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Resolved Question

PC Hardware Upgrade: Switching from a HDD to an SSD

Mar 24, 2019 4:43PM PDT

Hi,

This is one of my first posts on a CNET forum and I am also pretty new to the subject if pc hardware upgrading. Right now, my pc has a single hard disk drive (a 1TB Western Digital/Seagate I believe) as its primary or boot drive. My question is how exactly I should go about switching out my Hard drive to a nice, smooth and speedy solid state drive. I figured since prices for SSDs have been getting lower lately, it would be a good time to do something like this.

If needed, my PC specs are as follows:

Motherboard
ASUS P8Z77-V LX LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-P8Z77-V-LX-Intel-Motherboard/dp/B007MKGF82

CPU
Intel Core i5-2500k Quadcore processor

https://www.amazon.com/INTEL-Core-i5-2500K-Processor-BX80623i52500K/dp/B004FA8NX2/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_3?hvadid=177308009445&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9052045&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t1&hvqmt=e&hvrand=5922163530290810061&hvtargid=aud-647006051489%3Akwd-29913063083&keywords=intel+core+i5-2500k+processor&qid=1553465110&s=gateway&sr=8-3-fkmrnull

Graphics Card
Msi Geforce GTX 650 ti

https://www.amazon.com/MSI-GeForce-Graphics-N650Ti-1GD5-OC/dp/B009WIW87E

Power Supply Unit (PSU)
Corsair CX750M

https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Bronze-Certified-Modular-CP-9020061-NA/dp/B00ALK3KEM/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?hvadid=177319818126&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9052045&hvnetw=g&hvpos=1t1&hvqmt=e&hvrand=4602500332941362171&hvtargid=aud-647006051489%3Akwd-55947916075&keywords=corsair+cx750m&qid=1553465175&s=gateway&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1

RAM
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B

PC Case (Tower)
NZXT Guardian 921RB 921RB-001-BL Blue LED SECC Steel / ABS Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146070
-Case Dimensions (H x W x D): 18.07” x 8.11” x 20.55 in

Once again, since it was not included in the hardware list, my current hard drive is a 1 TB Western Digital or Seagate (one of the two companies, not sure which one at the moment). Some things I was wondering about were what program(s) I should use to back up my hard drive before beginning the process and which one I should use to clone my HD to the SSD (I do not want to have to reinstall my Windows 7 Home OS to the new drive). Also, what other steps I should take to make sure I don't lose anything on my computer.

Any sort of advice would be greatly appreciated, especially some instructions on how to actually begin the data transfer process, what cables/other equipment might be needed, etc.

Thanks in advance!

Discussion is locked

Flamephoenix78 has chosen the best answer to their question. View answer

Best Answer

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Parts
Mar 24, 2019 7:00PM PDT

2.5 to 3.5 bracket.
Sata cable.

Mount the ssd in the bracket.
Temp mount it inside your case.
Connect the sata cable to the ssd and a open port on the mobo.
Connect a power cable to the ssd.

Download this and put it on a disc or usb stick.
https://www.backup-utility.com/download-iso.html
Boot the disc or usb stick.
Select clone.
Select input...the hdd.
Select output....the ssd.
There are a few more screens and then it will clone the hdd to the ssd.
When it's done remove the hdd and mount the ssd where the hdd was.
Use the hdd power and sata cable.
Boot it up.

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Gratitude
Mar 24, 2019 8:02PM PDT

Straight, and to the point. Much appreciated, man! I'll take a look at the stuff you included when I finally get around to acquiring that sweet SSD hardware

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After thought
Mar 24, 2019 8:17PM PDT

Make sure you use a gray sata port on the mobo.

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Color?
Mar 24, 2019 10:14PM PDT

Why does the color of the SATA cable matter?

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Not the cable
Mar 24, 2019 10:27PM PDT

The port on the mobo.
Some are blue some are gray.

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Answer
Thanks for all the detail.
Mar 24, 2019 5:48PM PDT

This is a very common upgrade. To save what we can't lose, we backup. But since you are cloning that drive we can get to a full backup by:

1. Clone the HDD to the SSD.
2. Power down.
3. Remove the HDD and set it aside as our backup.
4. Install the SSD into the position and connections of the old HDD.

Boot.

That's usually all it takes. I use my Apricom 25 buck upgrade kit for such work all the time.