Boot drive cloning and upgrading memory

[Jurrunio]

So I bought an HP EX920 1TB and G.skill Ripjaws 2400MHz 8GB stick to upgrade my laptop.

 

First thing to do is to replace the 4gb stick inside with the new 8gb one, but it just doesn't want to detect the new stick. I guess that means CMOS reset (got my desktop working that way), I'll do that later.

 

Second thing is to get the new SSD as the boot drive. Thought about reinstalling the OS when I'm at it, but I'd rather not deal with the driver issues on an OEM machine like a laptop. Can anyone recommend a cloning software that works on boot drives? I tried EaseUS one before, failed. Was on a desktop so I'm not pissed, but this time it has to work.

 

Thanks

[Enderman]

There are no driver issues.

Everything should work perfectly fine on a clean install.

It doesn't matter if it is OEM or not.

 

https://www.howtogeek.com/224342/how-to-clean-install-windows-10/

[TheBean]

the driver that windows automatically installs are the official drivers provided by the manufacturer (not oem). the oem drivers are the exact same except that they may have some customised stuff to work better with your machine. the manufacturer ones will work fine. 

 

if you still want to migrate instead of start fresh:

https://lifehacker.com/how-to-migrate-to-a-solid-state-drive-without-reinstall-5837543

I have never heard of macrium reflect but i trust lifehacker to make sure that it is good software. 

[Enderman]

2 minutes ago, Saksham said:

the driver that windows automatically installs are the official drivers provided by the manufacturer (not oem). the oem drivers are the exact same except that they may have some customised stuff to work better with your machine. the manufacturer ones will work fine. 

I've seen far more people have issues by downloading the drivers from the website than simply letting windows install the basic ones and not touching anything else.

[Jurrunio]

18 minutes ago, Enderman said:

There are no driver issues.

Everything should work perfectly fine on a clean install.

It doesn't matter if it is OEM or not.

 

https://www.howtogeek.com/224342/how-to-clean-install-windows-10/

After Windows 10 1809 I did have BSODs for a while, until I updated drivers from HP's site. You reckon it wont be a problem if it's not for the pre-installed stuff?

 

What does worry me in function though is the audio. HP has its own audio tuning software and with it turned off, the speakers sound like a Chinese knockoff from the 80s. Can I get some other software for the same function afterwards?

 

Problem with fresh install is that I can't use the USB method, I can't access the BIOS and boot menu without booting into the OS first. I think I can install into the SSD while running Windows right?

[Enderman]

8 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

After Windows 10 1809 I did have BSODs for a while, until I updated drivers from HP's site. You reckon it wont be a problem if it's not for the pre-installed stuff?

That's probably from a previous upgrade or clone or something else you did to the OS.

It won't happen on a clean install.

 

8 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

What does worry me in function though is the audio. HP has its own audio tuning software and with it turned off, the speakers sound like a Chinese knockoff from the 80s. Can I get some other software for the same function afterwards?

Audio "tuning" is just EQ.

You can't make speakers sound better with those "real sound" or whatever software is included in a PC/laptop.

You should really not be using that stuff if you want any kind of accurate audio.

 

8 minutes ago, Jurrunio said:

Problem with fresh install is that I can't use the USB method, I can't access the BIOS and boot menu without booting into the OS first. I think I can install into the SSD while running Windows right?

Every computer can access the BIOS and boot menu without booting.

You just need to know the correct DEL or F key to spam after clicking the power button.

[Jurrunio]

7 minutes ago, Enderman said:

Audio "tuning" is just EQ.

You can't make speakers sound better with those "real sound" or whatever software is included in a PC/laptop.

You should really not be using that stuff if you want any kind of accurate audio.

dont know how to explain, it just sounds terrible without it. I'll see what happens, not like I'm wiping the old boot drive any time soon.

 

11 minutes ago, Enderman said:

Every computer can access the BIOS and boot menu without booting.

You just need to know the correct DEL or F key to spam after clicking the power button.

Apparently it's F10 for this HP laptop. What a nice idea to hide the hotkey list from the user. Thanks for encouraging me to try all the F keys

[Jurrunio]

so apparently all I need to do to get the memory stick working as intended is to install it properly (i.e. further inwards)... Good job me