Solved I have one NVMe M.2 SSD slot and want to replace my SSD

mondosteppaz · Aug 6, 2022

I have a 128GB SSD (with windows) and a 1TB SATA HDD and a 64GB USB drive (Empty)
I need more space and since I have one M.2 slot i need to replace it
what would be the easiest method to get windows 11 on my new SSD

NavyLCDR · Aug 6, 2022

Macrium Reflect Free. Make a system image of the existing SSD and save it to the SATA HDD. Make a bootable Macrium Refect Free rescue drive on your USB drive. Install the new SSD. Boot the computer from the Macrium Reflect rescue drive, restore the system image from the SATA HDD to the new SSD.

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Macrium Reflect - Incredibly powerful software that allows you to create and schedule effective backups

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If you really want to make sure the rescue drive works, then create it first, boot the computer from it, then save the image of the old SSD to the HDD.

SIW2 · Aug 6, 2022

Unless you have an adapter you could use, then you probably would need to do the 2 step process of image and restore,

If you only have one nvme slot these things can be useful

Amazon.co.uk

glotrends PCIe M.2 Adapter with 0.12 Inch Thick Heatsink for M.2 SSD, NVMe PCIe 4.0 | 3.0 M.2 Adapter Card, PCIe GEN4 Full Speed, Supports PCIe x4 x8 x16 Slot, Desktop PC Installation (PA09-HS): Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

Shop glotrends PCIe M.2 Adapter with 0.12 Inch Thick Heatsink for M.2 SSD, NVMe PCIe 4.0 | 3.0 M.2 Adapter Card, PCIe GEN4 Full Speed, Supports PCIe x4 x8 x16 Slot, Desktop PC Installation (PA09-HS). Free delivery and returns on eligible orders.

www.amazon.co.uk

they are essential for machines that dont have nvme slots

booting nvme disk via pcie adapter on older machines - Windows 7 Help Forums

Using the 2018 f16 bios from gigabyte on a ga-b75m d3h motherboard. Using a pcie x1 ( yes x1) adapter in the physical x16 slot on the motherboard for a bit of fun. The nvme disk shows up in bios like

www.sevenforums.com

glasskuter · Aug 6, 2022

Be sure to resize the C partition during the Macrium restore to use the additional space. Step 7 here. Restore Partitions with Resize and Reorder

LeLibran · Aug 7, 2022

The suggestions so far appear to focus on the backup/restore after SSD replacement approach.

A slightly different method would be to clone the existing SSD to a new SSD externally connected (via an SSD enclosure/dock which can later be re-used with the old SSD). Cloning from smaller to larger is usually straightforward with software such as Macrium, and once cloned, success can then be verified by booting from the external 'drive' until ready to swap the hardware.

SIW2 · Aug 7, 2022

Unless he already has a suitable external enclosure it makes sense to buy a pcie to nvme adapter.
They can be very cheap at around a fiver.
Or for a little more, a fancier one from glotrends supports pcie 4 as well as pcie 3 which might be useful in the future.

It is very easy to attach the new nvme to the motherboard via the pcie adapter.

Then it should be straightforward to do os migration from one to nvme disk to the other. Using a suitable program such as diskgenius or the software provided by the nvme manufacturer.

It also means he could then run two nvme disks in the longer term and not be limited by only having one nvme slot on the mobo.

LeLibran · Aug 7, 2022

SIW2 said:
It is very easy to attach the new nvme to the motherboard via the pcie adapter.

It might be, but not if it's a laptop or mini-computer which often have similar configurations. We don't currently know, but now there are a range of options to choose from to achieve the goal.