Jump to content

Any tricks installing m.2 on old motherboards?

atavax
By atavax
in Storage Devices
 Share
Posted

So I'm pretty sure my 7 year old SSD that i've been using as a boot drive is on its last leg, so i ordered a 250GB samsung 960 evo and an m.2 to pcie adapter. This being my first time installing a m.2, just wondering if there is any tricks i need to be aware of.

 

the motherboard https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135283

the adapter https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MYCQP38/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

the ssd https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LYFKX41/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
3 minutes ago, Necrodor21 said:

why ask when know the tricks?

Because having an older platform try to boot from a PCI-e drive might be tricky. I wouldn't trust some being able to boot from a USB drive, let alone a PCI-e one.

Intel® Core™ i7-12700 | GIGABYTE B660 AORUS MASTER DDR4 | Gigabyte Radeon™ RX 6650 XT Gaming OC | 32GB Corsair Vengeance® RGB Pro SL DDR4 | Samsung 990 Pro 1TB | WD Green 1.5TB | Windows 11 Pro | NZXT H510 Flow White
Sony MDR-V250 | GNT-500 | Logitech G610 Orion Brown | Logitech G402 | Samsung C27JG5 | ASUS ProArt PA238QR
iPhone 12 Mini (iOS 17.2.1) | iPhone XR (iOS 17.2.1) | iPad Mini (iOS 9.3.5) | KZ AZ09 Pro x KZ ZSN Pro X | Sennheiser HD450bt
Intel® Core™ i7-1265U | Kioxia KBG50ZNV512G | 16GB DDR4 | Windows 11 Enterprise | HP EliteBook 650 G9
Intel® Core™ i5-8520U | WD Blue M.2 250GB | 1TB Seagate FireCuda | 16GB DDR4 | Windows 11 Home | ASUS Vivobook 15 
Intel® Core™ i7-3520M | GT 630M | 16 GB Corsair Vengeance® DDR3 | Samsung 850 EVO 250GB | macOS Catalina | Lenovo IdeaPad P580

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted

Why get a NVMe? Get a standard SSD.

Intel Xeon E5 1650 v3 @ 3.5GHz 6C:12T / CM212 Evo / Asus X99 Deluxe / 16GB (4x4GB) DDR4 3000 Trident-Z / Samsung 850 Pro 256GB / Intel 335 240GB / WD Red 2 & 3TB / Antec 850w / RTX 2070 / Win10 Pro x64

HP Envy X360 15: Intel Core i5 8250U @ 1.6GHz 4C:8T / 8GB DDR4 / Intel UHD620 + Nvidia GeForce MX150 4GB / Intel 120GB SSD / Win10 Pro x64

 

HP Envy x360 BP series Intel 8th gen

AMD ThreadRipper 2!

5820K & 6800K 3-way SLI mobo support list

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
  • Author
3 minutes ago, NumLock21 said:

Why get a NVMe? Get a standard SSD.

because right now i have 4 ssds and i want to reduce the room they take up. Plus it will be easiest to just copy the old ssd onto the new one which would mean, ideally i'd have 5 plugged in at the same time. Plus, the motherboard and cpu is six and a half years old, they're going to get replaced soon, doesn't make sense to make accomodations for it with brand new hardware if it can be helped.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
1 minute ago, atavax said:

because right now i have 4 ssds and i want to reduce the room they take up. Plus it will be easiest to just copy the old ssd onto the new one which would mean, ideally i'd have 5 plugged in at the same time. Plus, the motherboard and cpu is six and a half years old, they're going to get replaced soon, doesn't make sense to make accomodations for it with brand new hardware if it can be helped.

If mobo is that old I don't think it even supports nvme.

Make sure to quote me or tag me when responding to me, or I might not know you replied! Examples:

 

Do this:

Quote

And make sure you do it by hitting the quote button at the bottom left of my post, and not the one inside the editor!

Or this:

@DocSwag

 

Buy whatever product is best for you, not what product is "best" for the market.

 

Interested in computer architecture? Still in middle or high school? P.M. me!

 

I love computer hardware and feel free to ask me anything about that (or phones). I especially like SSDs. But please do not ask me anything about Networking, programming, command line stuff, or any relatively hard software stuff. I know next to nothing about that.

 

Compooters:

Spoiler

Desktop:

Spoiler

CPU: i7 6700k, CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3, Motherboard: MSI Z170a KRAIT GAMING, RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 4x4gb DDR4-2666 MHz, Storage: SanDisk SSD Plus 240gb + OCZ Vertex 180 480 GB + Western Digital Caviar Blue 1 TB 7200 RPM, Video Card: EVGA GTX 970 SSC, Case: Fractal Design Define S, Power Supply: Seasonic Focus+ Gold 650w Yay, Keyboard: Logitech G710+, Mouse: Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum, Headphones: B&O H9i, Monitor: LG 29um67 (2560x1080 75hz freesync)

Home Server:

Spoiler

CPU: Pentium G4400, CPU Cooler: Stock, Motherboard: MSI h110l Pro Mini AC, RAM: Hyper X Fury DDR4 1x8gb 2133 MHz, Storage: PNY CS1311 120gb SSD + two Segate 4tb HDDs in RAID 1, Video Card: Does Intel Integrated Graphics count?, Case: Fractal Design Node 304, Power Supply: Seasonic 360w 80+ Gold, Keyboard+Mouse+Monitor: Does it matter?

Laptop (I use it for school):

Spoiler

Surface book 2 13" with an i7 8650u, 8gb RAM, 256 GB storage, and a GTX 1050

And if you're curious (or a stalker) I have a Just Black Pixel 2 XL 64gb

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
  • Author
2 minutes ago, DocSwag said:

If mobo is that old I don't think it even supports nvme.

with an adapter it should be fine though, right?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
4 minutes ago, atavax said:

with an adapter it should be fine though, right?

It'll work but not in nvme mode just ahci.

Make sure to quote me or tag me when responding to me, or I might not know you replied! Examples:

 

Do this:

Quote

And make sure you do it by hitting the quote button at the bottom left of my post, and not the one inside the editor!

Or this:

@DocSwag

 

Buy whatever product is best for you, not what product is "best" for the market.

 

Interested in computer architecture? Still in middle or high school? P.M. me!

 

I love computer hardware and feel free to ask me anything about that (or phones). I especially like SSDs. But please do not ask me anything about Networking, programming, command line stuff, or any relatively hard software stuff. I know next to nothing about that.

 

Compooters:

Spoiler

Desktop:

Spoiler

CPU: i7 6700k, CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3, Motherboard: MSI Z170a KRAIT GAMING, RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 4x4gb DDR4-2666 MHz, Storage: SanDisk SSD Plus 240gb + OCZ Vertex 180 480 GB + Western Digital Caviar Blue 1 TB 7200 RPM, Video Card: EVGA GTX 970 SSC, Case: Fractal Design Define S, Power Supply: Seasonic Focus+ Gold 650w Yay, Keyboard: Logitech G710+, Mouse: Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum, Headphones: B&O H9i, Monitor: LG 29um67 (2560x1080 75hz freesync)

Home Server:

Spoiler

CPU: Pentium G4400, CPU Cooler: Stock, Motherboard: MSI h110l Pro Mini AC, RAM: Hyper X Fury DDR4 1x8gb 2133 MHz, Storage: PNY CS1311 120gb SSD + two Segate 4tb HDDs in RAID 1, Video Card: Does Intel Integrated Graphics count?, Case: Fractal Design Node 304, Power Supply: Seasonic 360w 80+ Gold, Keyboard+Mouse+Monitor: Does it matter?

Laptop (I use it for school):

Spoiler

Surface book 2 13" with an i7 8650u, 8gb RAM, 256 GB storage, and a GTX 1050

And if you're curious (or a stalker) I have a Just Black Pixel 2 XL 64gb

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
7 minutes ago, atavax said:

because right now i have 4 ssds and i want to reduce the room they take up. Plus it will be easiest to just copy the old ssd onto the new one which would mean, ideally i'd have 5 plugged in at the same time. Plus, the motherboard and cpu is six and a half years old, they're going to get replaced soon, doesn't make sense to make accomodations for it with brand new hardware if it can be helped.

4 SSD?

Then I assume each SSD is in its own drive tray? Can get one of those 3.5" to 2 x 2.5" adapters, where one 3.5" drive bay can hold up to 2 SSDs. That's how I have it in my system. This say you can have up to 8 SSDs in four of those 3.5" drive bays.

NVMe only benefits when handling lots of files like photoshop and such. It won't benefit with games for basic task. With the amount you spend on the NVMe SSD and the adapter, you can get a higher capacity SSD.

Intel Xeon E5 1650 v3 @ 3.5GHz 6C:12T / CM212 Evo / Asus X99 Deluxe / 16GB (4x4GB) DDR4 3000 Trident-Z / Samsung 850 Pro 256GB / Intel 335 240GB / WD Red 2 & 3TB / Antec 850w / RTX 2070 / Win10 Pro x64

HP Envy X360 15: Intel Core i5 8250U @ 1.6GHz 4C:8T / 8GB DDR4 / Intel UHD620 + Nvidia GeForce MX150 4GB / Intel 120GB SSD / Win10 Pro x64

 

HP Envy x360 BP series Intel 8th gen

AMD ThreadRipper 2!

5820K & 6800K 3-way SLI mobo support list

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
5 minutes ago, atavax said:

with an adapter it should be fine though, right?

Fine for storage yes, but most likely not for boot. I have a Z170 board and it does support bootable NVMe, but as I recently discovered it only does so when its installed in its M.2 slot and NOT in a PCIe adapter. SO with boards older im very sure you will not be able to boot from it. But its pretty cool to do a full image backup in less than 10 seconds off the OS drive in the M.2 slot to the one in the adapter

My Gaming PC: 27833

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
  • Author
1 hour ago, NumLock21 said:

4 SSD?

Then I assume each SSD is in its own drive tray? Can get one of those 3.5" to 2 x 2.5" adapters, where one 3.5" drive bay can hold up to 2 SSDs. That's how I have it in my system. This say you can have up to 8 SSDs in four of those 3.5" drive bays.

NVMe only benefits when handling lots of files like photoshop and such. It won't benefit with games for basic task. With the amount you spend on the NVMe SSD and the adapter, you can get a higher capacity SSD.

oops, 4 hard drives, not 4 ssd. 2 HDDs, 1 for storage and the other as a backup. 1 ssd for booting and 1 ssd for gaming.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
2 minutes ago, atavax said:

oops, 4 hard drives, not 4 ssd. 2 HDDs, 1 for storage and the other as a backup. 1 ssd for booting and 1 ssd for gaming.

latest?cb=20151102123145

Intel Xeon E5 1650 v3 @ 3.5GHz 6C:12T / CM212 Evo / Asus X99 Deluxe / 16GB (4x4GB) DDR4 3000 Trident-Z / Samsung 850 Pro 256GB / Intel 335 240GB / WD Red 2 & 3TB / Antec 850w / RTX 2070 / Win10 Pro x64

HP Envy X360 15: Intel Core i5 8250U @ 1.6GHz 4C:8T / 8GB DDR4 / Intel UHD620 + Nvidia GeForce MX150 4GB / Intel 120GB SSD / Win10 Pro x64

 

HP Envy x360 BP series Intel 8th gen

AMD ThreadRipper 2!

5820K & 6800K 3-way SLI mobo support list

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted

M.2 SSD is possible but if you want to boot from it also, its more tricky to get to work.

 

You have the following options as far i know.

 

1. This is the easiest way to get it to work. Sell or if you can return that Samsung 960 EVO and try find a new or used Samsung 950 PRO 256 or 512 GB. in this M.2 NVMe SSD, Samsung left a little gift called "Legacy mode" also known as legacy bios option rom (960 EVO does not have this feature). This means this SSD can be used in any motherboard that else dosent support NVMe SSD with out any other mods or third party software. Sata controller does need to be set as AHCI. I tryed raid and that dosent worked on my X58 motherboard, only AHCI worked, but that has so also worked flawless the past half a year i have had my Samsung 950 PRO running in it. Besides the SSD you also need a M.2 to PCIe adaptor off cause.

 

My system with a Samsung 950 PRO 256 GB as a Boot drive.

System_max_oc.jpg

 

For info see this thread i made about on techpowerup.com.

https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/m-2-ssd-on-old-x58-system-with-m-2-pci-adaptor-can-it-work.231611/

 

2. You can try out this guide and se if you can get that to work with your Samsung 960 EVO.

 

https://audiocricket.com/2016/12/31/booting-samsung-sm961-on-asus-p6t-se-mainboard/

 

3. Some one out there have maybe moddet a bios with NVMe support you can flash your motherboard with. But be warned a unkown moddet bios can end up render your motherboard useless if done wrong or bios has flaws.

 

That is your options i know about to get a bootable M.2 SSD on your system.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
  • Author

Right now I'm having trouble physically installing the m.2. I can't get the screw in. It looks like i have it plugged in all the way, right?

15055276746301097480433.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
  • Author

Idk, it's driving me crazy. Tge screw won't catch even though it seems like it should

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
Posted
  • Author

oh my god. so after spending a shit ton of time trying to get it to scew in, I took a break. And then i'm like maybe i'll check the product description on amazon. And then i notice in the pic on amazon there is a pic with another screw in a baggie. And i look in my package and i see this tiny screw and this screw is longer than the one i've been trying to use! Why would they have a screw that is too short installed on the board and have the one that you're supposed to use in a tiny easy to miss bag?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 11 months later...
Posted

Just flashed my Asus M5A97 EVO and the process was real quick and smooth.  I am now waiting for my SAmsung 970 EVO 500GB and Qnine PCIE to M.2 adapter.  Will update when i receive them and hopefully they will work

41786590_529906287435542_7777752625604198400_n.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing Storage Devices

×