, choose that and identify which port it is
on the motherboard itself. On any remotely modern PC, the performance should be the same
but using the first port on an older PC is usually the highest performing. When the
ports are stacked like this sometimes it can be a bit confusing knowing which number is which,
so just take your time and look close. Once again, this cable will lock into place
so after you insert it in enough you will hear a subtle click to know you are secure.
And like that you have attached your 2.5-inch SATA SSD! A couple more things to note - like I
mentioned before some of the SATA data connectors feature an L shaped plug. This is for situations
where you need to keep a low profile so the cable doesn’t get pinned somewhere - but either cable
offers the same performance. Also, the SATA power cable will most likely have multiple ports on
it. This is to allow you to attach multiple drives or peripherals onto the same cable.
Which plug you use will depend on the length you need to reach to plug in the drive and whether
or not that cable also needs to reach other ports. All the plugs will work just the same.
Wow. Who knew this topic would be so involved! But of course there is even more that I could be
covering, but hopefully this should be enough to get your PC up and running. I’ll leave you
with one last tip before we wrap up. If you are installing both an M.2 NVMe and
SATA SSD you might be confused as to which drive is which when it comes time to install Windows.
One way to get around that is to keep the SATA SSD unplugged while you are going through the
installation process so there is no other option for installing Windows to something
other than the higher performance NVMe SSD.
After you are up and running, plug the drive back in, format it, and you are ready to roll.
Well that’s it for this how-to, be sure to subscribe to PCWorld for
more PC hardware videos. I’ll catch you in the next one!