Solved Don't ignore your desktop PC's empty M.2 slots - they're more useful than you think


How does that work? I don't see any link to e.g. an USB expansions card, or anything else able to mount in an M2 slot ?

The only link on the site is PCIe expansions cards.

I tryed to comment an ask on the ZDNET site, but it was not possible.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 ProIntel i5 12600KG.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 3600 MHz / PC4-28800 C...Intel® UHD Graphics 770 (iGPU)
OS
Windows 11 Pro
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Homemade by me
CPU
Intel i5 12600K
Motherboard
MSI PRO Z690-A DDR4
Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 3600 MHz / PC4-28800 CL16 2x8 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel® UHD Graphics 770 (iGPU)
Sound Card
8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Legion/Lenovo Y25-25
Screen Resolution
Full HD 1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
WD Black NVMe M.2 500 GB (system drive)
Case
Lian-Li
Keyboard
Old solid and heavy IBM🙂
Mouse
Logitech
Internet Speed
1000 mbit
Antivirus
Avast free
Last edited:

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Win7,Win11i7-97002x16gb 3600mhz
    OS
    Win7,Win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i7-9700
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    2x16gb 3600mhz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    benq gw2480
    PSU
    bequiet pure power 11 400CM
    Cooling
    cryorig m9i

  • At a glance

    win7,win11i5-84002x8gb 3200
    Operating System
    win7,win11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    i5-8400
    Motherboard
    gigabyte b365m ds3h
    Memory
    2x8gb 3200
    PSU
    xfx pro 450
Thanks - doesn’t look as big market or convenient
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 ProIntel i5 12600KG.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 3600 MHz / PC4-28800 C...Intel® UHD Graphics 770 (iGPU)
OS
Windows 11 Pro
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Homemade by me
CPU
Intel i5 12600K
Motherboard
MSI PRO Z690-A DDR4
Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 3600 MHz / PC4-28800 CL16 2x8 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel® UHD Graphics 770 (iGPU)
Sound Card
8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Legion/Lenovo Y25-25
Screen Resolution
Full HD 1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
WD Black NVMe M.2 500 GB (system drive)
Case
Lian-Li
Keyboard
Old solid and heavy IBM🙂
Mouse
Logitech
Internet Speed
1000 mbit
Antivirus
Avast free
Thanks - doesn’t look as big market or convenient
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 ProIntel i5 12600KG.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 3600 MHz / PC4-28800 C...Intel® UHD Graphics 770 (iGPU)
OS
Windows 11 Pro
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Homemade by me
CPU
Intel i5 12600K
Motherboard
MSI PRO Z690-A DDR4
Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 3600 MHz / PC4-28800 CL16 2x8 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel® UHD Graphics 770 (iGPU)
Sound Card
8-Channel (7.1) HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
Legion/Lenovo Y25-25
Screen Resolution
Full HD 1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
WD Black NVMe M.2 500 GB (system drive)
Case
Lian-Li
Keyboard
Old solid and heavy IBM🙂
Mouse
Logitech
Internet Speed
1000 mbit
Antivirus
Avast free
RD Mercer said:
Wow! That’s a lot, but I see no problem with that. I have all my documents, pictures etc. from forever, on my 860 EVO 250 gigabyte ssd. Yes, I guess I have just lived a lonely peaceful existence. ✌️
Click to expand...
WOW! I know I don't have near the data and the like some people here, but everything on 250GB? I will admit that everything important as well as my current Windows installation fits comfortably on a 2TB SSD. Then there are two other 2TB SSD drives and one 4TB HDD drive for my automated backups. The HDD is to have backups to dissimilar media, not to mention just one more backup copy.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two Other systems

  • At a glance

    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9278Intel Core i5 14500, 14th Generation64GB DDR4GeForce RTX 4060
    OS
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9278
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14500, 14th Generation
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M G P WIFI
    Memory
    64GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060
    Sound Card
    Chipset Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 45" Ultragear & Acer 24" 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    5120x1440 & 1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 3D NAND NVMe M.2 SSD (O/S)
    Silicon Power 2TB US75 NVMe PCIe Gen4 M.2 2280 SSD (backup)
    Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND (2nd backup)
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD secondary backup
    External off-line backup Drives: 2 NVMe 4TB drives in external enclosures
    PSU
    Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 750W
    Case
    LIAN LI LANCOOL 216 E-ATX PC Case
    Cooling
    Lots of fans!
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security

  • At a glance

    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9168Intel Core i5 1440032GB DDR5Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Operating System
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9168
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14400
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M DS3H AX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Sound Card
    Realtek Embedded
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" HP 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung EVO 990 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung 2TB SATA SSD
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD secondary backup
    PSU
    Thermaltake Smart BM3 650W
    Case
    Okinos Micro ATX Case
    Cooling
    Fans
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
  • Nimo N171 17" Laptop, (Intel i3-1215U, 16GB RAM, 2TB NVMe, Win11 Pro)
    Acemagic Vista Mini PC V1 (Intel N150, 16GB RAM, 1TB NVMe, Win11 Pro)
    HP ENVY h8-1540t, (24GB RAM, 2TB SSD, 2TB HDD, Win11 Pro)
gunrunnerjohn said:
WOW! I know I don't have near the data and the like some people here, but everything on 250GB?
Click to expand...
OS is Tiny 11 25H2, I have 60 gig of docs and pictures, so I have less than 100 gig on my c: drive used. Yes, I do have a Western Digital VelociRaptor WD6000HLHX 600GB SATA 3.5" Hard Drive for backing up my c: drive at times. I guess @74 I live a "very simple" life, just browsing the internet now days, not any new important docs or pictures in a while. I know I not your average PC user, but what determines average? :-)
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows XP (Stable, iconic) 7/8.1/10/ Tiny11 ...Intel i7 4790K32GB DDR3 1600 MHzATI Radeon HD 7770 2GB GDDR5
OS
Windows XP (Stable, iconic) 7/8.1/10/ Tiny11 25H2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Alienware PC
CPU
Intel i7 4790K
Motherboard
ASROCK Z97 EXTREME4
Memory
32GB DDR3 1600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD 7770 2GB GDDR5
Sound Card
Onboard
Monitor(s) Displays
SAMSUNG UE57 Series 28-Inch 4K UHD
Hard Drives
SAMSUNG 860 EVO 250 gigabyte SSD
PSU
EVGA 850 watt
Case
Alienware Area 51 Black Tower Case
Keyboard
HyperX - Alloy Elite 2 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard.
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless
Internet Speed
1.2 GHz
Browser
Chrome..Edge..Firefox
RD Mercer said:
I know I not your average PC user, but what determines average? :-)
Click to expand...
Very true, I don't know what an "average" PC user might look like. :lmao: A significant amount of my storage is taken up with multi-media collections, video and MP3 files. My actual data files that get accessed regularly are probably around 100GB, those are electronic designs and fabrication files, 3D design files, and my software files. Obviously, I have the tools to do that development that take up a significant amount of space. I just checked and my email archives take up 13GB, one day I should look at trimming that down. :unsure:
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two Other systems

  • At a glance

    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9278Intel Core i5 14500, 14th Generation64GB DDR4GeForce RTX 4060
    OS
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9278
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14500, 14th Generation
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M G P WIFI
    Memory
    64GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060
    Sound Card
    Chipset Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 45" Ultragear & Acer 24" 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    5120x1440 & 1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 3D NAND NVMe M.2 SSD (O/S)
    Silicon Power 2TB US75 NVMe PCIe Gen4 M.2 2280 SSD (backup)
    Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND (2nd backup)
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD secondary backup
    External off-line backup Drives: 2 NVMe 4TB drives in external enclosures
    PSU
    Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 750W
    Case
    LIAN LI LANCOOL 216 E-ATX PC Case
    Cooling
    Lots of fans!
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security

  • At a glance

    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9168Intel Core i5 1440032GB DDR5Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Operating System
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9168
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14400
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M DS3H AX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Sound Card
    Realtek Embedded
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" HP 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung EVO 990 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung 2TB SATA SSD
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD secondary backup
    PSU
    Thermaltake Smart BM3 650W
    Case
    Okinos Micro ATX Case
    Cooling
    Fans
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
  • Nimo N171 17" Laptop, (Intel i3-1215U, 16GB RAM, 2TB NVMe, Win11 Pro)
    Acemagic Vista Mini PC V1 (Intel N150, 16GB RAM, 1TB NVMe, Win11 Pro)
    HP ENVY h8-1540t, (24GB RAM, 2TB SSD, 2TB HDD, Win11 Pro)
Steve C said:
At 71 I play MS Flight Simulator which is a memory hog and slow to load without a fast NVME drive
Click to expand...
I don't think it matters what you use to load MS Flight Sim. It's always 3 or 4 minutes to get to the menu. It seems nearly identical from when I was loading it from HDD and now SSD. There's just a lot of small files being loaded. Then in 2020 if you fly Reno racing for example, another couple minutes to load that. I'm actually surprised that I believe that FS 2024 now performs a bit better than 2020. When 2024 first launched it was in a pretty rough state IMO. At least if you have adequate internet it seems to run well. It does load much faster compared to FS 2020.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 25H2Broadwell-e 6850K 4.5ghz @1.36v32GB Corsair LPM 3600 C16EVGA RTX 3080Ti FTW
OS
Windows 11 25H2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
EVGA home brew
CPU
Broadwell-e 6850K 4.5ghz @1.36v
Motherboard
EVGA X99 FTW K
Memory
32GB Corsair LPM 3600 C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA RTX 3080Ti FTW
Sound Card
Asus Centurion true 7.1 headset. (5 speakers in each earpeice)
Monitor(s) Displays
LG C4 55"
Screen Resolution
4K 144hz
Hard Drives
Various models of SSDs ~10TB No HDDs installed.
PSU
be quiet! BN516 Straight Power 12-1000w 80 Plus Platinum
Case
Corsair 780T modified to dual 200mm intake fans
Cooling
Corsair H110i
Keyboard
Corsair K95 Platinum
Mouse
Corsair M65 RGB Elite
Internet Speed
50Mbs
gunrunnerjohn said:
Very true, I don't know what an "average" PC user might look like. :lmao:
Click to expand...
Sadly, old age has come at a bad time, just when I was beginning to believe I knew everything, I am now forgetting everything I knew. 🤣
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows XP (Stable, iconic) 7/8.1/10/ Tiny11 ...Intel i7 4790K32GB DDR3 1600 MHzATI Radeon HD 7770 2GB GDDR5
OS
Windows XP (Stable, iconic) 7/8.1/10/ Tiny11 25H2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Alienware PC
CPU
Intel i7 4790K
Motherboard
ASROCK Z97 EXTREME4
Memory
32GB DDR3 1600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ATI Radeon HD 7770 2GB GDDR5
Sound Card
Onboard
Monitor(s) Displays
SAMSUNG UE57 Series 28-Inch 4K UHD
Hard Drives
SAMSUNG 860 EVO 250 gigabyte SSD
PSU
EVGA 850 watt
Case
Alienware Area 51 Black Tower Case
Keyboard
HyperX - Alloy Elite 2 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard.
Mouse
Microsoft Wireless
Internet Speed
1.2 GHz
Browser
Chrome..Edge..Firefox
Why did this thread become about Age. I'll be 86 July 28.
As far as empty ports, All mine are full.
1TB Samsung 9100 Pro Main
2x 2TB Samsung 9100 Pro for Temp storage.
All my real storage goes on spinners.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Win 10 Pro 19045.6937 Win 11 25H2 VMXeon W-10885M64GB ECC DDR4 128GB maxIntel 1080p + Quadro RTX 5000 Max-Q 16GB 4K
OS
Win 10 Pro 19045.6937 Win 11 25H2 VM
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
Dell Precicion 15 Workstation
CPU
Xeon W-10885M
Motherboard
Dell
Memory
64GB ECC DDR4 128GB max
Graphics Card(s)
Intel 1080p + Quadro RTX 5000 Max-Q 16GB 4K
Sound Card
onboard Realtec
Monitor(s) Displays
NA
Screen Resolution
1080p to 4k
Hard Drives
1 TB Samsung 9100 M2 SSD main
2 TB Samsung 9100 M2 SSD storage
500 GB Corsair T500 storage M2 SSD (6 TB max)
PSU
NA
Case
NA
Cooling
NA
Keyboard
backlit
Mouse
Logitec M720 Bluetooth Free scroll
Internet Speed
slow
Browser
Pale Moon 33.9.x.x - x64 AVX2 build
Antivirus
Windows Defender
RD Mercer said:
Sadly, old age has come at a bad time, just when I was beginning to believe I knew everything, I am now forgetting everything I knew. 🤣
Click to expand...
My line is "I've forgotten more than you'll ever know!". When the obvious retort comes, I simply say "I've forgotten that, sorry!" :lmao:
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two Other systems

  • At a glance

    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9278Intel Core i5 14500, 14th Generation64GB DDR4GeForce RTX 4060
    OS
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9278
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14500, 14th Generation
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M G P WIFI
    Memory
    64GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce RTX 4060
    Sound Card
    Chipset Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 45" Ultragear & Acer 24" 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    5120x1440 & 1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB 2280 PCIe Gen4 3D NAND NVMe M.2 SSD (O/S)
    Silicon Power 2TB US75 NVMe PCIe Gen4 M.2 2280 SSD (backup)
    Crucial BX500 2TB 3D NAND (2nd backup)
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD secondary backup
    External off-line backup Drives: 2 NVMe 4TB drives in external enclosures
    PSU
    Thermaltake Toughpower GF3 750W
    Case
    LIAN LI LANCOOL 216 E-ATX PC Case
    Cooling
    Lots of fans!
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security

  • At a glance

    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9168Intel Core i5 1440032GB DDR5Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Operating System
    Win 11 Pro 25H2, Build 26200.9168
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brew
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 14400
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte B760M DS3H AX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel 700 Embedded GPU
    Sound Card
    Realtek Embedded
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" HP 1080p
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial P310 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung EVO 990 2TB NVMe Gen4 SSD
    Samsung 2TB SATA SSD
    Seagate 4TB Ironwolf, rotating HDD secondary backup
    PSU
    Thermaltake Smart BM3 650W
    Case
    Okinos Micro ATX Case
    Cooling
    Fans
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000
    Mouse
    Logitech G305
    Internet Speed
    Verizon FiOS 1GB
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Malware Bytes & Windows Defender Security
  • Nimo N171 17" Laptop, (Intel i3-1215U, 16GB RAM, 2TB NVMe, Win11 Pro)
    Acemagic Vista Mini PC V1 (Intel N150, 16GB RAM, 1TB NVMe, Win11 Pro)
    HP ENVY h8-1540t, (24GB RAM, 2TB SSD, 2TB HDD, Win11 Pro)

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 25H2Broadwell-e 6850K 4.5ghz @1.36v32GB Corsair LPM 3600 C16EVGA RTX 3080Ti FTW
OS
Windows 11 25H2
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
EVGA home brew
CPU
Broadwell-e 6850K 4.5ghz @1.36v
Motherboard
EVGA X99 FTW K
Memory
32GB Corsair LPM 3600 C16
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA RTX 3080Ti FTW
Sound Card
Asus Centurion true 7.1 headset. (5 speakers in each earpeice)
Monitor(s) Displays
LG C4 55"
Screen Resolution
4K 144hz
Hard Drives
Various models of SSDs ~10TB No HDDs installed.
PSU
be quiet! BN516 Straight Power 12-1000w 80 Plus Platinum
Case
Corsair 780T modified to dual 200mm intake fans
Cooling
Corsair H110i
Keyboard
Corsair K95 Platinum
Mouse
Corsair M65 RGB Elite
Internet Speed
50Mbs
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