I got tired of fumbling with flash drives and just got one of these

Same here. The SSD helped immensely.

Shaders preview immediately.

Load times drastically reduced. There are times when I've loaded into the tower, emptied my post master, and collected my loot -- all before my clan mates even load in.

Very few if any loads between areas (blind well / dreaming city) -- same deal, I'll be sparrowing along with some buds, we pass through a loading zone and suddenly I'm alone because they're all stuck in mid air loading the zone.

Well worth the ~$80 USD for the SSD.


EDIT: Since a lot of folks are asking -- I bought a Samsung EVO 860 250GB, which is currently for sale on Amazon for $58 (nearly $20 less than I paid), and paired it with a $10 Amazon Basics Hard Drive Enclosure.

I'm using an OG XB1 FWIW.

SSD: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07864WMK8/

ENCLOSURE: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N5RLG2C/

Is your HDD actually broken? If not, you can remove the HDD yourself and use an [external hard drive enclosure,] (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_bs_tr_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=GW9T7RJBJ8EWMF19HNPH) to access your files.

• Get an external enclosure.
  
  
• Get EaseUS Todo Backup Free
  
  
• Clone your boot drive to your new drive (currently in the enclosure)
  
  
• switch the old boot drive with the new drive and boot as normal.
  

I personally use an IODD 2531, it's works very similar but you use a menu on the screen to pick an ISO.

Link: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00TDJ4BJU

(Note: It's basically the same as the Zalman enclosures but apparently with better firmware)

As they both support Secure Boot it really doesn't matter which one you use, I prefer the IODD though as I can set it to be only the ISO with no access to the disk.

This little guy with a random ssd in it has saved me many hours

Remove the hard drive and buy a hard drive enclosure. Your hard drive will function as an external hard drive.

WAY too much money you can get one for $50 that works just as well!!!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0719D9YL7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Bam! $35 (with rebate) with 10x external 5.25 bays

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811235039


Keep it easy and add in hot swap 4 into 3 adapters as needed. This would support up to 12 drives all hot swappable without opening the case:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DGZ42SM/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's nice and simple but i urge you to not keep your drives like this in those brackets.

GEt yourself some hard drive cages like these which will both isolate your drives and allow you to swap them out a lot more easily as well as keep them cooler.

Your current setup is a AWFUL for hard drive vibration which can cause premature drive failure as they are ALL vibrating together and thus, add up.

Sorry about that pokershibe place you used to use.

5k is worth almost nothing.

You aren't new, and you aren't begging. I gotchu dawg.

+/u/dogetipbot 5000 doge verify.

Woof Woof.

You can take out the laptop hard drive, and mount it in an external hard drive enclosure like this: https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-External-Aluminum-Enclosure/dp/B00E362W9O/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1469826884&sr=8-5&keywords=hard+drive+enclosure+2.5

You can also get usb 3.0 for faster transfer rates, but it might be more expensive.

The value of the doge is much less than the enclosure, but if you have any other data on your drive you want, this is probably the easiest way to get it.

For those that don't know it, the Zalman drives are made by a parent company called IODD. The main difference between the Zalman and the IODD version is that IODD has VHD boot support. So you can create full test environments and boot them over USB3.

https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/

I must have over 100 USB sticks now, everything from 512MB up to 1TB. Like you I used a lot of them for bootable ISOs. Had 6-8 of them on a large keyring too, just for emergencies.
Can I make a recommendation, though? Two actually. First is the IODD2531. It's an external USB HDD caddy, but you can drop ISOs on it and you can select them individually from the unit and it'll emulate an optical drive. I've installed everything from Server 2019 on big-box HP and Dell servers, to Windows 98se after some tinkering. You need to supply your own drive, but mine has a 256GB SSD and I've never looked back.
The other is something I've not tried and only found recently called Easy2Boot. I like playing retro games which means retro machines need building, and this comes recommended by lots in the community. Similar idea to the IODD, but USB based.


Edit: For clarity, the IODD box is the OEM version of the Zalman VE350. When I was looking into getting one, I found the Zalman was a similar price, but the stock IODD firmware more flexible. You can flash between the two at will, though.

You gotta check out a 2.5 enclosure, just pop in the ssd, connect it to the laptop by usb and clone https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=sata+hdd+enclosure&qid=1568905424&s=gateway&sr=8-5

Amazon has a wonderful case-thing with cables, and Samsung sells a nice compact 2.5" SSD that can go as low as 250GB, and as high as 4TB. I bought the 250GB one with the case-thing and only paid about $72 total. Both can be bought through Amazon, and are both under Prime shipping if you have it, so your SSD will be here and ready in no time at all. I highly recommend it if you are a heavy Destiny player.

Here is a link to the Samsung SSD: Samsung 860 EVO 250GB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-76E250B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_d16PBbSQX6SEE

Here is a link to the Amazon case: AmazonBasics 2.5-inches SATA Hard Drive Enclosure - USB 3.0 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5RLG2C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_L16PBbHF62J8E

Well there's a few considerations.

1: If you want to keep your data (all your downloaded games, Windows, documents, Steam, etc.) then you will need to clone your old hard drive to the new SSD. A lot of SSD's come with cloning software, but just to be safe check on the SSD's page to make sure it will come with it. If they don't, you can download a free software called EaseUS ToDo Backup Free but in my experience this software is a little unreliable. (EDIT: /u/spif_spaceman recommended another software called Macrium Reflect Free, and after testing it myself I concluded that it does seem to work much better than EaseUS, and going forward I will recommend it to everyone as well. Thanks spif!) If you don't want to move your data, you could always just disconnect the HDD, connect the SSD in its place, and reinstall Windows.

2: To actually get your system to read both drives if your going to copy your data, you can simply power off the system and install the SSD in a second drive bay and plug in SATA power and data cables, or you can get a SATA to USB conversion kit and plug the drive in externally. Here is a great kit that I use at my job as a computer repair technician all the time, as it's very reliable, works with most major drive types, and is simple to use. You could also go with something like this if you want something a little more clean and easier to use. Personally either one of those solutions would work, however that enclosure does have a USB 3.0 connection vs the cable which uses a USB 2.0 connection, so the enclosure would have a faster data transfer speed provided you have an available USB 3.0 port.

3: Once you actually get your data moved over (or not) you may need to get a 2.5 inch to 3.5 inch mounting bracket depending on your case. Most modern cases (3-5 years old generally) will have support for an SSD built right in, but some may not. If not, here is a good kit for a great price, and you get 2!

Hope this helped!

I got tired of losing flash drives and put a couple ssd's in external enclosures likes this

Here is one that my squad and I have zero issues with. Works like a charm.

Silicon Power 256GB SSD 3D NAND A55 SLC Cache Performance Boost SATA III 2.5" 7mm (0.28") Internal Solid State Drive (SP256GBSS3A55S25) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_gs0SCbBVK5W2M


And here is the case

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Cs0SCb5R6QZQ8

Absolutely. It'll likely be slow, since it'll be on a slower connection standard, but you can do it. All you'll need is some kind of 2.5" HDD enclosure, like this

I bought one of these to consolidate drives into a single enclosure:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_9jgpDbERCY0PX

They sell 8 drive versions as well.

It's a bit on the expensive side, but it was worth it for me because of the space savings, fewer USB drives, less cable mess, and plug points.

Step 2: Wrap it in aluminum.

Step 3: Place on "oven" for an entire session of Battlefield 1.

Step 4: Remove freshly baked games from aluminum foil and promptly toss seagate in the garbage.

Step 5: Buy these instead:

Samsung 850 EVO 500GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-75E500B/AM)

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-Inch-Internal-MZ-75E500B-AM/dp/B00OBRE5UE/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1491386297&sr=1-1&keywords=samsung+850+evo+500gb

Inateck 2.5 Inch USB 3.0 Hard Drive Enclosure External SATA HDD and SSD Case - Optimized for 9.5mm 7mm 2.5" SSD, Tool Free (FE2002)

https://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Inch-Drive-Enclosure-External/dp/B00FCLG65U/ref=sr_1_9?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1491386412&sr=1-9&keywords=uasp

Step 6: Install games to the SDD, and... Enjoy!

What is your budget? MediaSonic makes decent enclosures for the price. You can always go fancy and get a Synology if it fits your budget or DIY if you like the customization.

Mediasonic has some low-cost RAID/JBOD boxes. Amazon link

edit: Or you could get a SATA port expander and a drive cage if you've got room in your PC case.

edit2: How to combine multiple hard drives into one volume on Windows 10

But at some point you've got to look at the cost of a new 8TB WD Eaystore on sale for $160, versus spending any more money on making those 1TB drives useable. The best bang for the buck is a new 8TB external, second best is scrounging up some free PC hardware and hacking together a low-cost-no-cost PC.

I was in the same situation, I ran out of space in my case for drives. I am using a USB enclosure for Plex and it works great:

Mediasonic ProBox HF2-SU3S2 4 Bay 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure - USB 3.0 & eSATA Support SATA 3 6.0Gbps HDD transfer speed https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_pGIiDb44DMDJJ

I bought this back in 2013 on a super sale (it was like $80) in preparation for moving my main computer over (currently 80gb SATA2 SSD for essentially the OS). Turns out I am lazy and never did it so this drive was literally empty in my case for 5 years lol.

I bought this this week to get it hooked up to the xbox. Took all of 5 minutes of painless setup and about and hour while I prepped dinner to transfer. I've already easily saved that time in loading screens.

It's worth it, I'm definitely happy. Be sure you get at least a 256GB SSD (xbox requirement).

It's a 2.5" drive in this enclosure plugged into the usb ports on this router

• remove hard-drive,
  
• install into [docking bay] (https://www.amazon.ca/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538) > retrieve data
  
• drill or hammer old hard-drive
  
• chuck out.

Not sure what conflicting answers you speak of.

Any modern/new SSD of 256GB or more will suffice. Whether that's an internal or external is up to you. An internal will need an adapter that transfers it's connection to USB 3.


Name brands MAY last longer than a cheap off brand, but the data in test results doesn't really support that. I use an external Samsung T5 but only because I got it for a birthday present. Most of my friends have Amazon specials that cost far less and so far have given the same results in PUBG.

Recommended:

https://www.amazon.com/Silicon-Power-Performance-Internal-SP256GBSS3A55S25/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=ssd+256gb&qid=1558678862&s=pc&sprefix=ssd+256&sr=1-3


https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=pd_aw_fbt_147_img_3/139-8676850-0599245?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00OJ3UJ2S&pd_rd_r=2d362e9e-7dec-11e9-8740-41568e48106d&pd_rd_w=YUiIL&pd_rd_wg=4ofBA&pf_rd_p=3ecc74bd-d08f-44bd-96f3-d0c2b89f563a&pf_rd_r=PYHDBFYYVZTD6HQWT0GG&psc=1&refRID=PYHDBFYYVZTD6HQWT0GG

I bought this SSD for just over $30 Silicon Power 256GB SSD 3D NAND... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075RJS55D?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

And then this case all for under $50 Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Totally worth it in my opinion. Buildings and weapons are loaded in when I drop on all of the maps :)

> but my laptop where I stored it is broke...

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/

That'll accept the standard hard drive used in basically every normal sized laptop since the mid 2000s. If you have a newer laptop with a solid state drive, especially an ultrathin, it may be in a different format which would require a different adapter (or in the case of new Apples, it's soldered to the motherboard and you're SOL. Any normal hard drives and some solid state drives will work though.

If your drive is compatible though you should be able to slap it in that case and plug it in to basically any other computer to get access to the files. Unless of course the hard drive itself is what broke, in which case you're SOL.

I recommend the drive with a y-cable. That way the hard drive powers up and down with the console. With an externally powered drive, you have to either leave it on all the time (will lead to early hard drive failure) or you have to plug it in every time you use your Wii U (which is a major pain).

Just get a cheap usb hub to plug into one of the front USB ports so you can still plug in all your accessories. Here's an Amazon Basics one for $7 that turns one port into 4 so you have 5 in the front:

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-4-Port-USB-2-0-Ultra-Mini/dp/B003M0NURK/ref=sr_1_7?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1536252759&sr=1-7&keywords=usb+hub

Also, if you happen to have an old laptop that is dead or not used anymore, you can remove the hard drive from it and put it in a <$10 external enclosure and use it like a portable hard drive. I did this and it's been going strong for almost 4 years. Here's the external enclosure I used (includes a y cable):

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E362W9O/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If you're looking for a compromise, buy an SSHD with a USB 3.0 enclosure. Got a 2TB SSHD for $89. Here's a good breakdown of the speed difference between SSD, SSHD, and HDD.

[Seagate 2TB FireCuda Gaming SSHD] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IEKG2HM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_2qaAo2kgu9Aqc)

ORICO Toolfree USB 3.0 to SATA External Hard Disk Drive Enclosure Case for 3.5" SATA HDD and SSD

Plenty of external drives use a USB A-A cable. I have this particular one (with 1 TB drive installed).

You can get a hard drive reader. It plugs into a power source and your laptop /pc via usb. You can pop your old hard drive in that and take whatever files you'd like. Also, you can plug it into your ps4 if you get one with usb 3.0, and use your old hard drive as an external one. A solid hard drive reader with usb 3.0 will run you about 30 - 40 American dollars.

Edit: here's the one I have and it's currently on sale. Works great. I've been using it to have my old hard drives working as externals on my ps4.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0099TX7O4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_J2BOAbF2J6EC5

I did that with my wifes 2011 MBP too.

​

The 2015 I picked up I got a good deal on I think but it only has a 128GB ssd in it, which is super small and I take a lot of photos with my iphone and Nikon d3200, so I need more space than this.

​

I saw a guide that suggested a samsung 960 evo m.2 NVME drive with an adapter.

​

https://www.amazon.com/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2017-ST-NGFF2013-C/dp/B01CWWAENG/ref=pd_ybh_a_7?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=RSQYBBQ008Y2QG3XMKNN

​

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-960-EVO-Internal-MZ-V6E500BW/dp/B01M20VBU7/ref=pd_ybh_a_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=RSQYBBQ008Y2QG3XMKNN

​

so for $160 I could get 512GB of space which compared to OWC is super cheap and worth the attempt I think

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B075RJS55D/ref=ppx_yo_mob_b_track_package_o2_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=ppx_yo_mob_b_track_package_o2_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

That's the exact stuff I bought. Buildings always load before I hit the ground

Any chance you have room for this?
http://amzn.com/B00T76ZGDO

It'll work fine. There are slightly more elegant solutions like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Aluminum-Enclosure-EC-M2SA/dp/B01N6PMZLW

Or one that also allows connecting over USB (at extra cost):

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Aluminum-Enclosure-EC-M2CU/dp/B07924J5NT

Sabrent makes an M.2 to 2.5 inch enclosure if you have a non NVME drive you want to move. Spending an extra $10 kinda kills this deal though.

I'm going to copy and paste an old comment of mine:

Just a heads up, a 240GB ssd works as well! I bought a Sandisk SSD Plus drive from Amazon for $65 (USD. This was February of 2016.)

Playing Destiny, the boot up time to load into the tower time went from

~3mins from internal drive to

~2:18 on portable HDD (5400 RPM) to

~1:36 on the SSD.

Some/most games won't be that drastic of a difference, but I've been quite happy putting the games I play the most on the SSD. The formatted capacity of the 240gb SSD is 223.5gb

I used the following (found my US linked items and located them in the UK store):

This SSD drive

This UASP supported SSD enclosure

If you have any questions, let me know and I'll be happy to help. I use that 240 GB ssd in conjunction with a 2TB external, so that I get a best of both speed and storage capacity.

PS4/PS4 Pro - External SSD is vastly superior to the default HDD. Using an internal SSD can be faster or slower than using it externally. Basically, your probably best off keeping your internal HDD for games you play less often and slapping Destiny plus a few other titles on an external SSD as there's not a ton of speed to be gained by going internal.

Xbox One - Similar to the PS4, you will gain an immense amount of speed by using an external SSD instead of the internal HDD. I don't think you can normally install an SSD internally with Xbox.

By the way, if you're thinking, "but damn external SSDs have stupid markup on them" then you are absolutely correct, have a cookie. Now buy your regular cheap internal SSD and slap it in one of these. Can't tell you how it functions with Xbox but works perfectly with my Pro. Also note that depending on the SSD you may have to pop it into a computer (or plug it in with the enclosure) and initialize the drive/format it for the PS4 to properly recognize it but this step isn't always necessary it seems.

I have an SSD and that improved my loading times by a good amount of time, also helps to have better internet, my speeds are good enough but not great at all.

They really aren't that expensive, I'll point you in the right direction if you want. Also helps a ton with games like PUBG, BF, Red Dead, GTA etc.

.

Edit: If anyone is wondering I have one 512GB Silicon Power 3D NAND A55 SLC Cache Performance Boost SATA III 2.5" 7mm (0.28") Internal Solid State Drive from Amazon for $49.99 USD along with another of the same Silicon Power SSD but in 256GB for $28.99 USD.

Then you need the enclosure which costs $8.99: Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III]. Super simple set up, literally open the enclosure by sliding the top off, slide the SSD into the connection slot in the enclosure, put the top on, plug it in to the USB slot and turn the thing on. Really nice price, had never heard of the brand but it has really good reviews, and works well for me. Just about the cheapest SSD I've seen on Amazon with an average review of 4.5+ (and at least 1k reviews).

I splurged and got a Synology box and loaded it with 4x4TB and 4x8TB red drives (2 volumes). (those reds aren't cheap).

Then with extra drives, got a couple of Mediasonic HFR2-SU3S2 PRORAID 4 to house the rest of my drives connected via eSATA and formatted ext4. These little 4 drive NAS are not very expensive and work well. I hung an extra 5TB drive for backup, other misc files off the Synology as well.

I have found using external NAS makes performance with Plex better since the work of the RAID is done separately from the processor doing the encoding.

I'm not an expert on backplanes by any means, but I don't think there are any standards for them across manufacturers. Each is made to fit a specific chassis.

If you want to avoid proprietary, you could get something like this. It will fit several different board form factors. I believe you can remove the front drive cages, which essentially leaves you with a load of 5.25" bays that you can load up with a couple of these, which are essentially self contained, four slot SATA backplanes that fit in 3 5.25" bays.

Again, I'm no expert, but I've seen some posts of similar setups as this and am considering doing this myself if I ever have the space for a rack.

I have had one for over a year with no issues. Drive mount and function perfectly. Only real complaint I hear is that the fans don't move much air, might swap them out one day.

https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-5-25-Inch-3-5-Inch-Hot-swap-SATAIII/dp/B00DGZ42SM

I've been running three of these Mediasonic ProBox enclosures for the last two years with zero complaints. I use the USB 3.0 interface though, not eSATA.

I added an eSata card and one of these

I turned my laptop into a unraid server. Bought a mediasonic box.


https://smile.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/


Works wonderful

I was just looking into this one....not sure if I'll buy or not...
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003X26VV4/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_7?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2WSTUX2A6RQ1A

https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Docking-Station-Support/dp/B0099TX7O4

​

put it in this, plug it in via usb to another computer and read your old hard drive like a flash drive.......if then it cant be pulled off, you will need a forensics expert, and you will be looking at $200 per hour to get your stuff :) and, it might be worth it.

​

this (and many others like it) turns your hard drive in to a flash drive, and yes, sometimes it wont read corrupt files, in fact, sometimes, files are so corrupted as to never be read again.....hopefully not.

​

good luck OP there are tons of different versions of this device, and trying is a heck of a lot cheaper than paying someone to try.

​

As others noted, yes, a relatively easy thing normally. There are a few possible difficulties however.

Low cost machines from Dell. HP, etc. tend to not anticipate an end user wanting to upgrade so the machine has just what it needs, nothing more. Sold with one drive? Then no room to mount a second drive, no additional power connectors for a second drive.

So, does the new machine have an open cage to mount the drive in? Does it have the needed SATA power connection and is it near where you'll mount the drive?

Additionally, when the machine boots will it see the OS on old drive and try to boot from it (which will fail)?

All of these issues can be bypassed by using a USB adapter such as this one on Amazon: [Vantec USB adapter](https://www.amazon.com/Vantec-CB-ISATAU2-Supports-2-5-Inch-5-25-Inch/dp/B000J01I1G/ref=sr_1_2?
ie=UTF8&qid=1502495463&sr=8-2&keywords=usb%2Bdrive%2Badapter&th=1) or, if you're going to keep it plugged in, a dock like this one: USB Docking Station.

With either of those there's no need to open the machine, just connect via USB.

Remember also that old machine is most certainly recoverable. If nothing else a fresh Win 10 install will have it working unless, unlikely but possible, you actually caused physical damage of some sort to the motherboard. If you want to get it running again post here and we can work on it.

put it in a external hard drive case.

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-External-Aluminum-Enclosure/dp/B00E362W9O/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1393715640&sr=8-5&keywords=external+hard+drive+case

> I/O is still a big limiting factor

USB to SATA adapters are under $5 on eBay, and garbage 16GB SSDs are about $15.

USB 2.0 SATA enclosure ($8): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E362W9O/

8GB SATA SSD ($10): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WU4OX84/

Put your Minecraft files on the SSD and add it to /etc/fstab so it mounts automatically on boot. Use gparted on your Linux desktop (or Pi) to format it as ext4.

If you have an old laptop hard drive laying around, you can use that instead. Chromebook MSATA SSDs are also available for dirt cheap on eBay and are usually higher quality than $10 Chinese garbage, but you'll need a MSATA to SATA or USB adapter.

This really sucks - Sorry it happened. More frustrating if you had a USB that was full and didn't record on Sentry Mode... While USB sticks are great, we were frustrated having to swap it out or clear it out every few weeks and worried it wouldn't work when we needed it to. If you feel like upcycling and have an old Playstation laying around (we had a broken one) you can remove the hard drive and use it with this from Amazon (reformat the drive, of course) and for under $9 you have a 500GB drive that will record for a while and is small. We've had ours in since July and it's still recording... or a bigger USB works fine too!

Hi foocux,

I updated my 2015 13” MBPr with a Samsung evo 970 (I got the 1TB version)
To do this you will need an adapter which will adapt the standard nvme PCI SSDs to the port on the logic board of your MBPr.

Since I am from Germany I can only give you the link to the german version of Amazon. But you should be able to get this adapter on the internet.

https://www.amazon.de/Sintech-M-2-PCIe-2280-SSD-Karte-MZ-JPU128T-SD6PQ4M-128G/dp/B01CWWAENG

Here are the steps I did to upgrade my MBPr.

1. Make a bootable backup with Carbon Copy Cloner (https://bombich.com/) on an external disk
   
2. Shutdown MacBook and replace the Apple SSD with Samsung Evo 970 and the adapter
   
3. Boot from backup disk I did create in step 1
   
4. while booted from backup disk clone the backup to the new Samsung Evo SSD
   
5. Reboot the Macbook from the new disk
   
6. enjoy the doubled (in my case) capacity
   
   Good luck!

You need an external hard drive enclosure. Then you can connect it to your laptop and reformat it.

Not that guy but I got this one

ADATA SU800 256GB 3D-NAND 2.5 Inch SATA III High Speed Read & Write up to 560MB/s & 520MB/s Solid State Drive (ASU800SS-256GT-C) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K8A2A0E/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_0DK7Ab851XE8M

With this enclosure

ORICO USB3.0 to SATA III 2.5" External Hard Drive Enclosure for 7mm and 9.5mm 2.5 Inch SATA HDD/SSD Tool Free [UASP Supported] Black(2189U3) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M08LCXW?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

10/10 would recommend

Enclosure

Both of these items used together will enable you to dramatically speed up load times for your games, and of course offer you storage. The installation is simple, and it's a simple format and ready for use with the Xbox one. I would highly recommend it for those looking to boost load times and/or more storage.

I ordered and recieved this SSD and enclosure last week...specifically for Destiny 2. The improvement in load times cannot be understated, even on my Xbox One X.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

AmazonBasics 2.5-inches SATA Hard... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5RLG2C?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-75E250B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OAJ412U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_KxmKtLPHeWGx8

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_MsUOAQq2VgL3h

I just added a SSD to my day one Xbox for $40. It is totally worth it especially for Destiny.
Case
SSD

Yes I bought an $10 enclosure.

Here are the 2 items I bought:

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-75E250B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OAJ412U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_CdzXXahiHqmFH

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_m4inanakDfvZ8

SSD : https://www.amazon.com/Silicon-Power-Performance-Internal-SP256GBSS3A55S25/dp/B075RJS55D


Enclosure : https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S

Together, they are pretty cheap. Just pop the SSD in the enclosure, plug in, and you’re good to go.

I used a 64 GB SanDisk USB drive for over a year without any issues and only upgraded to an external hard drive because it was running out of space. Older USB drives had a much lower tolerance for the number of read/writes they could perform. Newer brand name USB drives have a much higher threshold.

That said, if you can upgrade to an external drive, do it. Here's what I bought and it works great.

WD Hard Drive

USB Hard Drive Enclousure with power supply

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf
SanDisk 250GB Ultra 3D NAND SATA III SSD - 2.5-inch Solid State Drive - SDSSDH3-250G-G25 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071KGRXRH?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf
I'm not very tech savvy, and I got it to work pretty easily. Just put one in the other and use the USB connection in the back of the OG Xbox (side one didnt work). It'll ask you if you want to format it for games. Do that then transfer PUBG over and you're on your way. It'll say you need 256gb, but my 250gb works with no issues.
There's tutorials online also.
There may be cheaper ones out there, but this worked for me. Got the model from someone else on this sub

Can you remove the end piece? That just looks like an adapter of sorts. If you can then all you need is an enclosure such as this.

I got this.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_1

You just need a USB a to c cable and it'll function the same.

If you're worried about speed, the transfer rate of that is around 500 Mbps on the T5. This one goes up to 5 Gbps if you use a USB 3 cable. It all depends on how fast your SSD is. Realistically any storage drive SSD will be practically just as fast

I bought this one recently. Its a little expensive, but its an official one made for xbox one by seagate, so decided to spend the extra money to get it as i had gift cards i needed to use anyway.

If you want one thats much cheaper that should work just as good, get this one:

Drive: https://www.amazon.com/Silicon-Power-Performance-Internal-SP256GBSS3A55S25/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1548282759&sr=8-3&keywords=ssd+256

Case: https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1548283038&sr=8-4&keywords=ssd+enclosure

SSD and Enclosure

Lets break it down. Most people are getting external ssd's. Why because it adds on to the memory without removing existing storage. USB 3.0 provides enough throughput for an ssd. But heres the deal, ssds connect through sata ports. So to protect and connect an ssd to an xbox, you need a sata 3 to usb 3.0 connector.

Super important, depending on your xbox, the internal connection could be sata 2. If you have an og xbox it is sata 2 inside. one x and xbox one s have sata 3. Therefore a ssd will do nothing for speed increase if you do an internal one on an original xbox one. You need to connect via usb 3.0 externally to see performance gains.

So buy a decent solid state with at least 240gb, the actual minimum spec. And spend 10 bucks on a sata 3 to usb enclosure. https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_4/135-4131140-8815732?ie=UTF8&qid=1525800622&sr=8-4&keywords=usb+3+external+hard+drive+enclosure

Silicon Power 256GB SSD 3D NAND With R/W Up To 550/450MB/s A55 SLC Cache Performance Boost SATA III 2.5" 7mm (0.28") Internal Solid State Drive (SP256GBSS3A55S25) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_B806AbHMAB1AP

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

This is the exact setup I just bought for my 1TB Xbox One. PUBG is amazing as well as I found a massive improvment in Tera Online. I also just needed more space.

Linked is what i got about a month ago. Works fine, and seemed reasonably priced when I researched SSDs.

Samsung 860 EVO 250GB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-76E250B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

yeah usb 3.0, came with the case I bought.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OAJ412U/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'll chime in on the movie editing / storage question. My Macbook pro has 256 Gigs of HD space. It's still not enough. When you edit one 15 minute video in FinalCut X it's ends up being 50 Gigs or more. My solution, which works great, was to buy a USB 3.0 external enclosure and put a cheap 250 Gig Samsung SSD inside. This drive and usb connection is so fast, I will never have any issues with transfer speeds or using up all the internal HD space.

Total investment is about $97, a drop in the bucket compared to paying Apple for a larger drive.

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-Inch-Internal-MZ-75E250B-AM/dp/B00OAJ412U/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451314692&sr=1-1&keywords=samsung+ssd

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FCLG65U?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00

If you don't mind waiting a bit for the bracket you can snag one from this guy for ~$1.50, otherwise they are available just about anywhere for ~$7 or so.

As for the SATA cable, as long as it's long enough and has latches(and decent reviews) your good. example

Your best bet (and greatest speed increase for your money) is to upgrade your HDD to a SSD. The Samsung EVO series (https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-Inch-Internal-MZ-75E250B-AM/dp/B00OAJ412U - select a storage capacity based on your needs) is a pretty good bet, though most SSDs will speed up your system considerably.

Installing the SSD isn't too difficult. The most time-consuming part is copying all of your files over. I recommend that you get a HDD enclosure like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Tool-free-Inateck-External-Enclosure-FE2004/dp/B00JQTO8TU/

You'd insert the SSD into the enclosure, plug the enclosure into your MacBook Pro and then use a program called SuperDuper to duplicate the files on your current HDD and copy them onto your new SSD. That way, when you install the SSD, you can plug in and go.

CNET has a guide for upgrading the laptop to a SSD: https://www.cnet.com/uk/how-to/upgrade-your-macbook-install-ssd-hard-drive/

If you don't use your CD/DVD optical drive, you can actually replace it with another HDD/SSD for extra storage. There's a guide for that here: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Installing+MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Unibody+Early+2011+Dual+Hard+Drive/8529

Depending on your budget, you can also upgrade your RAM, though it may not be worth it depending on your usage. If you use Virtual Machines a lot, or other memory-intensive applications, this may be a worthwhile upgrade.

iFixit has a pretty good guide for upgrading RAM: https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook+Pro+13-Inch+Unibody+Late+2011+RAM+Replacement/7651

If you want to upgrade to 8GB of RAM, check this out: https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Apple-Certified-Laptop-Memory/dp/B005JRH9V2

If you want 16GB of RAM, look at this: https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Certified-Laptop-Memory-CMSA16GX3M2A1333C9/dp/B006ON5KZC

What sort of stuff do you use your laptop for? That'll give us a better idea of what you may need RAM-wise. Feel free to ask if you have any more questions. There are also guides on YouTube if you want a visual guide for how to do this stuff. Just search for "MacBook Pro Late 2011 RAM/SSD Upgrade" and something should come up.

Anymore I don't generally take data recovery work on from people I don't know personally (just too much that could go wrong liability wise - I don't want to be the one to lose any irreplaceable pictures of grandma permanently) but I can give you some quick things you might try depending on how comfortable you are with electronics in general.



You said the drive isn't being recognized - is it making any new noises compared to when it was working? If you hear a repeating clicking noise, I would NOT attempt anything further on my own with that drive and in fact would not be turning it on any more if I could help it.



If it's not making a clicking noise but is still coming on and just not being recognized, it might just be the external enclosure/connector that's not working. If you're comfortable removing the HDD from the current enclosure, you can try the bare drive in something like this:




https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2




If the drive still refuses to be recognized by the system, the next step is utilizing software utilities to check for a busted partition table. The knowledge level you'll want for both this step and moving on from here takes a significant jump up from steos previous so if you're a basic level user, I'd stop at this point and find a guy in person that might help.

It might be as simple as a repairing the partition table but if it were my drive, I'd be getting a new identical HDD and cloning it bitwise in an attempt to preserve the original if anything goes wrong and attempting the next recovery steps on the newly-cloned drive.


Hope this helps!

First: Avoid the J-series Synology units. All J-series are meant to be cost-reduced, low power units, typically based on ARM processors. They will perform rather poorly, and be completely useless for any kind of video editing applications.

>So when I get a NAS, what can I expect?

Lower performance than USB 3, but greater convenience because all your devices can access it simultaneously. You're going to want your computer and the NAS to be on the same Ethernet switch. Don't even think about doing anything serious over Wifi.

>Would it be a good idea?

Yes and no. Yes, in that it could make a great backup target, and a handy way of storing non-video content for live use, like music libraries.

>How is performance when connected to a network?

Depends on the NAS and the network. As I just finished writing up over here the rest of the traffic on the network can play a role in limiting performance, and the functional capacity of the NAS itself also plays a very key role in whether or not it can keep up with what you demand out of it.

>Is it totally doable for live editing or is it best connected directly to my PC via USB 3?

Maybe. Depends on the footage you're working with. Unless you're getting a higher end model, know how to tinker with these things, and you're not working with like gonzo 4K footage it might work out, but USB 3 will deliver far superior performance, and it would be recommended you continue to work off something like this.

>I'm less concerned about RAID... I'm really only doing this so I can have multiple drives using one power cable.

No, you're getting involved with RAID, so you need to be concerned about RAID. I have a write-up in the Wiki about RAID that gives you a sort of 10-foot perspective on the thing. The RAID tech you invest in will determine how you move forward in the coming years in terms of data protection and storage growth.

And if all you care about is the power cord then you're getting into this for the wrong reasons. IF that's all you care about you could get a DAS solution. You could go with just a simple dual disk dock, or a dumb 'ole JBOD enclosure, or get some kind of real RAID solution, either by buying a card and building an array inside your computer or in some kind of external enclosure, or by buying a device that handles RAID internally and exposes itself to the computer as a single dumb disk.

>Currently looking into these two models:

Keep in mind that those are dual-disk models, which limits you to RAID0 and RAID1. This is quite limiting in terms of options, and in terms of volume. However upgrading capacity is cheap, since you only have two disks to replace (however this is only possible in RAID1, and impossible in RAID0 unless you've got enough external storage lying around).

I bought 1 already but want another. I'm new to this, so after shucking where can I place them? My only computer is a laptop so my options are either building my own server or finding a dock that can support multiple 8TB drives, preferably 4 ports. Can someone gimme an amazon link for something to look at?

I was thinking this https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1503137746&sr=8-3&keywords=4+bay+8tb

But won't that not support plex transcoding?

You have a CD/DVD drive right? Just use one of these

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004XIU4T2

About the same price as a 2.5->3.5 caddy adaptor

$200 with rails:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0055EV30W/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DGZ42SM/

https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-RSV-R28LX-Bearing-Sliding-Rackmount/dp/B0795Y3QM3/

E:

Or $300 for 12 hot swap bays: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00N9CXGSO/ref=twister_B079C7QGNY

https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-RSV-R28LX-Bearing-Sliding-Rackmount/dp/B0795Y3QM3/

Just a antec 900 with these

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B00DGZ42SM/ref=ya_aw_oh_bia_dp?ie=UTF8&psc=1

What this guy said, my brother bought this ssd and enclosure, he loads in faster than me now and I'm playing on the X.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B071KGRXRH/

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S

SSD $59.50
Enclosure $8.99
I have this setup myself on original xbox, works great.

Get an internal HDD and this thing!

 

I personally prefer Hitachi drives because they are the most reliable brand according to BackBlaze and they have units that runs at 7200RPM(improved seek time). Downside is they don't have 2TB+ drives that I know of...

 

I think I read some articles about using a SSD on XBox One and that the end result was that while the loading speed was slightly increased, the difference of price between a HDD and a SSD didn't justify the extra cost of the SSD. If you still want to go the SSD route, just keep in mind that the USB3 connectivity will surely add latency. Just don't go pick up the most expensive SSD with crazy IOPS numbers as your Xbox console might not take full advantage of it. Check for Mushkin ECO series.

I've always wanted to get one of these hard drive enclosures that supports mounting an ISO so you can choose what to boot all from one device, like this one. They all seem kind of cheap though, but this one has good reviews and it's an attractive price.

This! I personally recommend the Iodd it has a better firmware.

https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/

>First of, yes, this is likely because of the SD card. USB drives can pretend to be DVD drives, and that's how most disks get booted.

USB devices can pretend to be DVD drives but almost all USB flash drives do not (and ones that do market them selves as such). They are just block devices like SD cards and internal HDDs. There should be no difference to booting from them. Additionally a lot of SD cards are on an internal USB port anyway.

There is a chance that they won't work, just like how there are some bad USB flash drives that you cannot boot from. But these are for reasons other than them not pretending to be DVD drives (device firmware issues or too slow to power on/initialize). It might also depend on if your motherboard supports booting from them.

You can upgrade to a 1tb ssd.

Search amazon for this adapter:

Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card

Found here:

https://www.amazon.com/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2015-MacBook/dp/B01CWWAENG

Way cheaper to buy this and an nVME SSD

If you know someone and can use their Mac you can download Mac OS Catalina and create a bootable flash drive with an app called

Install Disc Creator:

https://macdaddy.io/install-disk-creator/

Here is a guide to do it:


https://youtu.be/_-giqihpxJk

It’s for a different OS X but works the same for all OS X

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01CWWAENG?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

Here you go!

I know this doesn't solve the NVMe/u.2 issue but:

There are SATA to m.2 enclosures that are 2.5". You have to use them with B key drives (not NVMe but SATA M.2).

For exmple I have this with 2 x 500gb M.2 drives in it. I use mine in RAID 0, but there are options (using a jumper) for spanning and other setups.

Also, the single 2.5" SATA to M.2 SATA enclosures go for $10 or less.

SSD: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B075RJS55D/ref=pd_gwm_simh_0?pf_rd_p=f9ea941c-301a-45bf-9233-50adcf132422&pf_rd_s=grid-14&pf_rd_t=Gateway&pf_rd_i=mobile-unrec&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=CH9KA40STEAABKDPV6BC&pd_rd_wg=zsgcy&pf_rd_r=CH9KA40STEAABKDPV6BC&pd_rd_r=CH9KA40STEAABKDPV6BC&pf_rd_p=f9ea941c-301a-45bf-9233-50adcf132422&pd_rd_w=z4isw&pd_rd_i=B075RJS55D

Enclosure: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=pd_gwm_simh_0?pf_rd_p=fc67834d-1a4e-443d-a4d4-b4f1372fb3cf&pf_rd_s=grid-15&pf_rd_t=Gateway&pf_rd_i=mobile-unrec&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=CH9KA40STEAABKDPV6BC&pd_rd_wg=zsgcy&pf_rd_r=CH9KA40STEAABKDPV6BC&pd_rd_r=CH9KA40STEAABKDPV6BC&pf_rd_p=fc67834d-1a4e-443d-a4d4-b4f1372fb3cf&pd_rd_w=RJv6E&pd_rd_i=B00OJ3UJ2S

me too, totally convinced.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075RJS55D/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B078WQJXNF/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1525515492&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=samsung+evo+ssd+250&dpPl=1&dpID=41qR7C253KL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=aw_pd_cart_vw_1_4?ie=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00OJ3UJ2S&pd_rd_r=ESQX23FQFJXXNE2C9CXB&pd_rd_w=tnA9r&pd_rd_wg=wI1dk&psc=1&refRID=ESQX23FQFJXXNE2C9CXB

Buy this enclosure with an internal HDD. Looks nice and you don't have to worry about placing an external HDD anywhere

So if you're getting in mainly for Destiny you will be disappointed. SSDs give a marginal improvement because remember you have to wait for everyone to be loaded into an activity before you load in. Second everything is stored server side so that delay in opening your inventory isn't caused by your slow Hard Drive but the Destiny servers themselves, there is a 2 second improvement but at least to me it doesn't make a difference. (I have 2,000 hours on an SSD with Destiny and I saw no improvement to speak of)

Now assuming that you still want to get one because you play other games,

For the Enclosure, this little unit is awesome and what I use.

Collective Minds 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure & 3 Front USB 3.0 Ports Media HUB - Xbox One $39.99 from Amazon

It acts as an enclosure and a 3 port hub for 3 USB 3.0 ports, so it's super useful.

Now for the Drives

Drive | Seller | Price
---|---|----
Intel 730 SERIES| Amazon| $250 480GB
Samsung 850 PRO | Amazon | $220 512GB
Samsung 850 EVO| Amazon| $165 500GB


These are the 3 I would stay with in order from top to bottom in terms of performance and quality.

Hope this helps.

Just take a look at the other numbers aside from the main menu time and you'll see they aren't that much faster.

My favorite solution: Iodd Iodd2531 Black - Usb3.0 - Hdd -Ssd - Virtual Cd-rom - Enclosures - made in Korea https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_kfX5BbJ0XWWHX

Snappy Driver Installer Origin

Download the application, download the indexes only then download the printer driverpack. Portable program and everything is stored in the file structure and already compressed. Occasionally launch the program to download updates.

Or, in the true spirit of this sub, download the full driverpack torrent and have most (Windows) drivers you could need on a USB stick.

Alternatively, a live USB of a Linux distro that includes CUPS and non-free packages by default (eg. Mint or Solus) will boot on just about anything and print to just about any printer without updates.

Further down the rabbit hole: Get an Iodd 2351 or similar and drop in 120+ GB SSD and have multiple bootable Linux ISOs, a WinPE rescue disc (one I like), every windows install media and all the driverpacks available to any computer that can boot to a USB CD-ROM. Since you're talking apocalypse scenario, better hang onto Windows Updates as well... You never know what you may need, right?

I am using a Mid 2015 MBP, currently have 16GB of RAM in it (max it supports) and I just upgraded the SSD to a 1TB drive using the following two items :

ADATA XPG SX8200 SSD 1TB

SinTech nVME SSD adapter

I did buy this to put the current SSD in and to transfer data from.

NVME SSD Enclosure

​

About $185 total out the door.

Yes, exactly. I inserted the HDD into the enclosure linked below, which is always plugged into one of my front USB ports on my PS4: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M08LCXW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_4M1PDbP538RWX

Xbox one supposedly requires a minimum 256gb SSD (or HD) for external use. Try these:

ADATA SU800 256GB 560MB/s & 520MB/s Solid State Drive
$47.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01K8A2A0E/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A2UXO5LPTDY3LN&psc=1

ORICO USB3.0 to SATA III 2.5" External Hard Drive Enclosure $7.99
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M08LCXW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=A2S4EXOOJ8Z82D&psc=1

$55.98 w/prime

You mean the enclosure? Yeah here's just the first result on amazon

I'm not sure why the speed is higher. My speeds are from Linux dd command piped to /dev/zero.

I couldn't test the MX500 because I returned it to buy the Western Digital -- the MX500 had 3 sectors bad from the factory and I wasn't having it for ~$600.

You asked for tech items under $10. Here's a few I can think of.

• Ext HDD Casing. - Will help you convert your laptop HDD to an ext drive and check it for errors whenever you run into some HDD issues.
  
  
• Multimeter - really helpful when testing power issues - be it a computer or any other electrical/electronic device.
  
  
• Screwdriver Set You can open almost any screw with this small kit.
  
  
• Soldering Gun/Iron - Very handy when you want to fix broken cables/components on your own.
  
  

No, you can't. But you can buy an USB 3.0 case for your HDD

https://www.amazon.com/Tool-free-Inateck-External-Enclosure-FE2004/dp/B00JQTO8TU/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1486284421&sr=1-1&keywords=3.0Enclosure+Case

Here’s the enclosure I bought.

Inateck USB 3.0 HDD SATA External... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JQTO8TU?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

You shouldn’t have to go through the whole windows reinstallation process if you’re transferring all your old data from the hard drive. If you were doing a clean install that’s a whole different story.

You want to use it like an external hard drive? Get something like this.

> how I can completely wipe it

Simply formatting the drive should be enough for your needs. Are you on Windows?

Something like this.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1523306549

Take the hard drive out of the old system, plug it into this, plug this into your USB port on new computer. Find old files, drag and drop them into new system.

ASSUMING old hard drive isn't dead.

Without ever taking apart an Xbox One, I do know if you are able to remove the hard drive, all you need after that is either a toaster or an external enclosure.

I got a PNY 240GB SSD and just a basic External SSD enclosure, both from my local Best Buy. The enclosure was pretty cheap and i could have probably found it even cheaper on amazon or something but i didn’t want to wait for shipping.

Also: Microsoft says that the Xbox one requires the external drive to be 256GB or more to work, but it’s not true. Like i said, mines a 240GB and it works just fine. At Best Buy, the 240GB was $70 and the 480GB was $130, so it just depends on how much you want to pay.

Edit: I paid like $25 at Best Buy on my enclosure but here’s one on amazon for $10 link

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_5?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1538264050&sr=1-5&keywords=sata+to+usb

Picked this up, along with Sabrent enclosure (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_TPrzzbWYK4GQK) to house the default HDD that came with my system. Pretty excited to have 5x default storage for less than $75!!

Your friend’s suggestion is smart and its the way to go since your PC will run much faster.

For the HDD yes of course you can use it. Think of the HDD as a flash drive you plug it in and use it as a storage while still keeping the files already in there. I’d recommend deleting the windows folder in the HDD if you had OS installed on it to free up space and install a fresh OS on the SSD.

Edit: You can buy something like this to use your HDD as an external storage if you want to use it as a portable flash drive. Or you can just have it connected to the motherboard of your PC (if its not a laptop) and use it as a 2nd drive besides the SSD.

Sure.

SSD:

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/pny-240gb-internal-sata-solid-state-drive-for-laptops/5900261.p?skuId=5900261


Enclosure:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_3KiuCbW4CEPY1

https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-MX500-250GB-NAND-Internal/dp/B0764WCXCV

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S

me too, totally convinced.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075RJS55D/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

it's lit

I've been using this for a couple of years with no problems:

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

They have an 8-bay as well, if you want to go larger...

This little guy looks legit:
https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

I have the ProBox and have been using it for a few years.

About a year ago I put a noctura fan on the back as the stock one was a bit loud. Over time

Works great

Yeah, I moved MHW onto my 275GB SSD and it's made a HUGE difference.

I have one of those USB docking stations where you can plug in bare internal HDs or SSDs. I can also just swap any drive I want really easily. It's really nice since I have a bunch of cheap drives lying around and pulled them from my computers.

Just FYI, I have this Cable Matters USB docking station. Pretty cheap (around $20).

I was happy to see that it worked with my PS4 Pro.

they are, here's an example

I bough the first enclosure 4 years ago and it still works. But from what I read, the external power-supply is the weak link. The enclosure draws 5W + your drive wattage, so it's fairly reasonable. The fan is ok, it provides enough airflow on low so it's not that loud, but you can change it with a noctua if you really want ;)

The bottleneck on this setup is the usb3.0 interface on the laptop, I get around 90MBps (for my archival needs it's fine). But when I pluged it directly to my main computer I managed to get around 150MBps if I remember correctly.

>Do you own this case?

I have 4 of them in use at my home server setup right now, I setup and install 10-20 a year else where.


>How do you like it?

It is nice for the price of less than $150, if you remove the rackmount points it works like a tower. The case is solid, however removing and installing the 5 in 3 adapter is a bit tricky since it uses a click and lock system. you can easily screw them in though. I have had bad luck with the fans, they usually come with cheap fans that use molex adapters only. They are usually 2000 RPM 35 dba 45 CFM fans, if they work. You may get lucky but plan on replacing the fans otherwise.

>If they had a hot-swap version of the 15-bay model, I'd probably have bought it in a heartbeat.

You can buy and put in the 3 in 5 bays, but you will be adding about $50 per bay so $150

>As for the DAS unit you mentioned...is that basically this but much bigger? https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_1

>I'd be open to a DAS, but unRaid doesn't seem to like any external drives, even if they're shucked and in that Mediasonic ProBox.

This unit uses SAS connectors (they will work with SATA drives), I opened one and there is no 3.3v power line on the system, so WD white drives should work in it. The units I have are 16 Bay. The rear 80mm fans are noisy, but they are ment for use with power hunger SAS drives, so replacing them with standard 80mm fans works. The real issue is that there is a 1U power supply inside with a 40 mm fan. It is not that noisy, but makes the most annoying sound.

Use the multi lane SAS adapter 8087, so it looks like an internal drive. The unit I listed the SE3016, has no internal power down the drives mode, so it only listens to the host computer. From what I understand with unRaid (Big ZFS Fan here) the issue with external drives is that they go into power save mode, making them look dead to the array.

I've been using this Mediasonic enclosure for the last few months and it works great, with USB 3.0 transfer rates are pretty decent. I have 4 reds in there and the cooling fan rarely turns on or gets hot. I am supporting both LAN and remote streaming and it works great.

Mediasonic ProBox HF2-SU3S2 4 Bay 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure - USB 3.0 & eSATA Support SATA 3 6.0Gbps HDD transfer speed https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_0wbvDbDZRJHCN

Check out this, http://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-HF2-SU3S2-ProBox-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1397042978&sr=1-1&keywords=mediasonic+probox

It's an enclosure, you put your drives inside of it and it exposes all the individual drives to your computer, the Pi in this case.

I installed FreeNAS and Plex on an old PC, and it grew from there, haha. I bought equipment piecemeal, and after a few years I started buying more serious equipment.

These drives are going in an MD1000 (see second picture) which is hooked up to the server via a SAS cable and an HBA (PCI-E card). I'll use ZFS to turn them into one giant filesystem, which is then shared out over NFS and CIFS (Windows filesharing).

This is my move into more professional hardware; my existing drives are in these little 4-bay SATA enclosures. They're relatively cheap to expand with, but when one SATA drive dies, the other 3 drives in the enclosure tend to get knocked off the bus also. That's the main reason I went with slightly more expensive SAS drives and enclosure this time.

What OS? I just got a Mediasonic Provocative 4-bay with USB 3.0. https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

It presents the 4 hard drives as separate USB hard drives on Windows 10, but not sure about other OSs.

I"m running either that same mediasonic box or a very similar one, and I'm very happy with it. The only issue I have is the blinking blue lights are stupidly bright.

EDIT: It's acutally this one that I have, which is the same thing but without the RAID. I use ZFS so I didn't need the hardware RAID functionality.

4TB 2TB and a 1 TB

http://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1459222381&sr=8-2&keywords=probox

I usually bought the drives on sales or when it was fairly cheap. The 4tb was around 110$ when i got it

Sure. There's plenty of disk bays that connect to the PC via USB 3 or esata. I have a Drobo, which has served me well, but my next purchase will likely be something cheaper than that. I've been running it nearly 24/7 since I bought it 4 years ago (there was a month or two when my PC was off, so the drobo was in sleep mode).

There's a wide range of things like that available. Just search 5 Bay enclosure or 5 hdd Bay on Amazon (I'm on my phone or else I'd link you).

Edit: Mediasonic ProBox HF2-SU3S2 4 Bay 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure - USB 3.0 & eSATA Support SATA 3 6.0Gbps HDD transfer speed https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_E62LybZ817YQM

That's a 4 bay drive for 99 dollars. But just FYI, I don't know much about what hardware is good or reliable for USB drives (or Nas for that matter). It's something I plan to figure out or ask about when I get the money to buy a new enclosure or Nas.

And it should be noted that while I've had a good experience with Drobo (it's super easy to use, you can swap out drives for larger ones when you need to, and it can protect against one or two simultaneous drive failures), they use a proprietary RAID. That means if your drobo enclosure dies, you'll need to get it fixed, or replace it with another Drobo before you can recover the data on your hdds. I've read thaf migrating from one drobo to another is easy, and you don't need to know which order your drives are in or anything like that.

Try a ProBox; its still external, but can hold 4 or 8 drives and is relatively cheap (unless you need the RAID version). I have 6 of the 4-bays and they work perfect.

Here you go, and room to grow. USB3 works fine. If you want to use the ESATA you'll need something that supports port multiplication.

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1549057702&sr=8-1&keywords=mediasonic+probox

Do you need more sata ports or do you need more HDD/SDD storage? You could get a something like this to hold your other drives.

You can do the Mediasonic Probox line for that. I have the one without RAID, but use software (DrivePool) for redundancy. It works great via USB. My only complaint is the back fan can be loud.

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

They also make one with RAID built in:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003YFHEAC/ref=emc_b_5_t

Hey there - sounds like you are just trying to consolidate a bunch of external HDs, is that right? When I was at that "stage" in my Plex build I got something like this ProBox, connected to the computer running Plex. Never had issues with it, started with 2 drives, had 4 before I moved them over to my current unRAID server.

Multiple drives in a multiple hard drive enclosure is your best option if price is any object at all.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003X26VV4/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=1944687642&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B002UAPHS8&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1P00K17ZE5JHNEQAFK7W

The Mediasonic case will not present the drives as a single virtual drive. The host will see it as 4 separate drives. That may or not be an issue for you.

I have this Mediasonic Raid with 4x6TB WD Reds running in raid 5. Its connected to an Intel NUC over USB 3.0 and I have no problems with transcoding.

The SSD is mounted behind the motherboard tray. You really wouldn't be able to store an OS drive over the network since motherboard BIOS don't really have network support.

The description of the computer picture says it, but I have my storage drives in an external RAID enclosure from Mediasonic (link). I also realized that I got a 4th drive, so I have to add that to the pcpp list.

I currently have 4 3TB drives running in RAID 10 in the enclosure, attached eSATA to my WRT1900AC and accessible over the network. It took some setting up and some troubleshooting as to why the router wouldn't get the proper partition info (disable write caching!), but it works and it works great for a makeshift NAS. Copying many files is definitely not as fast (take into account 4K speeds on mechanical drives as well as pushing things over the network), but I get a constant 75MB/s write speed when copying over larger files, which is pretty much the most you'll get out of an eSATA II port over Ethernet. I'm very happy with the performance and would definitely recommend it.

Yeah the easiest way is to replace the dvd drive with something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B004XIU4T2

This should work fine if it uses a standard optical drive. http://www.amazon.com/Drive-12-7mm-Universal-DVD-ROM-Optical/dp/B004XIU4T2

Check the SSHD for errors using CrystalDiskInfo

If it has none, try factory reset first...

Those specs should be able to handle anything short of AAA Gaming.

A full SSD will do you wonders..

also, if you don't care about your CD drive you can replace it with a Optical Drive -> HDD adapter. Like this ...they come in a couple different sizes though so do your research.

If you get the adapter you can put your SSHD in there for mass storage.. and not have to buy a huge SSD for the main drive

That's the connector for the optical drive. OP could get a caddy that will allow him to use the SSD.

Something like this should do the trick.

The slim CD-Rom drive can be removed, and a hard drive carrier installed in its place.

https://www.amazon.com/Protronix-Optical-Drive-Universal-12-7mm/dp/B004XIU4T2

I'm not sure I understand the question. I used replacement kit similar to this. After removing DVD drive I removed the external cover from the tray and attached it to the HDD kit. Laptop looks the same as before.

Sure, this guy right here

You can use DVD sata cable. There are converters that convert mini sata to regular sata
Something like this
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004XIU4T2/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1&th=1

Or a $129 netbook style laptop + a $23 usb HD dock and a HD size of your choice. I just set the laptop to never sleep, and under power settings, advanced, set lidlock to not sleep when screen is shut when plugged in, and put it on a shelf out of the way.

This was my torrenting setup for nearly a decade until I built my server/nas setup a few years back.

You can disassemble it, and remove the hard drive, load it into either a 2.5" hard drive enclosure or a SATA dock. Then you can plug it into another computer as if it's a USB flash drive.

If you have had it less than a year, submit a request for repair, and don't tell Lenovo you dropped it. Since you don't have any cosmetic damage, they won't be able to tell you broke it, and it will appear as though the laptop is faulty. You'll probably still want to get the data from it before you attempt the repair process.

1. Yeah, I think Rosewill may be able to help you or alternatively, just found a regular 4u cover (doesn't seem too fancy)
   
   
2. The 4x3.5 are these (https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-5-25-Inch-3-5-Inch-Hot-swap-SATAIII/dp/B00DGZ42SM/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1543038230&sr=1-1&keywords=3x5.25+to+4x3.5), I can't find the replacement sleds for anything less than 50% of the cost (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Rosewill-RSV-SATA-Cage-34-Hard-Disk-Drives-HOT-SWAP-TRAY-ONLY-WORKS/143022584851?hash=item214ccf7413:g:c6AAAOSw-HRb9a3N:rk:4:pf:0)

What about a DIY "disk shelf"?

• PSU: Any ATX PSU will work, just do the jumper trick to power it on without a motherboard.
  
• Hot-swap bays: tons of these around, but these Rosewill 4x bays aren't too expensive
  
• External HBA like this one and pair with as many miniSAS-to-SATA breakout cables as you need for drives.
  
  You could configure those hot-swap bays however you like, from just sitting on a rack shelf to building a custom box to house them in.

Those just have three of these in them

So you still need a cable per drive.

I just added this to my tower, it seemed like the best trade off of 2x5.25 bays for 3x3.5 HDDs, has a fan and removable/washable filter. Fitment was perfect, also comes with a bracket for 4x2.5 drives if you wanted. If you need hotswap ability though I'd look at something like what you have, or I thought of buying this one.

2x5.25": https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BMJ1Y3O

3x5.25": https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DGZ42SM/

I'm currently using 3 of these in my home file server. Works great with no issues. Allows for storage density like /u/Dstanding mentioned as well as all drives are easy swapped in/out as needed.

Before ceph:
Two bay dns323 with raid1 and two 3TB disks. Power supply died recently.

With ceph:
I have one server, for now, with three 3TB disks and one SSD for the journal in a hotswap bay. I have ProxMox installed in the server and used that to manage ceph instead of ceph-deploy.

I created a ceph filesystem with one disk and mounted the raid to copy data to ceph. At this point my pool size is 1 (no replication) to allow a healthy state. My crush map is set to allow replication across disks instead of requiring replication across hosts. After the data was migrated, I added the other two disks to ceph and set the pool size to 2 for replication (raid5 equivalent?). It took some time for the data (~1.5TB) to balance out over the disks. I now mount ceph via fuse on my virtual machines. Still figuring out how to automount on boot as there's a bug in my installed version.

I've had some help in understanding how to set this up. I did some initial testing using manual deployment, ceph-deploy, and then proxmox; scrapping my progress each time till I learned how each worked.

I had some trouble using rbd images for my end use. During testing I created a 1TB image, mounted it in opemMediaVault, put a filesystem on it, and shared that to my network. I then ran into the issue or resizing. Expanding the image is easy, expanding the filesystem while it was mounted was not easy. I wanted something I could add more disk or another server to and have more space instantly. I wanted to get rid of doing data migrations to larger disk pools.

If the hard drive is intact, all you need to do is remove it and connect it to a new PC.

Sabrent Ultra Slim USB 2.0 to 2.5-Inch SATA External Aluminum Hard Drive Enclosure [Black] (EC-UK25) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E362W9O/

Depending on the age of the laptop, you might need the IDE version. I'm assuming Windows-based PC. Mac hard drives can be a little trickier. If the HDD truly failed, it's about to get a lot more expensive.

Hi. I work for a computer repair shop and specialize in hardware repair.

HP has quite the reputation of making terrible computers now, hence the nickname "half-plastic". Every HP that has come into my shop typically has some sort of chronic issue associate with it. Either a power port or a broken hinge or broken fan or something else.

Anyway, let me address the issues as you presented:

1) Laptop won't charge

So this is a fairly common problem. Typically either the power adapter is broken or the port port inside the laptop is broken. Fortunately this is a relatively cheap fix (less then $20) if you are handy with a screwdriver. Assuming the power adapter is fine, the replacement of the power port is probably required. They are made cheap, especially by HP.

For your model of laptop, this appears to be the required replacement part:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Original-DC-power-jack-cable-for-HP-Pavilion-M7-1015DX-M7-1078CA-P-N-678222-SD1-/261493503079

And here is a manual describing the disassembly of your laptop:

http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c03221579

2) Transferring Files

Yes, absolutely. You can remove the hard drive from your laptop and plug it up to another computer to recover the files. The manual I linked will show you how to remove it. Additionally, here are some links for external enclosures. These will allow you to use that hard drive as an external hard drive. Not only will you have the files you need, but you can also use it for future backups. They are pretty cheap as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-External-Aluminum-Enclosure/dp/B00E362W9O/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1426036960&sr=1-1&keywords=hard+drive+enclosure

http://www.amazon.com/HDE-External-Drive-Metallic-Enclosure/dp/B008X8RV7Q/ref=sr_1_18?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1426036960&sr=1-18&keywords=hard+drive+enclosure


What would I do?

Personally, I would fix the computer. I have an HP myself that I bought several years ago and few of the parts are original anymore despite treating it well. Never again will I buy HP. I learned that lesson. Worse case scenario, it doesn't work. But if you try to fix it yourself, you may learn something about computers/computer repair which may save you money in the future. I actually had the same two issues with my HP, but instead of paying $400 + $150 to have the power port and the fan fixed, I replaced them myself by following the manual. I got a replacement power port for around $20 and a fan for $10. As long as you can follow the directions and are careful, you should be fine. You can PM me with questions if you have any.

Editing due to formatting, I can never get a hang of it here... and spelling

Are you planning on keeping your current 1 TB 3.5" in the x51 along with the other two 2.5" drives? This will have you at capacity as there are only 3 SATA ports on the x51 motherboard, you won't be able to use the CD drive. The best answer I can give you on that is to find an adapter that'll slide into the 3.5" bay that allows for a 2.5" drive to be held in its place (something like this which actually supports two 2.5" drives in place of one 3.5" drive. Keep in mind I can't confirm if this works, just a suggestion!) Another choice would be that you could mount the 2.5" drives on the existing 3.5" HDD or somewhere else in the case. The problem you run into is that there isn't a lot of space and the case is hot, so keep that in mind before making any firm decisions.

You might can try to get a 330w PSU from eBay in your country or ordering straight from Dell. The part numbers you should search for are: Y90RR / 5X3NX / F0K0N / XM3C3 / 331-2429. Keep in mind the 330w PSU can be listed as an M18x laptop charger, but as long as you can confirm one of the part numbers above you should be good. I could be wrong, but I think you can sometimes buy from a different country's Amazon store and get it shipped internationally, so you might want to check into that as the US Amazon store has the 330w PSU listed.

The problem with CPU coolers in the x51 is that there is a cup that sits on top of the cooler which angles the air out of the case so your case doesn't get hot. I'm sure it'll function fine with a good enough cooler but you might not see much lower temps without it (in theory). This thread on the Dell website seems to have a lot of good information that might help you out.

this can fit 2 ssd's in it and takes up 1 3.5" bay.

http://www.amazon.com/SABRENT-Inches-Internal-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427672046&sr=8-1&keywords=2.5%22+to+3.5%22+bracket

I usually recommend this for 3.5 drives - https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-Toolfree-External-Enclosure-Support/dp/B00GAML7OK/

They also have full alu ones for a bit more, but I actually prefer ABS plastic. But feel free to choose other designs or brands, as long as they good reviews it should be fine.

I'd recommend a WD Blue 4TB or 3TB - around $115 and $85 respectively on Amazon. Best price vs performance. WD Reds are also good if you can find them cheaper, Greens are a bit too slow for me (unless for long term storage) - they power down when idle a lot.

It's is not recommended to power a hard drive off the Pi.

You will need a powered enclosure or a adapter.
Here is one is use: Link.

Consider purchasing an external drive and do a back up NOW. They are relatively inexpensive, and space keeps getting cheaper so it is likely you can store all your legacy data in a backup on a single drive (or more than one backup on more than one drive) so the data is safe. SATA to USB is still very much alive. I recommended this and this today to someone else on reddit. This fixes the data part of this discussion, I hope.

As far as Win 10 goes, when operating on legacy and lower end equipment, Win 10 does a pretty good job. It does not follow the typical microsoft trajectory of BLOAT until the machine can actually handle it. I have found that Win 10 will sort of scale back on lower end equipment and works rather well. Further, with the Internet, drivers that are not recognized by windows as appropriate (and fully functional) should be easy to find. To this end, though, I would suggest not relying on legacy equipment forevermore; have an upgrade or replacement plan in mind.

I guess I don't truly understand what info you are looking for. Any feedback to guide the discussion?

Enclosures are pretty cheap https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-Toolfree-External-Enclosure-Support/dp/B00GAML7OK/

Here. this works just as well.

You can't power a 3.5" HDD off of USB alone. I would get this instead: https://smile.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538?sa-no-redirect=1#customerReviews

Unplugging the USB from the TV should be fine. The issue with unplugging without ejecting is that you can lose data if the computer is in the middle of writing something. A TV shouldn't be writing anything to the drive, so I figure you should be able to unplug it and power it down at any time.

I'm not sure what would cause it to suddenly stop getting power, I'd guess just bad luck and coincidence. Based on a non-scientific survey of broken USB hard drives I've seen, I'd guess that the actual hard drive is probably fine and it's just the USB interface that's broken.

You can carefully remove the hard drive from the external drive case (it may irreparably damage the case). Inside is just a standard SATA hard drive like you'd find in a laptop. You can connect this to a PC like a regular drive or purchase an external USB drive dock like this. If the drive is fine, you should just be able to copy and paste your files to a new drive without a problem.

Was it the actually HDD that died or only the laptop?, if it was only the laptop itself you could possibly pull out the HDD and put it in a HDD Dock and pull out the files that are there.

You can purchase a hard drive docking station that has sata and usb connections. You will need to remove the hard drive from your old laptop and insert it into the docking station that is hooked up to a new computer. This will essentially act as an external hard drive or flash drive. You should be able to pull any files off as long as the hard drive itself isn't broken.

I use this personally and it works great.

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538

Sabrent USB 3.0 to SATA External Hard Drive Docking Station for 2.5 or 3.5in HDD, SSD [Support UASP] (DS-UBLK) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IKAQ538/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_HHTQzb6MQ680W

Something like this does both sizes. it's the size of the hard drive 2.5in vs 3.5in

Do you necessarily need it to be external? Yes, you should be be able to pop the internal drives into an external case any time. Or you can get a dock to mount them externally as well, like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538

I ended up putting the old drive in this enclosure (which is pretty good for the price): http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JQTO8TU

I used a 256gb ssd, but have the original 500gb drive for additional storage since steam games can fill up a harddrive fast and not every game is intensive enough to really benefit from an ssd.
I also did a backup onto that same 500gb drive. So I can use it to recover my original alpha windows 8 install as well as hold extra games.

Basically, clone your 500gb drive to the ssd. Then update all windows updates for windows 8 and update all dell drivers as well as hivemind. Wipe out the 500gb drive once you know the ssd and everything is working fine and backup the ssd windows 8 install to it.

Update to windows 10 on the ssd and then use remaining storage on the 500gb drive for additional game storage. The windows 8 backup will save your ass if the windows 10 update goes bad.

Edit: Another avenue to take is to uninstall hivemind and the alpha console software before updating to windows 10, then installing those things fresh on windows 10 after a successful upgrade. The first time I upgraded to windows 10, I didn't update hivemind first and I got stuck in a boot loop. But I just recovered back to 8 and the second time updated hivemind before updating to window 10.

For single use, yes.

If you want tto use it as an external, backup, get this.

It's dead simple.. As your machine is already 'toast' and you've nothing to lose and possibly the hard drive to gain, what's the fear?

Look, here's the ifixit link, all you need is a small philips head screwdriver and a torx T6 and some nerve. (The worst that can happen at this point, is you can fix it. OMG!) ;)

While you've got the old drive out, replace it with a new one, (can get them at Best Buy for under 60 bucks for a hard disk drive and under 100 bucks for an SSD) and if you hadn't made a bootable USB installer - you'll want to get a 16 GB flash stick and ask at any Apple repair shop if they can make one for you.

Thing is, your hard drive may not be dead, but can still spin up - albeit so slow that the system cannot load. You may still be able to put it in an external drive enclosure and get any files you have off.

But you won't know for sure until you try.

Not really. It's for SATA I or SATA II. 3Gbps max. You can get a SATA III Sabrent enclosure for like $9.99. I've got about six of that one and they're fantastic.

Or an ORICO enclosure for $7.99.

Yep. Usually sa laptops di naman bolted in yung hard drive so you can just safely take them out. Then buy a hard drive enclosure so you can plug it in as an external drive.

Unless its the hard drive that died, why not remove the hard drive and put the old hard drive in a USB enclosure and make it a portable hard drive?

[Upgraded Version Support UASP] Sabrent Ultra Slim USB 3.0 to 2.5-Inch SATA External Aluminum Hard Drive Enclosure [Black] (EC-UK30) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS31KQG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_gxXiybSHQ6P12

I have 2 Shields and on both I use Kingston 120gb SSD's in Sabrent USB 3.0 ultra slim aluminum enclosures. $30 total on Amazon and they come with everything you need including a short USB cable. Note that once you install the SSD in the enclosure you will need to connect it to a PC and format it prior to connecting to the Shield. They are very small.

SSD - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6JQS8C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Enclosure - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LS31KQG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

you need something like this: sata to usb 3.0 cable or if you intend to use the harddrive as an external something like this*

Maybe get your choice of 4tb 3.5 drive and buy an enclosure (~$20). That would be less than $200 and you'd have a good hard drive also. That's what I'd probably do.

[Here] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_J2tFAbWV92NH0)

You should be able to put the hard drive in a housing like this and access the data on it directly. If you're not comfortable doing it yourself, any computer shop should be able to do it for you for a nominal fee.

An enclosure for it is pretty cheap

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B07864XMTK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I recently bought both of these and everything loads around 5 seconds before I hit roof tops

It is the Collective Minds 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure

Put one in each of these for your IT guys. (https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=pd_cp_147_2?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00TDJ4BJU&pd_rd_r=EP0B7XHJC0EYCQ47XN2Q&pd_rd_w=V86cD&pd_rd_wg=gLtWG&psc=1&refRID=EP0B7XHJC0EYCQ47XN2Q)

And then scrap the rest.

I think he is referring to a multi-boot USB, not just selecting a single ISO to 'burn' to the USB. I like xboot myself, but yumi is another one but I wasn't able to get it to work. There is also UNetBootin, but I was also not able to get this one to produce a workable USB. Another one to try is called Easy2Boot. I'm seeing one called multibootusb.org as well, but it looks like it is only linux distros, not just any random ISO file.

Lastly you could invest in something like this, which is a hardware USB that allows you to select which ISO to boot from.

I hope this list helps. Like I said, xboot is the only one that I've been able to successfully boot from windows ISOs as well as linux ones. Good luck :)

Sounds like you couldn't get one in time to help with this project. But these "Iodd 2531 Black - Usb3.0 - Hdd -Ssd - Virtual Cd-rom" Enclosures come in incredibly handy. It let's you store a bunch of ISO image, you select which image you want to load and then it creates a virtual DVD emulator that loads via USB letting you boot from ISO images. The Iodd version is basically a slightly updated version of the old Zalman that's become difficult to find. One of the best $40 I've spent in IT in a looong time.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=olp_product_details?_encoding=UTF8&me=

I find it's much easier to just drop a ISO into a folder and have it boot like a cd rom drive. You can emulate floppy drives and make persistent linux live installs. I do find some systems that won't recgonize the virtaul cd rom but those systems usually have issues booting USB drives.

https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1498944043&sr=1-1&keywords=iodd

• Hard drive toaster: https://www.startech.com/ca/HDD/Docking/USB-3-Hard-Drive-Enclosure~SDOCKU33BV
  
• ISO mounting USB HDD enclosure: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TDJ4BJU
  
• Credit at any/all major cloud providers to spin up test instances, jump boxes, learning environments, etc.
  
• A decently fast USB stick to use for ReadyBoost/L2ARC when your company doesn't want to shell out for SSDs.
  
• Kelsey Hightower's book on Kubernetes: http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920223788.do
  
• A mousepad with wrist support to prevent RSI: https://www.amazon.com/Seiorca-Marvel-Comics-Deadpool-Support/dp/B01CQAKA7Y/

Don't get the Zalman one fyi, grab the IODD drive. It's the original one that they licensed from and has WAY more features and better support.

Iodd Iodd2531 Black - Usb3.0 - Hdd -Ssd - Virtual Cd-rom - Enclosures - made in Korea https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_ptnryb41KQSFN

Yes, a faster SSD could be an upgrade for you. That being said, OWC drives in particular are not the greatest:

• https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/help-extreme-temperature-problem-after-owc-ssd-installation.1278687/
  
• https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/owc-mercury-extreme-pro-ssd-problem.1057025/
  
• https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/owc-1tb-sdd-failed-for-third-time.2011947/
  
  They are a good brand for RAM (not the best there either), but their SSDs aren't great at all. As you may already know, your MacBook Pro needs a special form factor for its SSD, ordinary NVMe M.2 SSDs won't physically fit in without an adapter. However, there is a great adapter for NVMe M.2 SSDs:
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2015-MacBook/dp/B01CWWAENG/
  
  Use it in conjunction with a Samsung 970 EVO / PRO (not the EVO Plus, as it's known to have issues in conjunction with macOS):
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-970-EVO-1TB-MZ-V7E1T0BW/dp/B07BN217QG/
  
  Follow the steps outlined in this video once you have both (applies to your MacBook Pro mid-2014 as well):
  
  
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NU6yatTvyyk

It will not work without this adapter:

https://www.amazon.com/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2015-MacBook/dp/B01CWWAENG

be sure to read the instructions/reviews carefully, there seems to be some prepwork involved to install the OS.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/512GB-SSD-for-2013-2014-2015-MacBook-Air-MacBook-Pro-iMac/233120917854

this guy actually pre-installs mojave for you

20@5 is a great machine. 996 battery cycles is pretty high. I bought a 2015 256GB 13 inch a few months ago on ebay for $680. Soon after receiving it I upgraded the internal ssd to 1TB. Something you can’t do with a 2016-2018 MBP. This is the adapter and this is the SSD I'm using in my 2015 MBP. This is how I installed the Intel 760p SSD.

i didn't mean an external SSD. You can actually put NVMe M.2 SSD in it with an adapter. Here is the most used adapter for it. You can use pretty much every NVMe SSD on 2015 model.

https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW?ref_=ast_sto_dp
$7.99

i have the 3.5 version of this it works great.

Ah, I see! Just FYI, the USB option on that page you linked might take a few hours -- I always advise my customers who tackle this process themselves to take a breather; if it's evening where you are, go to bed and start fresh in the morning so you don't miss any steps. Hope it works out for you!

Here's a few other options for you, just in case it helps:

1. You can use a friend's or family member's computer to make an Ubuntu boot USB - just download the ISO file from ubuntu.com and a boot-disk-maker from pendrivelinux.com -- this will let you boot your laptop from the USB instead of the hard disk. Your hard drive should be readable as a secondary disk, and you can copy off your files from that environment.
   
   
2. If your hard drive is removable (3.5" 2.5" or M.2 stick, and not soldered on to the motherboard), then you can also remove it from most PC laptops very easily and drop it into a cheap USB case -- it will show up like any USB removable drive on a working computer.
   example: https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW
   (note: if it's an M.2 SATA or PCI-E stick, you have to be very specific as to what form-factor the stick actually is. Most cases fit just one or two formats, and there are like EIGHT, and they're all called M.2 because the manufacturers probably like causing chaos or something)
   
   
3. In the worst-case scenario that Windows will simply NOT reinstall from recovery, you do NOT have a bricked laptop -- you can freely install Windows 10 from the publicly-available Media Download tool and if your PC is an OEM, it may re-license itself, because the "key" is actually in the motherboard's firmware. If the PC originally came with Windows 8 or whatever, then this won't work.
   
   
4. And finally, if Windows is a continuing problem, Linux is free, and nearly always works right out of the box.

I have done the same. For anybody trying to do so, just buy these 2 items off of amazon:

Samsung 860 EVO 250GB 2.5 Inch SATA... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

ORICO USB3.0 to SATA III 2.5"... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M08LCXW?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Those links contain everything you need. Once you have them, connect it to your xbox and transfer destiny to the ssd from the internal storage and you're done.

This + This Should work fine and fall within your price range @ $65usd.

The SSD I purchased (arrived yesterday! works like a charm) cost me about $60 total, here is a link to the drive and the enclosure I bought. Happy PUBGing!

If you get an external SSD or an external hdd/ssd hub to put in the ssd, the 3.0 interface will utilize the faster speeds of the SSD more efficiently over the Sata II interface in the PS4 base/slim models.

SSD speeds , SATA II vs SATA III

Its definitely worth it to toss one into the PS4P but if you have a base model, it would be more efficient to run it through the USB 3.0.

$12.99 2.5" AmazonBasics USB 3.0 Enclosure

I just purchased these. Several of my co-workers and clan members have the same:
SSD: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07864WMK8/
ENCLOSURE: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N5RLG2C/

This is what I bought and works just fine. Plug and play. Installed the game on the external drive and boom: less time loading, more time playing.

Total = $66.26 + tax (as of this post)

Samsung 860 EVO 250GB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD

AmazonBasics 2.5-inches SATA Hard Drive Enclosure - USB 3.0

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B07864WMK8?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_title

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01N5RLG2C?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_title

Got some for cloning drives at work. Just be careful of which key you have. B, M, B&M.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Aluminum-Enclosure-EC-M2SA/dp/B01N6PMZLW/ref=sxin_2_ac_d_pm?ac_md=1-0-VW5kZXIgJDEw-ac_d_pm&crid=2T45BKK0TORPH&keywords=m.2+sata+enclosure&pd_rd_i=B01N6PMZLW&pd_rd_r=d1c879cd-05d2-47c6-abcc-f7eb75cc6a3e&pd_rd_w=FXiNu&pd_rd_wg=oCcJj&pf_rd_p=eeff02d5-070a-45ea-a79e-d591974b877e&pf_rd_r=9AHSM2DRH0HVP5VFY3VP&psc=1&qid=1566297731&s=gateway&sprefix=m.2+sata+en%2Caps%2C152

This is SATA drive so it doesn't use PCIe but requires a SATA connection

M.2 to 2.5" works

M.2 to PCIe doesn't work

M.2 SATA to PCIe works but requires connecting the bundled cable to one of your motherboard's SATA ports.

For future reference, you could have used one of these to use your M.2 as a 2.5"

https://www.ifixit.com/Store

The best place to find guides to replace parts and the tools needed. I would take out the drive and get an enclosure, I use the one listed here since it supports different style hard drives and I've used it with my old MacBook Pro Hard Drives. https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=sr_1_5?crid=JVCM71A3P4M9&keywords=external+hard+drive+enclosure&qid=1567010984&s=gateway&sprefix=external+hard+drive+e%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-5

Network storage can be nice, easily achieved with something like this for single drives. You can also just use them like any other external drive with that case.

Depends completely on your needs/wants.

Is the drive spinning up at all when you turn it on?

If it does spin up, and it's not making loud clanking noises, you can probably handle the recovery on your own.

I always recommend testdisk/photorec since I get the best results with it (and it's free), but it's all command line and not the most friendly user interface so you may want to try something else if you aren't super techy.

There are many to choose from - but other than photorec, you'll probably have to pay for one of the high end ones to get any real results. EaseUS, Recuva, and DiskWarrior (if you're on Mac) are my go-to options.

You may also need a new drive enclosure if your operating systems disk utility doesn't see the drive at all since it could just be the controller on the enclosure you've got. (This would definitely void any warranty you've got with that hard drive if you're worried about that kind of thing).

Mount the drive into the enclosure, and then you can run the recovery software.

If however the drive doesn't spin up, or it's making those clanking noises, then unfortunately you'll need to have it handled by professionals who have a proper clean room to disassemble the drive inside of.

I've been fortunate enough that all of my issues have been something I was able to resolve on my own (I used to do corporate IT work) and I haven't needed to use a service, however I know multiple people who have had great experiences with DataSavers here in town.

Good luck!

If you're looking for total storage space, go mechanical, but go 7200RPM at the very least. If you're just looking to "play around" with Linux, this should be more than enough, and will also be extremely cheap. A WD Blue drive goes for $49, and and a tool-free enclosure goes for $23.

Yikes. Yeah I would either look to replace that board, or put the drive in a USB 3.0 enclosure and use it externally. The enclosure would be a little safer since the connector is usually solidly attached to the enclosure, not a cable that can wiggle around.

get a external hard drive dock so you can plug it into another computer like a flash drive almost

something like this : http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1427637093&sr=8-3&keywords=hdd+docking+station

you can use this teardown to get to the harddrive and stick it into a desktop or use a Sata to usb adaptor, or a enclosure to get at your files from another computer

Most people will say that you need a powered hub. Both of my externals work fine without a powered hub. I run my pi from one and the only time it uses a lot of power is on boot and shutdown (only time it shows lightning bolt)

Of course since drives are different and so are enclosures, your mileage may vary.

I can recommend this one though

This will work fine https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_bs_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=QR5RBBYGR92JGR09A0FJ

Just get a USB enclosure.

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-Inch-Internal-MZ-75E250B-AM/dp/B00OAJ412U/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1517587453&sr=1-2&keywords=ssd+250&dpID=319X5owiyFL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1517587548&sr=1-3&keywords=usb+3.0+external+ssd+enclosure

I use one of these for multiple drives and all is required is the included cable. I’m sure there are plenty others. I’ve used this for SSDs on Xbox and on PC as well as using one for regular 2.5” drives.

I know there are some SSDs that are a little fatter than others but I think there’s more than enough room for them to fit in an enclosure like this.


https://www.bestbuy.com/site/insignia-2-5-serial-ata-hard-drive-enclosure-black/5820005.p?skuId=5820005

If you prefer Amazon, here’s one that would work as well.


Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_N0RHDbZBRMR6C

I would pull the storage drive from 2nd computer, install it in the first and do the transfer over SATA. If there's not enough power plugs or SATA ports, then I'd look into a cheap SATA to USB 3.0 enclosure or dock. Alternatively, if both PCs have ethernet you can transfer over the LAN, though Gigabit LAN is going to top out at 120ish MB/s.

First of all stop using it and shut the computer down. If the drive is on the verge of failing, which it sounds like it is, you don't want to push it over the edge.

Remove the drive from the computer following this guide, put that drive into one of these and connect it to another computer. You can then pull off all of the photos, etc.

While you still have the mac open, put one of these in it. From there just install a fresh copy of Mac OS and you'll be back in action with a computer that will be noticeably faster. It's like night and day performance wise.

Besides crazy customers, there are some accessories that use type A on both sides.

For example, this hard drive enclosure:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/

1TB is overkill. This is the cheapest option.

256gb SSD
Silicon Power 256GB SSD 3D NAND A55 SLC Cache Performance Boost SATA III 2.5" 7mm (0.28") Internal Solid State Drive (SP256GBSS3A55S25) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_xid8Bb43QBJW7

Case you need to install it
Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_cld8Bb7RJJNAJ

If you insist on getting 1TB (still need case)
Silicon Power 1TB SSD 3D NAND A55 SLC Cache Performance Boost SATA III 2.5" 7mm (0.28") Internal Solid State Drive (SP001TBSS3A55S25) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07B4G19X3/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_mrd8BbVSPCCQ7

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_APP-Bb41AX556

Like what someone else said, get an SSD and you will have minimal loading issues (an SSD is much faster than your internal drive or any external platter drive, google for more info) You’ll load into games much faster so you can pick heroes sooner and your character models will load immediately 99.8% of the time.

An SSD like this one

and an enclosure like this one

is one of the cheapest ways to get going on faster load speeds. Yes, the official Xbox instructions say to use a 256 GB or larger drive, but the 240GB one linked here will still work.

Other games will load markedly faster as well —PUBG and Battlefied load substantially faster. Just make sure that after you transfer the games to your SSD that you’re actually opening them from your SSD. To do that go to your game library, hit the little submenu button in the upper right (it looks like a satellite dish thing) and go to storage, then select whatever you named your SSD. Another way to ensure you’re playing it on your SSD is to make sure it’s uninstalled from your other drives and that it’s only installed on your SSD.

You have two main options (that I know of and have used):

FIRST, attach the new drive and format to Mac OS Extended (Journaled) via Disk Utility -> select new drive -> Erase -> select format Mac OS Extended (Journaled). OR, if you have already converted your disk to APFS when upgrading to High Sierra or Mojave, choose APFS.

Then:

1. With the new drive attached via a SATA-USB cable (or external enclosure, which you can then put your old HD in), boot in Recovery Mode, use Disk Utility to Restore Macintosh HD (current hard drive - selected as Source) to the new disk (Destination). Once it's done, test boot by option-starting and selecting the USB drive and if it boots, swap it in and you're done.
   
   
2. use Carbon Copy Cloner program to copy everything to new drive while attached to computer via SATA-USB cable or SATA-USB enclosure.

Reuse the laptop hard drive that you are taking out with something like this. It's a simple enclosure that you just slide your laptop hard drive into and turn on and you've got an external drive.

If you don't want to open up your laptop, you could buy a 2.5 Inch ssd and an enclosure

Which model G3 15 do you have? You probably have a slot for an m.2 SSD, so you wouldn't have to replace your hard drive.

For an Xbox or PS4 you don't need the highest end.
Ssd: 1tb https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07D998212/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_hglWCb4JE43CJ
SSD

Case: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_JklWCbPKETZGN

I have 3 of these cases, I use a 480gb SSD on my oneX and I have a 240gb SSD for my wife's oneS.

The Xbox One OS takes about 200GB's of space if your using this drive as a main drive, so..no, you wouldn't really be able to install anything involving games onto it at least.

You'd be much better off with keeping the 1TB HDD in the One X, and buying a separate USB 3.0 enclosure instead to put the SSD inside of it so you can use the full 240GB's of space on the SSD.
Something like this would probably be far better suited for you, so you don't have to take apart the entire Xbox One X.

I just got this case for my SSD this weekend. HUGE improvement in Destiny 2.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1FJOY4LKJOQYV&keywords=hard+drive+enclosure&qid=1570481532&sprefix=hard+%2Caps%2C141&sr=8-3

Seagate 1TB BarraCuda SATA 6Gb/s 128MB Cache 2.5-Inch 7mm Internal Hard Drive (ST1000LM048) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01LYNQXCP/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_NCtRAbT2Y2BSS

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_RDtRAb2KYD747

UGREEN USB 3.0 A to A Cable Type A Male to Male Cable Cord for Data Transfer Hard Drive Enclosures, Printers, Modems, Cameras (1.5FT) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P0E3954/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_IEtRAb2YTE8CB

Something like this.

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB

You will need an enclosure for it.

I did this recently, the best option is a mix of both.

An internal SSD for games you're currently playing, and you can use the Pro's current HDD as an external for games you play less often (it's fairly quick to move a game from one to the other).

SSDs have dramatically dropped in price and are now very affordable, here's a 1TB SDD for $120 from the most reputable brand on the market.

The old HDD can be used as an external by putting it in a USB 3.0 enclosure/caddy like this one.

Here's the official article for replacing the HDD. It says to push the notch to the left, but it's easier pushing it towards the bottom (up on that diagram).

If you want to go cheap...$29.99

https://www.amazon.com/Silicon-Power-Performance-Internal-SP256GBSS3A55S25/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=sr_1_13?keywords=ssd&qid=1555536783&s=gateway&sr=8-13

Also need an enclosure, $8.99:

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_4?crid=3ETX6BEBDH1ZB&keywords=ssd+enclosure&qid=1555536860&s=gateway&sprefix=ssd+enc%2Caps%2C210&sr=8-4

Yup, what he said. You can grab something like the following to put your ssd into. Connect, run ccc. Make sure it's bootable then install.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519721240&sr=1-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&dpPl=1&dpID=31nOEoFxlKL&ref=plSrch

I got this setup a month ago and it works great.

SSD:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075RJS55D/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Enclosure:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I bought this one: Samsung 850 EVO. It was the recommendation of another reddit user, seems like it works fine!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OAJ412U/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Here's the case, really easy to set up.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=s9_acsd_top_hd_bw_bAqpP1_c_x_2_w?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-3&pf_rd_r=SN40CBA7ZVRPM80WY9CH&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=114a7679-8c11-50c9-8bdc-cf1401ec2585&pf_rd_i=160354011

Here's what I did, worked for me:

Backup your files( lots of ways, cloud, external).

Order new external SSD (mine was Corsair 480gb)

Put new SSD in external enclosure and plug into USB:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1500516994&sr=1-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&dpPl=1&dpID=31nOEoFxlKL&ref=plSrch

format SSD using disk utility and make bootable. create 12gb partition on the SSD drive at this point for OS and download macOS to this partition and whatever else you want to do to this drive.

Now, safely remove SSD from enclosure, swap the SSD into the MacBook and put original HDD into enclosure.

Install macOS from new internal SSD, plug in enclosure and copy files over you want using migration assistant.

Now, you can keep your files backed up on your new external drive or format it, if you please.

Also, if you are taking all this time, I recommend at least 8gb of ram and you will get optimal speeds.

Hope this helps.

Here's a video:

https://youtu.be/cfiGF_pjqvM

Windows license key should be linked to your Microsoft account, if it isn't you can just reenter the key with no problems.

As for your HDD, you can use something like this.

I probably could have written that better instead of making assumptions. If I were to be in the mood for entertainment and a kindle was my only source I'd more than likely have porn for that, outside of entertainment of course I'd have books for when I needed them. I don't read books for entertainment now, if I'm reading a book it's going to be I.T based.

You don't need a few laptops just get an external enclosure like the one I have and stockpile hard drives and write on the drive label what's on it. Or you can setup a NAS or just build a computer with a case that could hold 16 hard drives and load them up.

I don't think USB can power that enough to run it. Buy a Dock that uses an external power supply. Something like this. https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2

As others have said, RAID is not a backup.

I'd do the following:

1. Purchase a 4 Bay Synology Unit like the DS416.
   
2. Purchase another used 1TB HDD if you can find one on Craigslist or Ebay for cheap.
   
3. Purchase a >= 3TB HDD and USB 3.0 to SATA dock like this one.
   
4. Backup all of your files from your 1 TB HDDs to the new >= 3TB HDD using the enclosure connected to your PC.
   
5. Setup your Synology NAS with 4x 1TB HDDs in a RAID-5, giving you 3TB of useable space.
   
6. Copy all your files over from the HDD backup to the Synology in the appropriate folders.
   
7. Use the 3TB HDD and Enclosure to connect directly to your Synology and use that to backup your files to from the Synology using their Hyper Backup tool.
   
8. In the future when you want to expand your Synology, you can replace the 1TB drives with 3TB or larger drives one by one and then expand the entire volume once they are all swapped. This can be done in-service w/o data loss or downtime.

Something like this. It's a 3.5 inch SATA drive if you were wondering.

Sabrent makes a nice enclosure for 3.5 drives:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_uQxwCbJ4MXK1T


Now if you're wanting a docking station:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H11KXCL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_MSxwCbMEFG8NX

There are lots of external HD enclosures. At USB 3 speeds, she shouldn't notice any speed issues. Here's an example.

But, wouldn't it be better to just copy the files to the new mbair for her?

I have this one and have never had any issues with it.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1541944608&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=hard+drive+dock&dpPl=1&dpID=51QlWnFgHPL&ref=plSrch

So would one of these

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1538755378&sr=1-3&keywords=HDD+docking+station

along with one of these

https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Cache-Desktop-Drive-WD10EZEX/dp/B013HNYVLA/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1538755218&sr=1-3&keywords=1tb%2BHDD&th=1

work?

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1457243710&sr=8-2&keywords=internal+hard+drive+enclosure


This should work for you. Also, you can swap the drives out easily if you ever need to access another hardrive.

Alternatively you can just get a HDD dock. This will be a bit easier to do than a full enclosure for something that will likely only be used once to pull data.

Also, look at setting up Google Drive or something similar to back this stuff up going foward so you don't run into a similar situation in the future!

(If you have any questions please ask!)

I would pay attention to what you buy however. A lot of the newer SATA-USB adapters are made for USB 3.0 and are listed as being "optimized" for SSD drives and only have a single USB 3.0 connector. What this means is that if you don't plug the adapter into a USB 3.0 port (usually blue, but they are sometimes not marked as such) then your hard drive won't be able to draw the necessary power to spin the drives and read/write data.

The older models (like the one I use) got around this by using two USB 2.0 cables, one for power and date and one for strictly power. If you're not sure if you have USB 3.0 capable ports, I would make sure you look for something like this that has a separate power supply, just to be safe. If you think plugging in SATA drives is something you'll be doing fairly often, I would consider even splurging for a docking station (similar to this one) to make life easier for you.

I would actually recommend against using something specifically USB 3.0 ... I ordered myself a docking station for my SSD (this http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2) and it came with a 3.0 cable. I was having myself a frustrating time trying to get the Wii U to read it. Finally I remembered I had a 2.0 cable around from an old printer. Absolutely no issues since then. The Wii U seems really adamant against using 3.0.

Connect the adapter you linked to the HDD here. But you're better off getting an enclosure like this one. Some drives will require more power to properly turn on.

I just got three of these delivered today. Two are on USB 3.0 enclosures for use as backup drives and one is spare.

Here's the benchmarks of one of the backup drives via USB 3.0:

AS SSD Copy Bench: http://i.imgur.com/yfPhUWY.png

AS SSD sequential and access time: http://i.imgur.com/8ohnYPX.png

Obviously not anywhere close SSD, but hey, it's great for mass storage and also keep in mind this is via USB 3.0 connection.

This is the enclosure I'm using: http://smile.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/

Sorry, I should have clarified - I was thinking a software RAID, or is that frowned upon? Right now I'm manually backing up to internal drives in a docking station every couple months. So anything is a step up from that.

I've looked at pre-built and splitting up my NAS / HTPC but getting a Drobo 5N, $600, and then a decent HTPC build able to transcode multiple streams, at least another $400+. It could double my build cost. But I think your note on using RAID 1+0 instead, is a better choice here. Thanks!

It does if you have the right kind of cable. One USB port does not put out enough power, but if you have a USB cable with 2 connectors on one end, it will get enough power for most drives. I used a 500 gig SATA drive on my Wii with this kind of cable.

But, here is a hard drive enclosure that has an external power supply and works with 2.5 and 3.5 inch drives.

You need to get it connected to SATA data and power connections, something like this (I can't personally vouch for the quality).

For best results stick to USB 3 (or higher), and make sure you have a USB 3 connector on your case/board to get the right transfer speeds.

> Is there a way to quickly connect the HDD to my laptop,

You'll need something like an external enclosure or a SATA to USB adapter to be able to connect it to your laptop. The enclosure/docking station I listed is a bit overkill as it works with both 2.5" and 3.5" disk drives. You can save almost half the price if you get a dedicated 2.5" OR 3.5" dedicated enclosure.

> permanently delete the already deleted files, then disconnect it and put it back where he had it?

Assuming you can get the HDD connected to your laptop, the free version of CCeaner has the capability to permanently remove those "deleted" files that still reside on the drive. Here's a youtube video showing how it's done (sorry the guy is a little hard to understand, but I think you'll get the idea). Good luck and feel free to ask questions should you have any.

If you only have a little bit of data to transfer, you could copy what you need to a USB flash drive and move it with the help of that.

If you have a fair bit of data and don't mind removing the hard drive temporarily, you could consider getting an enclosure like this to turn your desktop hard drive into an external drive. Then you can either keep it that way or copy the files you want over to your laptop, then put the drive back into the desktop.

If that HDD is working properly, you could go for the whole enclosure and use the thing as a proper external HDD - https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1503218559&sr=8-4&keywords=sata+usb+enclosure

Not sure if you're talking about this one, but I found one that looks good on Amazon, here
If you want something a bit more... sturdy, there's one here as well.

No :) By external enclosure, I mean One of these

Also, If you have made a time machine backup on the 1 TB external drive, you'll be able to restore all your files and settings and programs exactly as they were, with just one click. :)

However, you still need to:

1. Download a Copy of Yosemite from the Mac App Store (Free)
   
2. Obtain an 8 GB USB Stick
   
3. Download DiskMaker X
   
4. Make sure the flash drive is empty!
   
5. Plug in the Flash Drive, Run DiskMaker X, and select the correct flash drive. Then, wait about an hour or so, and it should finish the process. Do not let your mac go to sleep during this time, so you may want to use caffeine.
   
   Once this is done, you should have a bootable disk, that will work just like an OS X CD would, however it's a USB drive :)
   
   Now... what you'll do is put the SSD you just bought into the external enclosure (from the link above) and you'll be able to plug it in like an external hard drive. Run Disk Utility on OS X and format the external SSD as a "Mac OS X Extended (Journaled)" drive.
   
   Once you do that, back up your computer using Time Machine, to the external 1TB hard drive you already have.
   
   Finally, Open up your mac, Swap the SSD for the HDD. This is the tutorial I'd watch in order to do this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_vk2wKwmzg (they upgrade the RAM and the Hard drive to an SSD) I've watched the entire thing to make sure it's legitimate :)
   
   :) Feel free to PM me anytime if you have issues with the process. I'll get back to you as quickly as I can. Cheers.

10TB WD Red on a 3.5" enclosure?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072F422FW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_lx59AbACGGFJQ
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Vy59AbJJRMTKR

What size are you looking for? 1-3tb? Wd caviar blue 7200rpm with an external enclosure is a good way to go.

Sabrent usb 3.0 enclosure

WD 1tb Blue

You can use stuff like this to make your internal / external storage needs interchangeable and just purchase internal drives from that point on.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1468269311&sr=1-3&pi=SY200_QL40&dpPl=1&dpID=517WZtWkh4L&ref=plSrch

A USB 3 hard drive enclosure. Lets you swap drives out.

This one specifically, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LS5NFQ2/

Are you having any issues with your external drive disconnecting and reconnecting?

I have one of these (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and put a 2.5" drive in it and randomly (every 5-15 min) the disk drive disconnects from the xbox and reconnects saying "your drive is now ready".

I got a different external enclosure and it seems to work but I can't keep it as it isn't mine.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

Yeah, the other option I was looking at is this type of enclosure that would make it connect via USB.

You can use any sata to usb converter. For example this would work https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_147_bs_lp_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=N0E5KKN95A4T4RFWQR06


Or this if you want to spend more money and not get a case: https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-USB3S2SAT3CB-Drive-Adapter-Cable/dp/B00HJZJI84/ref=pd_bxgy_147_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00HJZJI84&pd_rd_r=HM89910NCVYQFQV4AYAE&pd_rd_w=P4XbG&pd_rd_wg=OUSIV&psc=1&refRID=HM89910NCVYQFQV4AYAE

I would definitely go with a USB 3.0 drive, not a 2.0 since 2.0 speeds are significantly slower than 3.0.

This is a cheap, highly rated USB 3.0 enclosure.

This is the one I am currently using with the 1TB drive that was in my Pro since I swapped it out with a 2TB drive.

This SSD and this enclosure. Trust me it's worth the $95 bucks.

SSD
Samsung 860 EVO 250GB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-76E250B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_Jdz2Ab7R9BHMG

Enclosure
Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_Afz2Ab4XCKT4N

Got an ssd for my PC and figured I’d test it out on the Xbox before putting in it there.


My ssd didn’t make it to my PC lol not only does it help with PUBG, but load times in a lot of games benefit.

Samsung 860 EVO 1TB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-76E1T0B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078DPCY3T/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_ipCXflemgfEW4

With this enclosure

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_VSK1vlJ4IRvgp

Piece of cake to set up. Put the drive in the enclosure (very easy), plug into usb, add games.

Edit- played PUBG on internal hard drive for test and live, vs ssd for both and the benefit is noticeable.

The "Cheap" solution that have been posted on this sub is

This SSD
https://www.amazon.com/Silicon-Power-Performance-Internal-SP256GBSS3A55S25/dp/B075RJS55D/ref=sr_1_13?keywords=ssd&qid=1555536783&s=gateway&sr=8-13

Matched with this enclosure
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If you want a bigger, or better SSD, the recommendation would be something from Samsung.

SSD come in 2 flavors..

SATA 2.5 inch drives (these hook up just like a SATA HDD)

and M.2 Drives.. These are stick drives the plug directly into an M.2 Slot on the motherboard..

As I look at the Specs for your Laptop I am seeing that it uses a 2.5" (inch) 9.5mm SATA drive..

So any of the SSD's that are 2.5 should work just fine..

I have done 2 recent conversions of Laptop Hard Drives to SSD's

Software I used: https://www.macrium.com/reflectfree

I used my own desktop to do this, BUT you do NOT need to do this IF you get an external drive case to hook to your laptop..

The bonus is after you image over your Hard Drive to the SSD you can then put your old Hard Drive in the external drive case and use that drive to backup your SSD and to use as secondary storage when needed..

Find any SSD you like: [I would go with a minimum of a 240/250GB drive]

This can be dependent on how much of your current 750GB drive you currently have in use.. You do not want to FILL a 250GB drive you want to have room for more files / Temp files / Files from browsing ect.. AND you should always have around 20% free drive space to keep things(SSD) working well..

So depending on how much of your 750GB you are using..

here is a Nice Samsung 850 EVO 250GB $89.99
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-2-5-Inch-Internal-MZ-75E250B-AM/dp/B00OAJ412U/ref=pd_sim_147_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=91SZRV2F6WR6X5WPG1Q9

The 500GB is $139

The enclosure I usually get is not in stock at Amazon [but this one looks good]:

https://www.amazon.com/Enclosure-IAUGO-External-Tool-free-Transfer/dp/B071RRX5PK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1511571851&sr=8-1&keywords=USB+3.0+HDD+SATA+External+Hard+Drive+Disk+Enclosure+Case+for+9.5mm+7mm+2.5"+SATA+HDD

Or this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=psdc_160354011_t1_B071RRX5PK

So what you would do is order your SSD of choice..

Order the External Hard Drive Enclosure of choice..

Download and install Macrium Reflect 7 FREE (I used version 6 - but should be just the same)

Get your stuff and put the SSD into the Drive Enclosure and hook it to the USB port on your laptop..

Use the Software to Image the Hard Drive in your Laptop to the External SSD.. (Sounds simple but it is a little complicated if you have more on the Hard Drive then the SSD can handle)

Once you have a proper Image of the HDD you then turn off the laptop / Remove Battery Flip it over and If you look at the Manual for your Laptop is shows you how to remove the Hard Drive..

http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/nb/N56JR/E_eManual_VER6951.pdf

Page 64

Remove the old Hard Drive and replace with the SSD

Put it all back together and turn the laptop on and hopefully it boots back into windows - Just much Faster =)

Buy a 2.5" bare internal drive, an external enclosure, put the drive in the enclosure and enjoy. This is a much better way to go because often when your typical passport type drives fail it's the sata bridge card that fails not the drive itself. You can then remove the drive and place it into a new enclosure or use a dock. Amazon links to the ones I use:


drive


enclosure

This is the one I'm using for my Samsung 860 Evo 1TB

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ABZqDb3JWYW9R

You can flip that bad boy over and take the drive out. Best thing to do is get a 2.5” HDD caddy and plug it in to another Mac or a friends Mac to get the data off. This would do fine.

One option you have is to buy an SSD enclosure and just put whatever drive you want in it

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sabrent-Custodia-Ottimizzato-Supporto-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=ssd+enclosure&qid=1564077940&s=computers&sr=1-3

Here. These are decent drives, I have 4 I use in a couple servers and my desktop. Total is under 60 if you’re in the US. Even cheaper if you have amazon prime.

SanDisk SSD PLUS 120GB Solid State Drive - SDSSDA-120G-G27 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07621PNWC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_o5cYAbW1FQ9WZ

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_85cYAb5EJFGJP

The drive I had laying around was one of these.

https://www.amazon.com/Blue-NAND-250GB-SSD-WDS250G2B0A/dp/B073SB2MXW/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1522940690&sr=8-7&keywords=256gb+ssd+drive

So I bought one of these to make it an external drive.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1522940862&sr=1-3&keywords=ssd+enclosure


There are faster drives but if you are on a budget that is a pretty good deal. I have been using it and had several crashes and I am back in game in like 20-30 seconds compared to 2+ minutes before. Also, during normal game loading I used to only have 10 seconds to run around on the loading island and now I have 50-60 seconds. Buildings load as soon as I land now too. So not sure how much faster a more expensive drive could make it but this one works great.

I'm using this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?crid=LFL58YFPX45P&qid=1569267011&s=gateway&sprefix=usb+3+2.5%2Caps%2C192&sr=8-3

Will it speed up installations? Possibly, but that's generally a one-time experience.

Assuming the HDD/SSD is fine (it should be), you'll simply need to buy a USB 3.0 External Drive Enclosure like this, take out your HDD/SSD and connect it to another computer to recover your files.

You can get a adapter like this https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3_acs_ac_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536184457&sr=8-3-acs&keywords=2.5+hard+drive+enclosure for this (if it’s in your budget) https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Inch-Internal-MZ-76E1T0B-AM/dp/B078DPCY3T/ref=sr_1_3_acs_ac_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1536184482&sr=1-3-acs&keywords=Ssd

I was using a harddrive with 2 cables (one for power) but now I am using this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_btmwCb4652MVZ
With an old laptop drive I had laying around

You'll want something like this:

• $10 USB3 to SATA cable - http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Adapter-Optimized-EC-SSHD/dp/B011M8YACM/
  
  or
  
  
• $13 USB3 to SATA enclosure - http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/
  
  And you'll need cloning software. Crucial and Samsung have cloning software that you can use for free when cloning to their drives:
  
  
• Samsung Data Migration for SSD
  
  If you haven't yet purchased an SSD I'd recommend the Samsung 850 Evo.
  
  ------------
  
  You'll also want to checkout a site like ifixit.com or simply lookup youtube videos on how to go about opening up your laptop.

To clarify what /u/firefly416 said, once you take the hard drive out of the dead macbook pro you will need to install it into an external enclosure such as this one.

If you have another computer you can make an El Cap USB installer and reinstall it from there.

​

To get your data you can get a SATA-USB external adapter, pull the drive out of the Macbook, and copy your data to another computer.

​

Adapter:

​

https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-SATA-Drive-Adapter-Cable/dp/B00HJZJI84

​

Same thing but a full enclosure:

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=s9_acsd_top_hd_bw_bAqpP1_cr_x__w?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-3&pf_rd_r=CRVP86GZMSG9D9WY4W3X&pf_rd_r=CRVP86GZMSG9D9WY4W3X&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=4f3a3e36-c598-581a-bdda-6635ea8feafa&pf_rd_p=4f3a3e36-c598-581a-bdda-6635ea8feafa&pf_rd_i=160354011

​

If the hard drive isn't the issue with the laptop you can take it out. Some laptops have easy access plastic covers over the top of the hard drive, undo the screws and take it off. Take the hard drive out and put it into a HDD caddy like this then plug it into your new laptop or other computer/laptop to get the data off.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/

This is perfect! Thank you so much!!

So you have this SSD and then this enclosure, right?

So theoretically if I wanted more space I could go with this 1TB SSD?

Sorry about the Canadian prices. Should be alot cheaper in American.

This was the setup that was posted a couple weeks ago, plugged it in and reformatted the drive. Had to reset my xbox and then simply moved pubg to the ssd.

It's completely changed pubg for me. Sucks I had to pay extra $$$ to play it. But it was totally worth it.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_AvnzCb4CAACCF


https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0719D9YL7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_6vnzCb0M43YGQ

Will this drive work with a sata to usb 3 case for speeding up Xbox one load times?


Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_4j3zCbK13R0ND

I just bought these a couple weeks ago for my 1X and they’ve worked great:

256 GB SSD ($31)

USB3 SSD Enclosure

These were the best deals I could find... very well reviewed and work great. Buildings are rendered before I land (weapons take another 0-2 seconds). I got 256 GB because it’s the minimum needed for Xbox and I mostly just wanted it for PUBG. If you want to put a lot of games on it though then I’d get a bigger drive and maybe look at SSHD options (cheaper but supposedly work about as well). Main things I checked were read/write speeds, price, and reviews (specifically reviews mentioning Xbox).

Been using my Samsung Evo 850 500GB SSD inside this enclosure for nearly 3 years now..... https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1498944597&sr=1-1&keywords=sabrent+ssd+enclosure This enclosure is designed for SSD's so it gets the max read/writes possible from USB3.0 SSD's. GTA5 first load takes like 1min and 45 secs to load on the normal HD but on this SSD its 20 secs.

External drive enclosure and use it as a USB drive? Like this one.

Direi che dovrebbe andare abbastanza plug and play, ma in realtà io ho sempre usato delle enclosure come questa, così ti ritrovi ad avere un disco esterno a tutti gli effetti.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1537537997&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=sabrent+2.5-inch+sata+to+usb+3.0&dpPl=1&dpID=31%2BDUDNvH5L&ref=plSrch

The current fix to this is to buy an external SSD and transfer the game onto that. It's going to cost a minimum of like 70 bucks. I bought one and I don't regret the purchase, my game is smoother and my load times are exponentially better. Inventory is instant.



https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8/ref=twister_B079P94LLX?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1537380600&sr=8-3&keywords=ssd+enclosure

​

These are the only 2 items you need. I bought the 500 GB SSD, but if you want it for just D2 the 250 will suffice. it connects into the case and the case comes with a USB 3.0 to plug from it into your xbox.

Do you by chance have any 2.5" hard drives (those are the ones commonly found in laptops) on hand? You can buy a cheap kit such as this slap in the hard drive and you are gtg.

However, these aren't bad. They are probably slightly fast due to better drives and they come with a warranty.

An external ssd will most likely have a standard 2.5" ssd in it. You may be able to take the drive out but you risk damaging it in the process. I suggest getting a regular internal SSD and then a hard drive enclosure like this. It effectively turns your ssd into a usb external drive but you can just pop it out and plug it into your regular computer when you need to.

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_QxGMDbZPZXXHE

Here is one for $9

>media, writing, etc

If you're comfortable with a used laptop you can find Thinkpad T440 variants for less than $180. I write and watch YouTube with a T430 (T440 predecessor). Heck I even game (Kerbal Space Program, Half Life 2/Portal/Portal 2, and indie games) without issue. On a 7-year old laptop. Partly because Thinkpads are business-class devices, and built to higher quality standards than consumer devices.

Part of the reason I recommend Refurb/used Thinkpads is your desire to use Linux. Thinkpads have phenomenal Linux support because they're popular. Not just with Linux developers, but the sort of tech-oriented user that might want to run Linux. Older ones especially, since they've been around long enough for people to patch/fix/update things to get them working. Heck you can even set their battery charge thresholds just like you can in Windows, for better battery lifespan (not battery life).

And you wouldn't be lacking for power either; an i5-4300U (mid/entry-level CPU for the T440's; you probably won't need more power than this) is just as, or more powerful than, the Celerons in the laptops you linked (yikes!), and from what I saw when I quickly searched eBay; feature either 500GB HDD's or 180-256GB SSD's. Plus you can set up/buy one with dual-channel RAM which will help your iGPU. I'm not as sure about the amazon options.

If you're writing, especially to publish/for school, I recommend picking a T440 or T440s with a 500GB HDD, and buying a 128/256GB SSD and a HDD enclosure like this one separately. Once they all arrive; replace the HDD in the laptop with the SSD, install Linux on it, and use the 500GB HDD as part of your on-site backup (along with cloud storage and a second on-site backup solution, for redundancy). If you like to write on the go; maybe consider buying an extended battery.

I almost forgot the reason I'd recommend a Thinkpad to anyone who'll be doing a lot of writing; the on-device keyboard is legendary. You won't find a better one unless you spend thousands on a gaming monstrosity with a mechanical keyboard. Lots of laptops have an OK keyboard. Thinkpads have good keyboards.

Something like this.

Note: that is only an example, ensure you match your own drive's specifications when buying an enclosure

> as easy as popping a few screws loose and everything is right there

It's ridiculously easy. Usually 3 to 5 screws to remove a plastic cover and another 2 screws holding the drive in place.

Buying a Samsung SSD makes it even easier because they have a program called Samsung Data Migration. You just need to either order one of the SSDs that comes with a USB-SATA interface, or buy a cheap one.

• Connect the SSD to the adapter and plug it into a USB port on the laptop.
  
• Run Samsung Data Migration with the original hard drive as the source and the SSD as the target.
  
• Turn off the laptop.
  
• Take out the original drive.
  
• Install the SSD
  
  Done. That's all there is to it. If you want to get fancy, or honestly just be smarter about it, get this instead of the adapter cable. When you're all done, you can reformat the HDD that came with the computer and use it as an external drive.

Samsung 860 EVO 250 GB $89.26 (850 would work too, but the 860 is better and cheaper right now)

Sabrent USB 3.0 SSD Enclosure $8.99

These are what I use (850) and I've never had a loading issue again. Also if you freeze you can get back in the game in 45 seconds. It also works wonders on other games like BF1.

Better if they spend $10 and get an external enclosure.

PNY 240 ssd

That’s an internal ssd. You need an “enclosure” to fit it into. They’re all pretty much the same. You just need it to support USB 3.0 (which most do nowadays)

Sabrent Enclosure

Just pop them together. Plug it in. The Xbox will recognize it and then you go from there.

For those wanting something like this without spending $199

"SSD is going run $199 for 512GB"

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ - case I use and have 0 issues with for a year now - $12.99

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS31KQG/ - An "upgraded" version of the case that is aluminum and $3 less

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IAGSD68/ - current lowest price on a decent 500+GB SSD from Amazon $118.71. It's a Crucial MX300. You can shop around here, Samsung 850 evo's are a little more expensive but very reliable.

It's literally plug and play with that case. Comes with the cables and no need to do anything fancy. Just insert drive into case, no screws to use and plug it into the Xbox One with the cord that comes with the case.

You could always make a fast external SSD for backups and such with this.

If it were me though, I'd just keep it in my rig for more fast storage.

Yup! USB adapter!

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1453365910&

Just combine one of these with one of these.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=Sabrent+usb+3+enclosure&qid=1574789847&sr=8-3

I'd recommend making your own using this and a regular 2.5" SSD.
I'd recommend this one. It is also available in 250GB & 1TB versions if you need them.

Buy a new SSD drive and a USB enclosure like this. Use Macrium Reflect Free to clone your existing drive to the new SSD. Then simply swap in the new drive and your laptop will boot from it like normal, only faster then you've ever seen it boot.

I have done this exact procedure on 3 laptops, my gaming desktop and my server.

They might be actually. The old 360 hard drive has a regular 2.5 inch SATA HDD inside of it, so if you format it and put it in a USB SATA dock you could probably use it on a One. Unless I'm mistaken, I think the One can use any USB hard drive.

​

Just pop it in one of these bois, or something like it.

$150?!? Yeah right, more like $40. The “ssd” argument is not stupid, and it is not like telling a PC player to up their graphics card...not even close. Anyways I provided some amazon links for a quick, easy, and cheap upgrade. The difference will be night and day, you will literally load into strikes before everyone else and be waiting on them for the strike to start. There will even be some leftover space for a few extra games.

Inland Professional 240GB SSD 3D NAND SATA III 6Gb/s 2.5" 7mm Internal Solid State Drive (240G) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076XXMJZH/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_oGKUDbR2YMWA5

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_.HKUDb46P96Q1

Sure. Just the Sabrent case

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=V0CQDE43Q80J&keywords=sabrent+external+hard+drive+enclosure+2.5&qid=1556329628&s=gateway&sprefix=sabrent+ex&sr=8-3

Pop it into this and you’re good to go

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-Free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized for SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_E9vRCbG642T01

i don't think i'm too far off.. you can grab an ssd and 3.0 enclosure for under $60. pretty close to half of the t5 you linked.

https://www.amazon.com/Silicon-Power-Performance-Internal-SP512GBSS3A55S25/dp/B07997QV4Z/

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/

at the end of day, it's your money and you can do what you want. SSDs are getting so cheap it just seems silly to spend $100 for 500gb.

https://www.amazon.com/SanDisk-480GB-Solid-State-SDSSDA-480G-G26/dp/B01F9G46Q8/

+

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/

I got the 480 gb SSD for $60, but you can get a 240 gb for $33 and it will work just as good.

All you will need is an external SATA enclosure similar to this one.

Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Tool-free External Hard Drive Enclosure [Optimized For SSD, Support UASP SATA III] Black (EC-UASP) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_rCDcBbXAKSQNB

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B075RJS55D/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526590738&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=silicon+ssd&dpPl=1&dpID=51D0eaOybdL&ref=plSrch


https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/dp/B00OJ3UJ2S

I would always recommend fresh install. As for transferring data from an old drive you can buy a Cradle or or 2.5" external USB drive enclosure. Cradle will cost you about 20-40 on Amazon, enclosures are about 10.

Cradle - https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0099TX7O4/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1473168141&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=hard%2Bdrive%2Bcradle&dpPl=1&dpID=41El4Mm9svL&ref=plSrch&th=1&psc=1

Enclosure - https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1473168212&sr=8-3&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=hard+drive+enclosure&dpPl=1&dpID=31D9U9rO8TL&ref=plSrch

Edit- added links

Yes you can. You can use something like this to make it external.

240GB. Let me look at my past posts and see if I can find the link. Comes in today! Come on delivery guy.

Edit: Found it. You’ll need the enclosure as well.

240gb SSD
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0719D9YL7

Enclosure
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_pd_title

I literally bought the first one off Amazon (this one). Think it was $9. Only thing I'd note about the enclosure is make sure it supports UASP, which will make best use of the SSD.

I use this one and it works great.

SSD: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075RJS55D/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Enclosure: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is the one I use. SanDisk Ultra 3D NAND 250GB, selling for $52.99 right now on Amazon. Paired with the Sabrent Tool-free external hard drive enclosure, selling for $9.99 right now on Amazon.

>When I connect it to my PC I can hear the drive itself spool up, but never when connected to my xbox. When it connects to my pc, it is listed in device manager as something called Go To Final Lap, something Ive never heard of. I cant browse it like a storage device either.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Tool-free-Enclosure-Optimized-EC-UASP/product-reviews/B00OJ3UJ2S

>The USB descriptor data for this product was bizarre, and differs from what the user manual depicts. The USB Manufacturer string is "FinalLap", and the Product is "Go To Final Lap". No I'm not making this up -- this is really what the SATA-to-USB bridge IC returns as part of its descriptor data, which Windows (and other OSes) will show as a device called "Go To Final Lap". I have not the slightest idea what this refers to, but the manual depicts a device called "NS1066". Descriptor strings that are strange like this often imply pirate/imitation ICs.

Beyond that, it sounds like either the enclosure has failed or the hard drive has.

if you think the enclosure is bad, and the hard drive is good, say goodbye to the warranty and pull the drive out. replacement enclosures are inexpensive, moreso if you settle for a usb 2.0 one.

i.e. usb 2.0 2.5 inch

http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-External-Aluminum-Enclosure/dp/B00E362W9O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411010740&sr=8-1&keywords=2.5+enclosure


usb 3.0 3.5 inch

http://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-K32-SU3-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B0065DUJ0C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=undefined&sr=8-1&keywords=3.5+enclosure

Then there's either something wrong with the drive, or the enclosure the drive is in.

Next would be to try and open the enclosure and test the drive in a different enclosure, like this.

But, of course, being in Africa limits your options.

Open up your laptop's bottom and remove the hard drive. You can get an external 2.5" hard drive enclosure for cheap (like this one ). Put your hard drive inside and use it like you would any external drive. I did the same for my busted desktop's hard drive.

https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Dell+Studio+15+Hard+Drive+Replacement/5722

That's how to get the drive out

Any USB 2.5" SATA enclosure will work fine, amazon has one from sbarent for like $7 here

you can get an external enclosure to turn it into a USB device. Then once you are done, you can put the hard drive in the external enclosure and use it as a portable hard drive.

Only $7 more!

For $7 you could hook your hard drive up to any computer with a USB port. This enclosure is good for transferring files/recovering stuff but not good for long term use. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00E362W9O/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00E362W9O/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1394175454&sr=8-1

500GB SSD

8GB RAM

HD Enclosure

HD Replacement Tutorial

RAM Replacement Tutorial

It took me about an hour to complete which involved me forgetting to reconnect the battery cable so I had to reopen it for that.

edit: forgot to link tutorials

USB 3.0 is already faster than the SSD so you won't notice a difference. I would try and find a USB 3.0 enclosure with a regular A connector to avoid the terrible flimsy micro connectors.

Like this: http://www.amazon.com/Optimized-Inateck-Enclosure-Installation-Compatible/dp/B00FCLG65U/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1410409152&sr=8-1&keywords=ssd+enclosure

Here are the CrystalDiskMark results for an external mechanical drive I have. Remember to multiply by 8 to get the speed in megabits. 140 megabytes/second = 1120 megabits/second. http://imgur.com/sQ1TW3g

The drive: http://www.amazon.com/Seagate-HN-M201RAD-Momentus-SpinPoint-ST2000LM003/dp/B00I8O6OQ4/

The enclosure: http://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Tool-Free-Enclosure-UASP/dp/B00FCLG65U/

EDIT: If you were wondering what happened, the person I was replying to claimed no hard drive got better speeds than 180 megabits per second.

Of course! Here's a good enclosure I've used before.

https://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Inch-Drive-Enclosure-External/dp/B00FCLG65U

Edit: Actually, what form factor is the ssd? There are also m.2 enclosures but if it’s a proprietary PCB then you might be out of luck.

https://m.newegg.com/products/9SIAD6F6JU4922?ignorebbr=true&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleMKP-Mobile&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleMKP-Mobile-_-pla-_-External+Enclosure-_-9SIAD6F6JU4922&gclid=EAIaIQobChMInavSv63O2gIVGEsNCh2gEw2kEAQYASABEgKVyfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

I'd recommend a reasonably fast SSD and an USB3 enclosure. I've been very pleased with this enclosure.

In this vid I'm using an Inateck USB 3 external enclosure (http://www.amazon.com/Optimized-Inateck-Enclosure-Installation-Compatible/dp/B00FCLG65U/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1416519739&sr=1-4&keywords=inateck) and a Crucial MX100 256GB SSD. I'm sticking to an external rather than opening up the Xbox One.

OP this is what I use;

Inland Professional 480GB SSD... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BD32RLK?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Case;

Inateck 2.5 Inch USB 3.0 Hard... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FCLG65U?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Runs like a dream. My games load insanely fast, very easy to set up, and I’ve had no issue with it. Had mine for months.

https://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Inch-Drive-Enclosure-External/dp/B00FCLG65U/

You could get something like this - https://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Inch-Drive-Enclosure-External/dp/B00FCLG65U

You just plug the SSD in and then connect it via USB (keep in mind the transfer speeds might be slower than through a regular SATA cable).

I'm positive I have an SSD (here is the model).

I bought a case and cable that support UASP (here is the case).

I do still have OSX installed on the internal HDD. I was giving it a few days to make sure everything runs smoothly before formatting it. The Mac Mini runs considerably faster off the external SSD than it did with the internal HDD.

To re-iterate, I don't notice any day-to-day difference between my external SSD and my family's internal SSD in a Mac Mini. I do feel by boot time is a bit slower, though.

It looks like you already shoved a drive in at the bottom, on the right side of the case. In the 2nd pic, at the bottom these are the drive cages, but it looks like they only take 3.5" drives. Nicer cases come with little drive caddies that you can attach your drives to, but it seems not this one. You can install your HDD, which I'll assume is 3.5", with some screws through those holes.

To install an SSD, you need some kind of 3.5" to 2.5" adapter like this

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Internal-Drive-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1468954575&sr=8-3&keywords=3.5+to+2.5+adapter

You buy one of these and put that where a regular hdd sits.

If it's a standard SATA SSD, then sure. You might need an adapter to have it fit into a standard 3.5" bay though, something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Internal-Drive-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1469589271&sr=8-1&keywords=ssd+bay+adapter

they wont be specific to the case IME, its just a block to fit it into a 3.5" bay.

I used this one

http://www.amazon.com/SABRENT-Inches-Internal-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1462826741&sr=8-2&keywords=2.5+to+3.5+adapter

Get one of these.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Internal-Drive-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1498518674&sr=8-4&keywords=2.5+3.5+adapter

You can hide it inside the 3.5" drive cage.

Yes, it will work fine. The SSD is physically smaller than typical Hard Drives. The only issue you'll possibly run into, is not having a place to mount it. Depending on how old your case is, you might only have mounts for the normal 3.5" drive. Worse Case Scenario, you'll need to buy one of these. Which you would mount the drive in, and then put the adapter in your Hard Drive Tray.

Most cases within the past 5 years should have a space for one, without needing an adapter.

Probably ok. You can buy a metal one of those for about $5 if you want.

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Mounting-Bracket-drive-CSSD-BRKT1/dp/B0090UG55A/

http://www.amazon.com/SABRENT-Inches-Internal-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M/ (fits 2)

I wouldn't have thought of that actually.

No, it should be fine. They have no moving parts and are pretty robust. I think I've left my SSD just hanging from a cable before (don't do this) since I was lazy and didn't want to remount it.

You may want to get something like this though in the future, just so it is more secure.

I gotcha fam. Gimmie a minute.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00G57BN1M/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_kK.VAbNV4TNY0

That is what I use. May be a newer version, but that is the product listing.

You could go mini-itx if you want small form factor. The only problem is that you only have 6 sata connectors on a mini board. I went with 4 x 5tb hdd's for raid 10 (10tb storage) and 2 x 512gb ssd (raid 1 or 0 depending on what you want). The case is a bit expensive but it has 6 drive bays so you'll be to organize your drives so you don't restrict air flow (you may want some 2.5" adapters so you can put your ssd's there as well). Another problem with m-itx is that it only supports up to 16gb ram, it should be enough for you, but you that's the maximum so take that into consideration. Overall this is a pretty awesome build that should meet all of your criteria.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor | Purchased For $0.00
CPU Cooler | CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler | $34.50 @ Newegg
Motherboard | Gigabyte GA-Z97N-WIFI Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard | $139.99 @ Micro Center
Memory | G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory | $59.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Mushkin ECO2 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $129.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Mushkin ECO2 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive | $129.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Toshiba 5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $144.99 @ Amazon
Storage | Toshiba 5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $144.99 @ Amazon
Storage | Toshiba 5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $144.99 @ Amazon
Storage | Toshiba 5TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $144.99 @ Amazon
Case | Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case | $68.99 @ SuperBiiz
Power Supply | EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply | $65.98 @ Newegg
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $1224.39
| Mail-in rebates | -$15.00
| Total | $1209.39
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-06 23:46 EST-0500 |

It is a 3.5 to 2.5 inch drive bay converter. And is usually sold as a kit with screws. Here is a kit from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-Internal-Drive-Mounting-BK-HDDH/dp/B00G57BN1M

Non-mobile:

• This should work.
  
• So should this.
  
  ^That's ^why ^I'm ^here, ^I ^don't ^judge ^you. ^PM ^/u/xl0 ^if ^I'm ^causing ^any ^trouble. ^WUT?

The best solution is to snag one of these adapters or this one to mount the SSD in the 3.5 in. slot.

But to answer your immediate question... Yes, the SSD will be absolutely fine. I've had them literally taped to the inside of my case before with zero performance issues. They don't move, don't vibrate, and don't care how they're oriented or mounted.

This should work.

So should this.

Pretty much any 2.5" to 3.5" adapters should do the trick. Pick what you like. These aren't too expensive and have Prime (if you do, that is.)

I win the internet this time. But yeah, it is just his choice of the hot swappable dock rather than a full enclosure that makes it look all janky. If he had bought something like this, nobody would notice.

Yes absolutely.

However you may be better off getting a 2.5" size drive. The 3.5" drives take more power to run, and the external enclosure will require an external power source. A 2.5" drive can be run off the power from the USB alone. So if you want something portable, get a 2.5" drive for sure, or if it's just going to sit on a desk or in a closet you can get a drive like the one you linked and get an enclosure for it.

3.5" HDD enclosure

2.5" HDD enclosure

usb 3.0 external hdd enclosures work just fine. I have a Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 External Hard Drive Enclosure with a 6tb X300 Toshiba hdd on it. Works like a charm. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GAML7OK?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf

Cool. Yeah you can just pop that thing open and put the drive in a new $20 enclosure like this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GAML7OK/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_qdbMBb7GVMPMN

Something like this...

https://www.amazon.com/Unitek-Adapter-Converter-Optical-Support/dp/B00GLL41MA/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1549732557&sr=8-5&keywords=usb+sata

They have some without power but they are for 2.5" drives. You will need one that has power. Or you could by a dock like this https://www.amazon.com/10Gbps-Single-Bay-Dock-SATA-HDDs/dp/B00XLAZTWA/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1549732639&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=usb+sata+dock&psc=1 or a new enclosure like this

https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-Toolfree-External-Enclosure-Support/dp/B00GAML7OK/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1549732670&sr=1-3&keywords=3.5+sata+enclosure

*the above links are examples, I am not saying these are the best quality or best price.

http://www.amazon.com/ORICO-Toolfree-External-Enclosure-Support/dp/B00GAML7OK/ref=sr_1_11?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1458742663&sr=1-11&refinements=p_n_feature_keywords_browse-bin%3A5492129011

Id advise against using a USB-only cable. They're usually designed for 2.5" drives as they require and are engineered to need less power. It may work fine, but I'm a "Better safe than sorry" type of tech.

I'd recommend you get a 3.5" enclosure with a dedicated power, like this one: https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-Toolfree-External-Enclosure-Support/dp/B00GAML7OK/

I used two of these ORICO USB3.0 3.5" drive enclosures with it's own power supply (supports UASP) to house 8TB drives connected to my Orange Pi PC for about a year in a BTRFS RAID1 configuration with no issues, no overheating drives, fast speeds, and reliable operation.

I sold one a few weeks ago, and (shameless plug), I'm looking to sell the other one if you are interested. The only reason I stopped using them is because I recently came into ownership of a HP Microserver Gen7 that holds 6 drives.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GAML7OK/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00GAML7OK/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1491199503&sr=8-5&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=drive+enclosure

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00HHAJU7K/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1491199574&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=hgst+3tb

Both sold on amazon

I would probably put it in an appropriately sized enclosure with a USB 3 out, and plug it into the various computers. It might still say that it's "data on so-n-so's time capsule" and the computer may not actually know the difference if the name matches the original time capsule.

This one Is a tool free 2.5

And this one Is for a 3.5 inch drive. Also tool free.

It's actually a SATA dock. I dont know of they make an ide dock. But here's the link.
Sabrent USB 3.0 to SATA External Hard Drive Docking Station for 2.5" or 3.5"' HDD, SSD [Support UASP] (DS-UBLK) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IKAQ538/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_UNbzDbCY2YDGY

I'd get one of those USB hard drive docks and use them as cold storage backup. Treat it like tape/blu-ray backups.

To me this is the most ideal backup solution for at-home use (you just need to get all of those drives for free/dirt cheap). It's rewritable, doesn't have to be sequentially written, and brings good physically space-to-storage density.

What specs are you looking for? This is a 500gb drive with a 16mb cache that can run at 7200RPM. It's read and write speeds are that of a run-of-the-mill mechanical hard drive. This is basically a drive you would use for a basic computer setup, an addon to an SSD setup, or as a backup drive. If you bought this drive used, then there's a possibility it could be slower than when brand new.

If you want to use it without plugging into your pc using the SATA ports on your motherboard, then you can by a dock or hard drive enclosure that you will be able to plug into your computer via USB.

Here is an example of a dock you can use:
https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538

Here is an example of an enclosure:
https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-3-5-inches-SATA-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B01MZC303G

Another option would be to get yourself an external 3.5 dock like this and turn it on after boot.

You have to have a specific type of cable, called a crossover ethernet cable.

Regular cable won't do it, you'd have to have a switch in between to control traffic.

You can also get a dock that allows you to essentially turn your old HDD into an external. You can then hook it up via USB and move the files that way.

Near as I can tell, that model has a standard sata drive inside the case,so all you would need to do is carefully pry it open and pull the sata drive out, then mount it in something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Docking-Station-DS-UBLK/dp/B00IKAQ538

Look at getting a dock like this. Then you can easily drop in a drive and run a backup to it.

Pull the had drive and put it into an enclosure or dock and connect it to another computer. This dock will work with both 2.5” and 3.5” drives. An enclosure would work too, but you have to get the one that fits your drive.

Buy this hard drive bay from Amazon. Shuck the old hard drive out - there are maybe 6 screws holding a typical drive enclosure together and none of them are more than your basic philips head.

Disconnect everything from the old enclosure and then just plug the drive into your new drive bay.

Does the drive make a whir-click noise? Any clicking at all? Sad to say that clicking means you're fucked.

When this is all over with, go sign up for google drive. $2 per month gets you 100GB of space to back up your important documents. Start using that and you'll never have an emergency like this again.

Only thing you can do is buy a cheap USB dock and install the drive in there and connect it with USB to your computer and see if it pops up as a hard drive, if not then your drive is dead

Edit: something like this shall do

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00IKAQ538/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1496672701&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=usb+hard+drive+dock&dpPl=1&dpID=31pgGAoLVTL&ref=plSrch

I'm going to recommend this bad boy here

While I don't know about a PSTV, this fella worked flawlessly with my Wii U. It's externally powered and although bulky-looking, it does its job well. It even has a power button to turn it off when not in use.

this: https://www.amazon.com/ADATA-Premier-SP550-240GB-ASP550SS3-240GM-C/dp/B013J7Q338/ref=sr_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1483721941&sr=1-3&keywords=240gb+ssd

inside of this:

https://www.amazon.com/Tool-free-Inateck-External-Enclosure-FE2004/dp/B00JQTO8TU/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1483722004&sr=1-2&keywords=portable+hard+drive+enclosure

basically that setup. works great.

just replace the whole case:

http://www.amazon.com/Tool-free-Inateck-External-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B00JQTO8TU/

Maybe? I was thinking of doing it yourself:

Step 1: Buy USB enclosure like this one

Step 2: Buy SSD.

Step 3: Put SSD into enclosure.

Step 4: ???

Step 5: Profit Portable fast storage

Nope nothing. Everything come with the enclosure.

Example

Also I made a typo and it's 2.5 not 3.5

Yeah.. I'd look at an enclosure if you're wanting a more permanent solution.

Something like this (just top of the search)

[USB 3.0 & Tool-free ] Inateck USB 3.0 HDD SATA External Hard Drive Disk Enclosure Case for 9.5mm 7mm 2.5 Inch SATA HDD and SSD(FE2004)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JQTO8TU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_3oSzybY5BM0Z3

I think there's a specific Kingston SSD you shouldn't get, but most are generally about the same. Hang about in /r/buildapcsales if you're US, there's an SSD going cheap there most days, and people giving it a quick overview in the comments.

As for an enclosure, I have this one which works okay.

USB enclosure is a case for a Sata drive that essentially turns the HD into an External drive you can hook up to your computer or in this case your xbox.

Below are the links. These fixed the rendering problems for me. 99% of the time everything is rendered in by the time I hit the ground.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JQTO8TU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071KGRXRH/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I just bought this one to house a 1TB firecuda for my sons xbox one s and it works great.

So far I am using a Firecudas in my Pro, PS3 and now my sons Xbox one s. I am using an 8TB drive on my X though.

All you need would be a external hard drive encloser. Can pick them up cheaply and yes it would become plug and play.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-External-Enclosure-EC-UK30/dp/B00LS31KQG/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1524740417&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=external+hard+drive+enclosure&psc=1

A hard drive enclosure like this one should do the trick... the computer will treat it like a storage device and you will be able to see everything on it, including program files. I used one when my laptop was failing due to similar power issues.

That's perfect. Then this is what I recommend:

1. Max out your RAM. Crucial has an 8 GB RAM set here: http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/macbook-pro-2*5ghz-intel-core-i5-%2813-inch-ddr3%29-mid-2012/CT3301475
   
   
2. Get an SSD to replace your conventional hard drive. You'd mentioned you were looking at 512 GB on a new MacBook Pro, so here's a Samsung SSD at the same capacity: https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-850-PRO-2-5-Inch-MZ-7KE512BW/dp/B00LF10KTO
   
   
3. Install macOS cleanly onto the SSD. El Capitan and above should accept third-party SSDs without too much trouble, though you may have to run some commands in Terminal to turn on SSD Trim (necessary for good and long operation of your SSD). I recommend not just transferring all data back, but just your documents--reinstall applications manually.
   
   
4. (Optional): Get an external drive enclosure for your existing internal laptop hard drive. This will allow you to easily transfer back data: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00LS31KQG/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1474460464&sr=8-1&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=2.5+inch+hard+drive+enclosure&dpPl=1&dpID=41JtsWFGS6L&ref=plSrch
   
   Overall this would be about $260 plus shipping, which is a significant savings over the $2000+ you'd pay for a new machine. I think the main things you're encountering with machine sluggishness are 1) a slow laptop hard drive and 2) low RAM capacity, which means your machine relies on swapping between RAM and the disk, which you notice as slowness. The above should help alleviate the issue and put your machine into warp drive.

SSD in a USB 3.0 enclosure and share with your friends or move between systems. Just make sure you power off and not suspend.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07997QV4Z/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_QDsKBbFAA1VKB

https://www.amazon.com/Upgraded-Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Enclosure-EC-UK30/dp/B00LS31KQG/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1536267383&sr=8-8&keywords=external+usb3+enclosure

(links are for for example, I have CoolMax enclosures and who knows what SSDs.)

Yes, you can access the data (as long as the hard drive isn't what failed).

You can either plug in the drive like you will be for your other two drives (plug this drive in after installing Windows though so it doesn't get added to the boot manager).

You can also buy an external enclosure and use it like an external drive.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS31KQG/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_zXB8wbGHY7AM8

No, it's like a normal USB drive but it will be empty, you could just buy any normal hark disk you use and put inside it and connect to the PS4 using USB like a normal drive

[Upgraded Version Support UASP] Sabrent Ultra Slim USB 3.0 to 2.5-Inch SATA External Aluminum Hard Drive Enclosure [Black] (EC-UK30) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LS31KQG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_iHmRybKQSSWHX

The good thing about this is that you could tailor it to your needs, if you want faster load times, use faster drives in it, if you wanna save money, use cheaper drives. I use this with my Xbox, and probably will do the same for my PS4

You could also buy a 3.5 inch drive enclosure and add 6-8TB drives to it! Never ever delete games again! The PS4 internal drive is limited to 2.5inch, but these are not, like this one.

Nekteck 3.5/2.5-inch USB Type C 3.0 External HDD Hard Drive Disk Enclosure Case with USB C Interface for 3.5" 2.5Ó SATA SSD, HDD [Support UASP and 8TB Drives] Tool-Free Design - Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MUMTCLI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_xLmRybVPYH8AX

Alright! So There's good news and bad news. The good news is you can absolutely upgrade your computer in a variety of ways. You can even give yourself a dedicated graphics card! The bad news though, is that doing so probably won't be cheap. It might be better to buy a new laptop, or start putting together a desktop rig for yourself. I'll let you be the judge though! Here we go!

RAM: Upgrade from 4GB to 8GB

This would definitely speed up your computer. *GB is the minimum I recommend to anyone, regardless of what they are using the computer for. 4GB of RAM is the minimum necessary for a modern operating system to function, so doubling to 8GB will give you some very noticeable improvement.
I generally stick with Crucial.com RAM for upgrades. They're affordable, have good customer service, and have never steered me wrong before. You have two choices for an 8GB upgrade from them. A standard 8GB module and a Ballistix 8GB module. The latter is supposed to be higher quality, but I'm not really familiar with the differences, nor do I think it's worth the extra money. I'd go with the standard.

Hard Drive: Upgrade to Solid State or Fusion Drive

Upgrading the hard drive won't improve gaming performance, but it will make everything you do on your system faster overall. Not 100% sure, but I think your computer has a 500GB drive in there right now. decent space, but bare bones performance. Upgrading to a Fusion Drive or SSD will give you a huge performance jump. SSDs are the fastest drives out there, but assuming you don't want to decrease your disk space, your going to have to pay the premium. SSHDs aka Fusion Drives offer the best of both worlds; they add flash storage to a standard drive, and optimize performance by putting the system files and most frequently used files and programs on the flash section. Huge performance boost for a MUCH lower price than an SSD. I love these things, and definitely recommend one if budget is an issue. To upgrade your drive, you'll need to either have a backup you can restore to the new drive, or clone your existing hard drive to the new drive beforehand. My recommended method of doing this is by buying a hard drive enclosure. It's super affordable, and will let you repurpose your old hard drive as an external drive or backup drive when you're done.

CPU, Motherboard, and GPU:

Ok, here's where everything gets complex. The RAM and Hard Drive are easy upgrades, but while they will definitely speed things up, they won't help with gaming performance as much as this will. Your processor is trying to handle running the computer and running the games at the same time, and since it's not a great processor, it can't do that very well. Upgrading the processor allows your computer to do a lot more at once, and adding a GPU essentially gives games their own dedicated processor to work with. You'll see huge gaming performance boosts by going this route. Here's the trouble though: Your CPU is integrated in the motherboard. The only way to upgrade it is by swapping in a new motherboard with a better integrated processor. The silver lining here is that your computer model line had several motherboard options, both with more powerful CPUs as well as dedicated integrated GPUs. This means that by buying a new motherboard, you could upgrade your CPU, add a GPU, or both!
Here's the problem though. These motherboards are hard to find, expensive, or both. Parts-People.com has the listings and Dell Part numbers for several upgrades to your system, both with and without NVidia GPUs.

No GPU:
i5-4210U 1.7GHz - 6YPRH |
i5-5200U 2.2GHz - THVGR |
i7-4510U 2.0GHz - 7G1CD

With GPU:
i5-4210U 1.7GHz - 1P4HG |
i5-5200U 2.2GHz - T7TC4 |
i7-4510U 2.0GHz - CHXGJ

As you can see...pricey AND sold out. But at least this gives you a references. You may also notice that the ones with NVidia GPUs actually say they are only compatible with models that already had a discrete GPU...that's not actually true. I double checked with one of their technicians; all you'd need would be a replacement fan/heatsink. The one in your system only covers the CPU. The new one would cover both the CPU and the GPU. Fortunately, this part is inexpensive, both on the Parts-People site and on eBay.
Speaking of eBay, I think it's the best option for finding one of these motherboards. I did find the best version of the bunch for sale, but they're still quite pricey. There is another option though. By watching eBay for used Dell Inspiron models that have the motherboard you need, you might be able to find and win an auction for a whole computer at a far lower price point than the motherboard alone. As it turns outYou'd need to look for keywords like processor speed, and hope that if you tactfully asked if it said "nvidia" somewhere, the seller would understand what to look for. It gets risky, but you might even find auctions for damaged versions being sold for parts. Idiot cracked his screen? Motherboard's probably ok! Idiot spilled beer all over the computer...avoid that one. You wouldn't be restricted to Inspiron 15 (3542) either. As it turns out, these boards were used in Inspiron 14 (3442) and Inspiron 17 (5748) models as well. Definitely helpful if you go that route. Hell, with nothing wrong with it and at the right price point, you might find a whole new computer this way!

Speaking of a new computer...we come to my final point. Cost and worth. If you were to buy the RAM, Fusion Drive, external enclosure, i7 + GPU Motherboard, and Fan/Heatsink right now, you'd be looking at something like $350. Not terrible in the grand scheme of things, especially considering the fact that you could buy them at separate times, upgrading in stages as budget allows. However, the Wirecutter's pick for a budget laptop is $550 on Amazon, and would match or exceed the performance of everything above with no hassle or downtime. Just something to consider!

Phew! That was a lot. Hopefully it's helpful information, and gives you an idea of your options. Let me know if you have any questions!

Sata to USB connector is fine as long as it has two USB connectors, or is USB 3 (blue connector), otherwise it probably won't have enough power. You could get a little hard drive enclosure though and just use it as an external HDD:

http://www.amazon.com/Upgraded-Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Enclosure-EC-UK30/dp/B00LS31KQG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1459231476&sr=8-2&keywords=2.5+enclosure

you need a USB 3.0, I recommend this https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00LS31KQG/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'm using a ssd for Halo 5, MCC and GtaV

Sure, enjoy:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6JQS8C/

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LS31KQG/

I just bought this one for my PS3. Mostly fits your requirements:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00C9TEBJQ

I'm going to put the 250 GB drive from the PS3 in this case and use it with my Wii U:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00LS31KQG

Which reminds me: I forgot to order a Y cable. Can anyone recommend one?

I thought that was implied. Sorry. I ended up getting this case : Incase Pathway Folio and this USB 3.0 enclosure : Sabrent Ultra Slim USB 3.0 to 2.5-Inch SATA External Aluminum Hard Drive Enclosure. I'm going to store the drive in the lid pocket and run th USB cable out of the pocket to a USB port on the Air. This won't let the zipper close all the way, but it will be good enough for practical purposes. Thanks for the input though.

That's meant to be used as an internal hard drive. You can use it as an external drive, but you'll need an enclosure like this.

This won't make a very good external hard drive. USB ports can't provide enough power, so you'll have to plug the enclosure into an outlet.

https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=lp_160354011_1_3?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1465751078&sr=1-3


Cheap, and if you have prime, you can get it Tuesday. :)


Edit: if you live near Louisville, you're welcome to use my pc for free.

I would go with an HP microserver. That should give you one internal SATA and 4 hot swap.

Or use an external JBOD like this: https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

Do you all run any kind of stress tests on yours before shucking? I just bought two more today and I'm wondering if it's really worth testing them. I sure hope mine are Reds so I don't have to deal with the stupid 3.3 pin thing. I plan on putting them in my MediaSonic Probox here. Should I have an issue if they are whites?

EDIT: Got home and found out both are reds! Sweet. Just gonna run HD Sentinel tests on them I think before shucking.

been thinking of just going esata. my old cpu still has 4 drives in it that i dont want to xfer.

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1510186344&sr=8-3&keywords=4+drive+nas&dpID=51LTv47F8OL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

you could just add a USB3 JBOD enclosure and put your drives in that. one connector lots of disks.

edit: like this one

Yeah, so any external enclosure should do. My only recommendation is to go with one that supports eSata instead of a USB only one. USB enclosures often make it harder than necessary to run SMART health tests on your drives, which is something you'll want to be able to do on your array. See http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r28235888-Getting-S-M-A-R-T-data-from-USB-external-drives

Also, take this with a grain of salt, but I've personally had bad experiences running an always-on raid array on this mediasonic bad boy. It works 99% of the time, but once a month or so it just powers down all the drives and I have to reassemble my array to get it back. If you're gonna leave your array running 24-7, I'd stay away from that one.

I do all of this on Ubuntu with a ZFS array, so this is just a question. Have you tried Storage Spaces for this? I would think you could create pools out of your similar sized drives. And it is built into Windows 10.

My Media 'Server':

Ubuntu Desktop OS
Docker Containers running all the usual Apps.
Dell Optiplex 3020SFF
16GB RAM
Root Drive= 64GB SSD
Media Cache Drive=64GB SSD

MediaSonic ProBox connected via USB3
4x4TB Raw Storage = 7TB usable storage


https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

Doesn't need to be a NAS. One of these: https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519844180&sr=8-1&keywords=hf2-su3s2 and a few internal drives work.

That depends on the OS you are running on that box. If it is Unraid for example you would be able to add external drives in an external enclosure for example. Or you could "simply" switch to a bigger case and just go from there. Or as an extreme case scenario you could buy another server and mount the disk there as network mounts (assuming your network is fast enough) or something like that. THe question is what you are willing to pay for that expansion. But yeah, the simplest I guess would be something like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_2?fst=as%3Aoff&qid=1568789811&refinements=p_n_feature_keywords_browse-bin%3A2886986011&rnid=2886899011&s=pc&sr=1-2

(NOt this one in particular, I have no experience with this one, it was just the first I found. Just look for eSATA or if possible external SAS could be even possible, and not USB).

Something like this may work.

https://www.amazon.ca/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

Yeah most of the enclosures like this don't have the best reviews. I kept eyeing the Mediasonic ones, but nothing was overwhelmingly positive.

Do you need all storage to be accessible at the same time, or are you able to swap multiple drives in and out?

If you need all storage connected and accessible at the same time, I'd say go for 4 x 8 TB hard drives

https://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Expansion-Desktop-External-STEB8000100/dp/B01HAPGEIE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1497386514&sr=8-1&keywords=STEB8000100

and pair it with a probox:

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1497386559&sr=1-1&keywords=probox

With tax, that will put you right up against $1000 for 32 TB in a fairly enclosed and accessible setup.

I was looking at similar boxes recently, but for esata. I ended up not needing one, but this was the one I was planning on buying (it has esata and usb 3.0):

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4

Well, it's not strictly a NAS, but for the past few years, I've created my own pseudo-NAS by using two MediaSonic ProBox's attached via USB3 to my Win10 Plex server. It can also connect via eSATA if you want. It's alot cheaper than a NAS box at $100, and they do have versions you can RAID. I run StableBit DrivePool to make management of the media files I put on it easier (and DrivePool can setup a parity drive as well).

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4.

Are you opposed to connecting something externally? One of these works great especially if the drives primarily hold media. I had one previously and had no problem getting max read/writes off the HDDs I had in it connected via USB3

I have used this for about a year without any problems. I works well with the USB-3 interface.

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

Ok so I think your going about this the wrong way.

I’m try to keep it as simple as possible.

Most people use a NAS along with a Plex server because a NAS just can’t do it on its own. They don’t have the proper hardware to perform as good as a computer. You will not be happy!

If you want simple the I would buy a Nvidia Shield and set it up at your server.

I would also buy an external storage device for your hard drives. You can use a nas but you can also use something like this.

The shield might be a little intimidating to you when you set it up but trust me it’s your best plug and play solution available.

I rebooted and it finally recognized the enclosure, but only one of the 3 drives. I'm using the Mediasonic Probox HF2-SU3S2

http://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

If you want a 4 bay, then go with something like THIS.

If you want cheaper, than you'll have to use bigger drives, and get a 2 bay for around $50 - $60.

Kind of like u/RedXon said, I would recommend against a USB 3.0 hub you will probably run into more headaches than it is worth.


If you are dead set on continuing to use your Nvidia Shield as the server I would recommend getting something like this drive Enclosure

One of these, they also have an eight bay model

https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

Oh yeah? OK. Thoughts on Mediasonic?

https://www.amazon.ca/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1502056429&sr=1-1

Mediasonic ProBox does exactly what you want - 4 drives per device, USB or eSATA, not super expensive. I use a couple of them for my JBOD pool. They have an 8-drive capacity model but it's not worth the extra money imo.

Here's a $100 solution to consider...

Mediasonic ProBox HF2-SU3S2 4 Bay 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure - USB 3.0 & eSATA Support SATA 3 6.0Gbps HDD transfer speed https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_tGzxybECG1SXZ


These work really well.

I've got a 4bay Mediasonic PRORAID box that I've used for 5 years, they make non-raid versions on Amazon for $100

Never had any issues with my enclosure.

Mediasonic ProBox HF2-SU3S2 4 Bay 3.5" SATA HDD Enclosure - USB 3.0 & eSATA Support SATA 3 6.0Gbps HDD transfer speed https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003X26VV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_PamHzlHkrmcjv

4 drive USB3 DAS => https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-ProBox-HF2-SU3S2-SATA-Enclosure/dp/B003X26VV4

8 drive USB3 DAS => https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-H82-SU3S2-ProBox-External-Enclosure/dp/B005GYDMYG

I am using a late 2012 base model.

The enclosure I got is available on Amazon for $99.

I have no idea what some of the reviews are taking about with them not working with USB 3 speeds. Mine is smoking fast. Make sure you set the Mini to never sleep so you don't run into RAID corruption issues. But since it is going to be a media downloader, you wouldn't want it to sleep anyway. Plus, the power footprint is tiny.

I am using these drives. They were on sale for $149 each, and will be again I would assume.

So something like this? or even this?

I mean, they seem decently priced for what they do, and especially if you're providing the drives then yeah.

I think you got the wrong site, this seems to be the right one.

ADDED: what I think is the unit you're referring to has a lot of bad 1 star Amazon reviews, from 2011 to March. Some people are certainly having problems with this unit....

That would work.

Or, you could use an external drive enclosure, like this one if you're concerned about the cost of a NAS. this is a lower cost solution. Instead of a few hundred dollars for the NAS (before the drives), this is only $100. It connects to your PC either eSATA or USB 3.0 (2.0 also works, but a little slower). Each drive shows up as an individual drive, but you could set up a software RAID for redundancy. And if you run out, you can always add more enclosures later.

If all you want is something hooked up to a computer you should really just buy a JBOD enclosure and connect it via eSATA / USB3: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003X26VV4/ref=as_li_ss_il?ie=UTF8&tag=geekserious-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B003X26VV4

Your OS can do software RAID on the disks.

You can't "just plug a NAS into your computer" the only interface they have is Ethernet. You'd need a second network card, or plug it into a switch (your router)

Yes. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003X26VV4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A2WSTUX2A6RQ1A&psc=1

I got this MediaSonic 4 drive enclosure for $100 from Amazon a few months ago to replace a similar enclosure I had from Sans Digital that died.

Has USB 3.0 and eSATA connections. It can be used in JBOD mode if you don't want any kind of redundancy. It does not have any hardware RAID capabilities built in though I am doing a SW RAID with mirroring by making mirrors of 2 pairs of drives. That way if one dies, I can still avoid total data loss at least.

I have four 3TB drives in it at the moment.

It is possible, you could also put the VPN on the Pi and save processing power on the W10 box. You also have the possibility of WSL(windows subsystem for Linux) and use the VPN there. 6 cores should be enough but you could look into an i7-8700b, it is 6 core and 12 threads(all depends on your budget). You may also want to look into a hard drive enclosure (something like https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-HFR2-SU3S2-PRORAID-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003YFHEAC ) and use it instead of virtualizing a NAS OS. You really have to define your budget and work from there.

You will definitely see a slowdown as far as data-transfer speeds over usb2 vs 3. The odroid will give you both usb3.0 and gigabit network speeds, as it is not using a shared bus to achieve USB and network. The other thing I would note for you, is that the enclosure you have chosen has no hardware raid capabilities, which means you would need to use software raid. Adding this type of overhead will no doubt be apparent in the system response. I would suggest the extra $50 to get this enclosure by the same manufacturer: https://www.amazon.com/Mediasonic-HFR2-SU3S2-PRORAID-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B003YFHEAC/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1549045199&sr=8-3&keywords=4+bay+SATA+RAID+Hard+Drive+Enclosure. This will give you the option of hardware-raid, allowing for failed drives and an array that keeps working, as well as the simplicity of having a single volume presented to your OS.

​

If you are wanting to use the device as a DE as well, maybe an ubuntu MATE desktop. enable ssh, and install any software you think you need... torrenting client, like deluge or transmission, maybe sabzbd+ for newsgroups, radarr, sonarr, lidarr, couchpotato, sickbeard, headphones, sickrage... whatever you're into. that can all run in the background while you use the desktop environment as well, but with a SoC, you will likely experience a more sluggish response if you have a number of things always on in the background (actually doing some work).

Yes stock OS X is what I use. Apple has made OS X server a separate application that you now purchase from the App Store and run as if it were a regular program. It configures more advanced features of OS X and then can be closed out while the background processes still run.

I went the cheap route and purchased the linked enclosure below with 4 3TB WD Red drives.

Mediasonic HFR2-SU3S2 PRORAID 4 Bay 3.5" SATA Hard Drive Enclosure - USB 3.0 & eSATA https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003YFHEAC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_zx8Ezb4TCGKTN

Because my Mac Mini is older than USB 3.0 and only has 2.0 ports, I purchased this device:

Kanex Thunderbolt to eSATA plus USB 3.0 Adapter https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00LOLBBQQ/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_YA8Ezb8J5GRKV

With that I am able to run the raid via the eSata port which is extremely fast and it provides a USB 3.0 passthrough port if I want to attach another device. Since my older Mac Mini only has one thunderbolt port, I first connect an older desktop Seagate GoFlex drive which has a passthrough thunderbolt port, which I've linked here.

Seagate GoFlex Desk 3TB External Hard Drive for Mac in Black with Thunderbolt Adapter STBC3000102 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007IJ7UHC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_0C8Ezb2R96464

That's a lot of money for only 3TB of usable space.

you could just get something like this mediasonic unit for $150 and add 2 or 4 of your own drives for cheaper. I recommend using it with eSata though, not USB

I have the non-raid version of this for about 6 years now. Its been great.

So I work out of a space that I lease. It's just a 900square foot room in Los Angeles.

That's where I store most of my camera equipment and work items. I host clients in there and edit for them sometimes on the spot.

There I have Four of these RAID Enclosure's, with Four of these(Might not be Red drives but that's irrelevant). Those plug into a Windows PC (through USB) that runs Windows 10, and through homegroup I can connect to it from any other computer. That computer has two jobs. Store files that can be accessed by other computers on the network, and also to continuously upload that data to Backblaze a service that provides backups of unlimted size for $5 a month per computer.

My main PC at work has a bunch of hard drives that I use for projects (and a few games (; sometimes I like to have fun). I also use an Asus laptop to edit when I'm not in the office.

At home I use an aging server PC (cuts down on power usage) that has the exact same setup as mentioned above, but also has a few internal drives for personal media like movies and music.

I can get further into detail about how I store my data if you'd like.

I'm happy with my Mediasonic PRORAID 4 Bay Enclosure with 4 - 4 TB Western Digital Reds. I have it configured with RAID 5 (distributed parity) so 10.9 TB capacity.

It's probably not the most cost effective setup at $826, nor future proof--when I'm out of space I'll either need another set of enclosure and drives or have to upgrade all my drives to 6 TB+ and find a use for the old ones.

EDIT: additional details

This is what you need: https://www.amazon.com/Protronix-Optical-Drive-Universal-12-7mm/dp/B004XIU4T2

Yeah, totally. Most laptops only come with a single drive sled though, so installing two isn't really possible, unless you buy one that has a CD drive and install a CD-drive to 2.5" mount adapter

In my R710s my boot drives use an DVD-drive-to-2.5" adapter and are connected to the onboard SATA. R610 should be able to do the same thing.

These have been my go-to.

• Gut the DVD, use this: https://www.amazon.com/Protronix-Optical-Drive-Universal-12-7mm/dp/B004XIU4T2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1476395723&sr=8-3&keywords=optical+2.5 and this http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Genuine-Dell-PowerEdge-R710-Optical-32-in-SATA-Cable-GP703-/111012881837?hash=item19d8e225ad:g:KwcAAOxy5P9RHQhC
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Syba-Slot-Tray-Mobile-SY-MRA25023/dp/B0080V73RE for the second ssd
  
  I think this will work.

So you'll have to use a optical drive caddy which your SSD slots right into.

>One of these.

>One of these.

>And a regular 2.5" SATA SSD. I'm assuming you don't actually use an optical drive.

Taken from here. Credit to u/Dstanding.

If you already have the DVD drive installed you won't need to buy the cable. I just bought 2 of these, and they work perfectly in my R510 and R710.

This should work, I'd think.

=https://www.amazon.com/Protronix-Optical-Drive-Universal-12-7mm/dp/B004XIU4T2

We just did this for some r710's.. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004XIU4T2

Takes the place of the DVD. It's very good.

So basically, you can't pass through some of the drives in the controller, it's all or nothing with PCI passthrough

what i did for my esxi+freenas+r710 setup is:

1. Install ESXI onto a USB thumbdrive I plugged into the internal USB slot. (booted the installer from another usb drive)
   
2. Buy small (only needs to be large enough to fit FreeNAS VM Image ) SSD and put it in one of these
   
3. Set my SSD to be the primary ESXI datastore, and then install the FreeNAS VM onto that SSD datastore.
   
4. Pass through the entire drive controller to this FreeNAS VM
   
5. Create volume using all of the drives in the drive bay, and then use FreeNAS normally :)
   
6. I also mount a FreeNAS share back in ESXI so I can store larger VMs on FreeNAS (they just won't boot unless freenas is running)
   
   If you wanted to use those drives in your bay, you'd have to get a second controller, and only pass one of the controllers over to freenas

Pickup a USB dock, hopefully all the drives are sata ?

I have a rosewill that does 2.5" and 3.5" sata drives.


EXAMPLE :

http://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-SuperSpeed-Docking-Station/dp/B0099TX7O4/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1410062074&sr=1-1&keywords=desktop+hdd+dock

this is for the dock

I don't think the first solution will work if the macbook is broken (I could be wrong), and there are better options than gutting another Macbook. In case no one else chimes in, I'd recommend getting a hard drive dock. I know you probably don't want to have to buy anything else to solve this issue, but it may come in handy in the future.

Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0099TX7O4/ref=sxr_pa_click_within_right2?pf_rd_t=301&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=2329824862&pf_rd_i=hard+drive+docks&pf_rd_r=0B38AH1ZBTKKZ45WV4FT&pf_rd_s=desktop-rhs-carousels&psc=1

You can purchase a docking station/adapter depending on the SSD's interface. Examples {no endorsement(s) implied}:

• StarTech USB 3.0 to 2.5" SATA III Hard Drive Adapter Cable w/ UASP - SATA to USB 3.0 Converter for SSD/HDD - Hard Drive Adapter Cable
  
• Sintech M.2(NGFF) B-M KEY Dual Notch SATA SSD to USB 3.0 Adapter card
  
• Cable Matters USB 3.0 SATA Hard Drive Docking Station - Supports up to 6TB Drives
  
  Then it is pretty much plug and play, providing the formatting on the SSD is something that your OS recognizes.
  
  Generally speaking, you should be able to plug the old SSD back into your current system as another SATA device depending on how many you currently have connected/how many your mobo supports, but without your system spec info my statement may be fallacious.
  
  edit for linkage

Grab one of these if you plan to go into IT work; invaluable.

http://smile.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-SuperSpeed-Docking-Station/dp/B0099TX7O4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1410909013&sr=8-2&keywords=usb+3.0+hard+drive+dock

Ah I gotcha. Ok...so looks like your boot loader problem is worse than I imagine. It is as you say. Now it is time to focus on recovering your files. After the recovery, you can just nuke the whole drive and start fresh.

Alright, lets try option 1 which is also the "free" option because it doesn't cost any money to do this. Do you have a spare computer to use?

Because you will need a spare computer to make a bootable portable OS. The main goal is to basically load up that portable OS as your main OS and then access the drive and pull out any and all files that you wish to save.

I recommend using Sergei Strelec's Windows PE. Download that rar file on another computer. It should have an ISO file of Windows PE and some tools to mount it on a bootable USB drive. There are instructions in the package to help you out there. Here is a quick youtube video on how to make a bootable Sergei Strelec USB drive. Once you have the bootable USB drive mounted with Sergei Strelec's Windows PE. You will boot into it. The Windows PE will look like your typical Windows OS. Access your hard drive and begin pulling out all files you want to save and back them up to somewhere else.


--------------

Option 2: This option will cost some money because you will need to buy a physical hard drive dock like this one. You will remove your hard drive from your laptop and hook it up to the dock. The dock will turn your hard drive into an external USB hard drive and you simply plug it into another computer and begin pulling all of your files out.

Some other people online say that it could be something you have plugged in that's fucking with windows. Shut it down completely and disconnect everything possible (usb dongles, mics, headsets, etc).

If that doesn't do it, my next step would be recover the data and reinstall windows. Get a hard drive dock, connect to another computer, back up important data, then reinstall windows 10 from scratch.

Ok, I really like the advice of /u/zottelbeyer

, but I will try to give my own. Just remember: There is never enough storage space.

My current setup: TS-673 with 2x512GB M.2 SSD RAID 1 as system volume + 4x10TB HDD RAID 6 ad storage volume, with intention of expanding up to 6x10TB as I need more space. Synology DS218J with 1x10TB+1x3TB HDD JBOD used as backup unit.

First: I personally don't think I'd use RAID 10 when I can use RAID 6. RAID 6 offer better drive protection than RAID 10, so yes, I'd also switch to RAID 6.

Second: Backup in the same machine is not considered backup. There are tons of things that can destroy all drives in a case at same time. For example:

https://old.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/dc8hda/nearly_lost_all_my_data/

So, The fact that you are backuping your main RAID 10 data into a different 8TB drive inside the same NAS means that you are in fact not performing any backup at all. One ransomware infection will destroy the totality of your data.

Ok, now, let's dive in.

Currently, the sweet spot of cost/storage are located in 8TB drives, but slowly switching to 10TB. Personally, I'd go with 10 or 12 TB drives. You can get 10TB WD red drives for 189€ (WD element drives shucked). With 5x10TB drives in RAID 6 you get 30TB (27.3 TB of usable space). If you use RAID 5 (more about that later), you can bump up to 40TB (36.4 TB of usable space). That is 5 times what you currently have, and without need to buy a new enclosure. That is leaving your 6th bay as offsite for the other user.

Right now, IMHO there is no reason to stick with lots and lots of low storage drive. Get fewer with higher capacity. Prices have dropped enough.

You have also to take into account that bay space is also an important issue. That makes in the end bigger drives more valuable that small drives.

You can start increasing your drive count slowly, and adding more drives as your space needs increase.

About backups: I really encourage you to move your backup outside your TVS-673. If you go the bigger drive route you will have 4TB drives spare (your current RAID array) that you can use to perform backup. I used this:

https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Docking-Station-Support/dp/B0099TX7O4/

or a cheaper version:

https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-SATA-USB-Cable-USB3S2SAT3CB/dp/B00HJZJI84/

Connect your drive, then you can create a backup job to store your important files on it, and then disconnect it and store it away. Repeat with each drive you want. Perform a new backup once a week. In case of NAS destroy, you have full backup available.

I personally prefer to use another cheap NAS to automatically perform backups, but that means spending some more money. About RAID 0 backups, it's not ideal, but it is doable. RAID is not backup, is intended to reduce downtime. Strictly speaking, you don't need RAID if you are willing to assume downtime while you restore from your backups. So, RAID 0 (or JBOD) is acceptable as backup plan. Yes, if one drive of your backup fails, you lose everything, but it is a backup. All you have to do is switch the failing drive and recreate the backup from scratch. Pretty straight forward and it doesn't risk your data. Since your main data is a RAID array, in case of failure of your backup RAID 0, you still have tolerance for at least another drive failure (RAID 5) or even two (RAID 6) in your main array.

• Main RAID 1, 5 or 6 + Backup RAID 0 or JBOD: Ok
  
• Main RAID 0, JBOD or non array + Backup RAID 1, 5 or 6: OK
  
• Main RAID 0, JBOD or non array + Backup RAID 0 or JBOD: NOPE
  
  Finally, if you decide to go "full datahoard mode" (rack server, +10 bays, ZFS or BTRFS , etc) then by all means, go to /r/DataHoarder and /r/homelab. Tons of useful advice there.
  
  In case you go this route, then yes, get a nice rack, set ZFS, and use your TVS-673 as an expensive backup NAS to keep your data safe. I personally use borg backup, but ZFS has a nice snapshot backup utility with incremental copy.
  
  Sorry for the wall of text. I think I addressed most of your concerns, right?

Right on. After you pull that big ass drive from that iMac, you are going to need a hard drive adapter to interface with it. It's a SATA drive inside that iMAc. Next we need to buy a SATA to usb-c adapter Here.
I bet that drive isn't dead yet and it will mount (show up on your desktop) on your macbook pro. Then just navigate the folders and copy and paste.

Edit: and by the way, I can pull a hard drive from an imac in under 5 min. If you have the right tools, you can do it in 20-30 min.

You could get a dock like this that you can mount the drive and connect via usb to your current system. Check the connections on the drive to make sure they are SATA connections. https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Docking-Thunderbolt-compatible/dp/B0099TX7O4/ref=sr_1_10?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1521510179&sr=1-10&keywords=sata+hdd+dock

I have a TS-563 as well. I think I'd just populate all 4 bays of the TR-004 with 8TB drives.

You'd still have 2 USB ports on the TS free for a USB drive dock (like this) for your swapping needs.

You can find sata enclosures really really cheap.

http://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-SuperSpeed-Docking-Station/dp/B0099TX7O4/ref=sr_1_32?ie=UTF8&qid=1426214802&sr=8-32&keywords=sata+enclosure


have one of these and i think i paid 10€ for it, i just randomly picked an amazon sale for it.

push drive in, and its an usb drive.

example

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0099TX7O4/ref=mp_s_a_1_15?qid=1449880332&sr=8-15-spons&pi=AC_SX118_SY170_QL70&keywords=Docking+station+sata&psc=1

Yeah. It's a Rosewill 3 x 5.25-Inch to 4 x 3.5-Inch Hot-swap cage. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DGZ42SM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_3FLjDbDN2ECSM

Also available at amazon.ca

https://www.amazon.ca/Rosewill-5-25-Inch-3-5-Inch-Hot-swap-SATAIII/dp/B00DGZ42SM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1473877719&sr=8-1&keywords=cage+34

i know this isnt particularly on topic but i have two of these in my home server and i love them. just wire up the power and data to the cage and you can easily add/change drives without any issue. the drive slots also support 2.5 inch as well.

TLDNR; Without having more info on what I described in the first paragraph. I'd say just buy a couple 10TB Easystores on sale ($180ea) and use your current SBCs and smaller server setups. After I wrote all of this I saw that you are from AUS(I think), so no clue if you can get close to $18 per TB in your area, but prices are coming down every year so sometimes better to just save $$$. It is super fun to think about a new and more powerful setup, plus buying it and putting it together, but as you can see I've done a lot of this thinking already. You are also probably feeling guilty that you have to make use of all your 2TBs, but lots of little HDDs do require more electricity to power up and cool. You need storage density and you cant get around that. Upgrade to 10TB and use the 2TB as a cold storage (backup). You are at a heck of a crossroads because the cost to go from SBCs to a "Proper" server plus buying storage isnt a cheap one. Currently there are limited stepping stones, but more powerful SBCs and Ryzen Embedded are here and on the way so wait if possible. Either way you go, you will spend more money and use up storage faster than you planned... The more powerful SBCs arent always cheap either, once you factor in cost of: memory card, power supply, case, possible heatsink/extra heat sinks, a fan, etc. Their lower price starts creeping into the middle range...


What brand, how many, and how long have the 2TBs been powered on for? It sounds like you are currently swapping out the 2TBs for others depending on what you want to watch and on which HDD it is? Do you have any projected storage numbers and what is your current and future budget? You mentioned that you have a small dedicated server? Is that another SBC or what is with that setup and how many sata ports? I'd forgo the transcoding ideas and nix buying any sort of new "Server" options. Focus on reusing what you have or going with a "Used" setup, so you can start saving that money for when 8TB or 10TB Easystores go on sale.

IMO for a true new build you'd want to price in ECC RAM, UPS, and I personally prefer a case that has hot swap access to HDDs. The Rosewill that meemo linked cant be beat for the price especially since it comes with 7 fans, but it requires extra steps to access the HDDs (internally only), which may be fine for you. There is Mediasonic (JBOD version only) that you could plug into your SBC, but that technically isnt hot swappable either, plus it is USB 3.1 to USB-C which isnt the worst but it isnt the best... I know you wanted to get away from SBCs, but if you disable transcoding there are some SBCs that use SATA to SATA connections that are very viable. Any SBC or standalone storage that uses USB is a potential risk, since USB can suffer connection issues when doing rebuilding, parity, and scrubbing maintenance (same if your power goes out, hence a need for UPS). Helios4 is a time restricted option, since they only open up orders once or twice a year (they are currently taking orders). *I saw a post saying that since the Helios4 is a 32bit processor, so it is limited to 16TB volumes. You get 2GB ECC + 4x SATA and I believe you can use any HDD size with that (double check tho), so 4 separate 10TB volumes (4x$180sale=$720+tax), not including parity... I'm not sure how the 32bit and the 16TB volume limit effect drive pooling... I gotta research more into that. I'm not familiar with the UnRaid, FreeNAS, or the other options that you mentioned, but OpenMediaVault4 has MergerFS drive pooling and Snapraid plugin, you could run 3x storage HDD and 1x parity or you could forgo parity for now. If you prefer Windows (You can also run omv4 on windows in a VM) there is Stablebit Drivepool (Not free) for pooling and then Snapraid (not completely novice friendly) for parity. Depending on the HDD type you could reuse the discarded Easystore enclosures and put your 2TB drives in there (still USB connection). If they are a different brand (non WD/HGST) I think you have to desolder something on the Easystore board? I lost the link on how to do that. You could also just keep the 2TB as cold storage backups, but that still carries a risk, but it's cheaper. You could also get 2nd Helios, but for about the same price you could use that money on a 10TB. That would replace 5x of your 2TB drives... Not too mention the extra electricity to power and cool 5x drives vs 1x drive... As you can see, storage density starts coming into play here, big time.
UPS https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00429N18S/
Mediasonic https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078YQHWYW/
Helios4 https://shop.kobol.io/collections/frontpage/products/helios4-full-kit-2gb-ecc-3rd-batch-pre-order?variant=18881501528137
https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/as17od/helios4_batch_3_available_for_preorder/

There are other SATA SBCs that you could use and you could also do a janky setup and put the SATA SBCs inside a hot swappable case like this Silverstone one. There are other cases, but this is the only name that came to mind. This case also doesnt have any power supply or fans to cool the HDDs so there will be extra cost there, plus you'll need a power supply, PLUS a way to turn on your power supply (with a power board), since that SBC setup wont have a motherboard. You can also make your own "Dumb" JBOD HDD enclosure and connect that to your mini server. Another option to SBCs is the ASRock cpu+mobo line: J3455-ITX, J4105-ITX, annd J5005-ITX. The issue with this that it appears you are still limited to 4x SATA or other variations of these boards have a PCIe 2.0 x16 slot at x1 or x2 transfer lanes/speed instead of x8 or x16... Also you have to factor in the price of ram and a mini PICO power supply. There is a subreddit+website that focuses on used parts for cheap server setups, but you might want to verify the power consumption of those setups when they are idling. With the NAS killer option, you gotta make sure all of the parts are still available on ebay or refurb sites, plus make sure you have time to build your setup to verify everything is working plus stress test it before the return window closes to weed out any weak used parts.
Silverstone https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IAELTAI/
HDD enclosure option https://www.amazon.com/Rosewill-5-25-Inch-3-5-Inch-Hot-swap-SATAIII/dp/B00DGZ42SM/
Power Board https://www.amazon.com/Super-Micro-Computer-Supermicro-Cse-ptjbod-cb2/dp/B008FQZHZE
J3455-ITX https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=13-157-728
https://www.serverbuilds.net/nas-killer-v30/

Another option if you really want transcoding and a more powerful "Server" would be a Dell Optiplex 7010, which are used business computers that are "Refurbished", but I think they just take them from that company and wipe the hard drive, nothing else. The Minitower Desktop version is roomier than the slightly cheaper SFF (SmallFormFactor) version, which might be important if you want to swap out the power supply, watch the youtube video to get an idea of what you are getting into. Since a cheap power supply is a weak point plus a potential hazard I'd recommend swapping in a new power supply, but you could risk it with its current power supply. Everything else should last for a good while. You'll also need to install a HBA card. You can get Genuine used cards that were in good working order or you could get a new knock off from China. Both options are viable, but personally I prefer the used option. Theartofserver, ebay seller, also has a youtube channel, so I purchased from him, but I have also purchased from other sellers and got good working parts (I think Ebay still has the most honest and accurate rating system out there?). Since the Optiplex doesnt have room for internal HDDs then you are left with a few options with various HBA cards (internal vs external), expander cards, and adapter setups (SFF-8087 to SFF-8088). If you want it to look "Proper" there will be a lot of wasted money on 2x adapters (1x Optiplex + 1x external HDD enclosure) and an extra SFF-8088 cable between the two. I'd just go janky with it and get a longer reverse breakout cable of 3.3feet (4x SATA to 1x SFF-8087), which should be long enough to go from your external HDDs setup into the Optiplex case and internally connected to the HBA card, like the popular 9201-8i. The janky part being that you'll have the reverse breakout cable snaking directly into each case, instead of plugging into an adapter in the back.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K0GNUOG/
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Internal-Breakout-SFF-8087/dp/B018YHS9GM
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Genuine-LSI-6Gbps-SAS-HBA-LSI-9201-8i-9211-8i-P20-IT-Mode-ZFS-FreeNAS-unRAID/162958581156
Single adapter https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16816133055
Double adapter https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GPD9QEQ/
SFF-8080 cable https://www.amazon.com/Norco-Technologies-C-SFF8088-External-SFF-8088/dp/B003J9CZCK/

Does your case have free 5.25" bays? You can get a hard drive cage like this for it.

These are the rosewills in question: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DGZ42SM/

You could also get some of these with molex -> sata adapters, but seriously be absolutely sure they are crimped: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01BMJ1WD6

For ten comfy drives, Fractal Design Define R5
and two of these.

For eleven drives, three toasty, Fractal Design Define R5, and this.

For twelve comfy drives, Lian-Li PC-A79.

For thirteen drives, four comfy: Corsair 750D, this, and this.

For fourteen drives, five toasty: Corsair 750D, this, and this.

Those caddies are actually from the Whitebox server. This is the cage that is pictured with the 2.5" drive.

I have to get some adapters for the 2.5" SSD's I plan on putting in the supermicro

I have a Coolermaster HAF X and I threw one of these in there. I currently have 9 3.5" hard drives and an SSD just free-ballin' it in there.

I like it since I can fit my huge Noctua NH-D14, my larger GPU, and all my other PCI cards in case along with the drives and everything stays coolish.

Edit: Oh yeah my two hot swap bays on my case are open too. I might jam two more drives in there sometime.

Sabrent Ultra Slim USB 2.0 to 2.5-Inch SATA External Aluminum Hard Drive Enclosure [Black] (EC-UK25) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E362W9O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_-QZFAbEHJ8ZS2

You may need larger depending on what you are using

It absolutely helps but it has to be a Solid State Drive, not just an external hard drive. I bought this Samsung one back in April and it is actually $12 cheaper than when I bought it. Since that was months ago, someone might have a more current example of which is currently the best on market. I've been very happy with it though.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07864WMK8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is what I'm using:

- Some old Crucial 128GB SSD.

- Sabrent 2.5-Inch SATA to USB 3.0 Enclosure - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S

- Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8265, 2230, 2x2 AC + BT, Vpro - https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B01LCR1SKA

- Delock Double Antenne WLAN MHF IV Plug 802.11 ac/a/h/b/g/n 5dBi 150 mm PCB Internal - https://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B01D6522G0

If you opt for WiFi USB be careful because "WiFi USB with Linux Drivers" doesn't mean "WiFi USB with ARM64 Linux Drivers", from 4 different WiFi USBs devices I have here only 1 worked. I moved to m.2 WiFi+BT card because the WiFi+SSD(+Linux on the SSD, +Keyboard+Mouse) over USB was unstable and the system locked frequently forcing a full reboot.

I’m fairly certain what you ordered is just a mounting bracket for installing the ssd in a computer. You need a SATA III to usb3.0 external enclosure.

This is the one that I, as well as several other people are using.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1525812131&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=sabrent+2.5-inch+sata+to+usb+3.0+tool-free+external+hard+drive&dpPl=1&dpID=31nOEoFxlKL&ref=plSrch

I'll make a few points:

• HDD size: Do you plan on eventually owning a lot of games? If so, you're probably going to end up with an external HDD at some point, since you can get 2+ TB for pretty dang cheap these days. If you suspect that you will get an external drive, then the 1TB Xbox probably isn't really worth the extra cost over a 500GB. I have a 2TB external on my Xbox with like....100 games installed, and it's only at 50% capacity. I don't store anything on the internal drive except apps.
  
  
• I agree with you about the S. Just save the money and buy the original instead. Maybe the S's trade-in price toward Scorpio would be higher enough to make up for the extra cost you'd pay now, but that's speculation only, on something that is more than a year away.
  
  
• Here's 1 really big selling point for the original as well, imo. This can hold a 2.5" HDD inside, as well as adding 3 more ports, so if you include the HDD connection you're effectively getting 4 ports on the front of your console instead of just the 1 on the side, plus you don't have an external HDD dangling around. This is honestly the biggest reason why I won't be getting an S, because I use both back USB ports and 2/3 front USB ports most of the time. I can't go back to having only 1 front port. If this brand makes a hub that fits onto the S then I'll be way more tempted to buy it.
  
  
• Games: As someone else said, Ori is a fantastic game, honestly one of the best games this generation that I've played. In a completely different vein, Witcher 3 is also absolutely phenomenal. Probably the best game I've ever played (although I play it on PC). I guess since you're coming from PC you probably are more curious about Xbox exclusives though. Sunset Overdrive is a really fun and often overlooked game, just a lot of wacky stuff going on all the time. Halo 5 is very highly regarded by a lot of Halo fans for its balanced multiplayer mechanics; I've been playing Halo since 2002 or 2003, and honestly I'm not a huge fan of Halo 5. But I can't deny that the multiplayer is very refined and balanced at the core. The campaign was pretty shit though, story-wise.
  
  I kinda got my own wall of text going here. Let me know if you have more questions!

You can get an external hard drive pretty cheap to add space.

Or if you want something more slick looking, you can get [one of these](http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO? andie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00s00) and [this hard drive](http://www.amazon.com/Western-Digital-Drives-Intellipower-WD20NPVX/dp/B00COFNBPA?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00) like I did.

I have one of these with a 2TB drive.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=cm_sw_su_dp

Gives you more USB slots too.

I'd get something like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=olp_product_details?_encoding=UTF8&me=

I found this I was thinking about getting when I need more room. This looks pretty cool and has decent reviews.
I hate having externals plugged in. This would look nicer

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=cm_sw_r_other_awd_ZgIDwbR0F66PQ

https://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO

Thats awesome! I have never seen that, but just ordered me one. http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO

I got a 2TB usb 3.0 external drive for my xbox one on my birthday(dec 5th) and when i installed it i followed these steps.

• With the console off, plug in the drive.
  
• Turn on the console and wait for the home screen to load.
  
• a notification will appear telling you that your 'External drive is ready to be configured'
  
• Hold the home button to open that and configure it.
  
• After configuration you will be giving a final window asking to install all future items on this drive, choose yes!
  
  
  Hope this helped, I just did it myself, but if you're willing to spend $140 on a 2tb expansion drive for your xbox I would suggest doing it with these.
  
  $40 - 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure & 3 Front USB 3.0 Ports Media HUB - Xbox One
  
  $100 - 2.5" Sata HDD

You can use a hub just fine. I am with several drives and dont have any issues.

Also, check this out. https://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1438272087&sr=8-1&keywords=collective+minds+xbox+enclosure

It's not the cheapest route, but I went with this enclosure:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sxl1?qid=1464103047&sr=1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65


I then paired it with an appropriate 2TB drive. It's the cleanest looking solution and gives you additional USB ports.

I'd recommend something like this for the ISOs: https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/

This for a tool kit: https://www.amazon.com/iFixit-Pro-Tech-Toolkit-2016/dp/B01GF0KV6G/ref=sr_1_3?s=power-hand-tools&ie=UTF8&qid=1511801169&sr=1-3&keywords=ifixit

As far as ISOs for the iodd, I'd suggest in addition to what you have already:

http://windowsmatters.com/2017/10/02/gandalfs-win10pe-x64-redstone-2-build-15063-version-10-01-2017/

If you work on Macs, a bootable USB of El Capitan and Sierra/High Sierra. You can create a virtual USB on the iodd for this.

I would guess, something like this

I was able to get this adapter here and an nvme drive like the one you posted and I remember it working well; it was pretty straightforward. I had issues with hibernation, I think it’s a known issue that you just change the sleep settings to avoid. You’d have to google around for specifics but it was really easy to change. Overall though it was a great way to get more storage for way cheaper than the OWC or OEM drives.

Is that an A1502/MacBook Pro 12,1? Also who is the manufacturer of the SSD? The Amazon page I found for a Sintech adapter lists the following 3 Samsung models as incompatible:

Samsung PM981
Samsung 950 Pro
Samsung 970 Evo Plus

Get a sintech adapter and Samsung 970 pro 512gb


https://www.amazon.com/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2017-ST-NGFF2013-C/dp/B01CWWAENG

https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-970-PRO-512GB-MZ-V7P512BW/product-reviews/B07C8Y31G2

If its too expensive, scale down as needed. Preferred 970 pro due to write endurance vs evo and speed hike from 256gb variant.

Note: make sure you have High Sierra installation performed, even to external hdd ( need firmware update for nvme drive to be detected)

Works well on my retina 2015 15” avg 1500MB/s read write

https://www.amazon.com/Sintech-Adapter-Upgrade-2013-2017-ST-NGFF2013-C/dp/B01CWWAENG

You can also use this NVMe adapter.
Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card for Upgrade 2013-2015 Year Macs(Not Fit Early 2013 MacBook Pro) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CWWAENG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_kYa7BbE3TNJKZ


Make sure you install High Sierra or later first to get the firmware update that supports NVMe.

I’ve upgraded my air’s drive (2015 model) with a Samsung evo. I after trying a few adapters I found this specific adapter to work. Other than that a Ubuntu bootable flash drive was used to format the drive as the Mac cannot see it. This video was the guide I followed primarily. The job is a tad tedious but well worth it as the Samsung nvme drive is blazing fast and so much bigger

You need an adapter to use standard NVMe drives. The best and most reliable one is Sintech. Get the long one, not the short one. It’s like $17 on Amazon. I’ve been using one in a 2019 iMac with an HP 950EX for nearly a year now with no problems. It’ll save you a fortune over the Apple ones and there is no performance penalty. I get close to 3000mbps with it. Make sure the drive you choose is an NVMe drive not just m.2.

Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card for Upgrade 2013-2015 Year Macs(Not Fit Early 2013 MacBook Pro) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CWWAENG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_W3eSDbM2H8SVX

> I want to upgrade my SSD to 512 GB with NVME. But I heard a lot of converter that would actually affected to system caused not to boot up from sleep. Any good converter from NVME M.2 to PCIE?

If you have a little extra money to spend on it, the OWC Aura doesn't even need a converter, it's a native Apple connector SSD. If you want to save money with an M.2, I hear good things about the Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter but I have no personal experience with any of them; hopefully someone else can chime in here. If you do find out, let me know. I'd love to make the upgrade myself.

> Should I put on a case or just a skin on my Macbook to prevent scratches?

It's all subjective. Sources say even the vinyl coverings like DBrand (especially on the bottom case like over the keyboard) cause the MacBooks to run even hotter, and a case would be even worse, so it should be avoided. I don't know if it's true or not, but it seems logically sound. (And I personally don't use either one.)

> How to prevent "Staingate"

You can slow it down using a nice microfiber cloth to clean the screen, and no chemicals like Windex or other glass cleaner. And not cleaning it too often. The whole issue is just the anti-reflective coating peeling off the screen.

> How to charge Macbook properly?

Just like any Li-ion battery; repeated deep dischargings, and never discharging is what's bad for the battery. If you're near a plug, go ahead and plug it in. But if you're just leaving it on a desk in one place, take it off the charger once a week or so and use it. If you ever want to store it for a long period of time without using it, storing it full and storing it empty both hurt the battery. What you want to do is discharge to about 50% and then turn it off and store it.

> Any idea to make a signature Apple lighting logo on the back of Macbook?

You can get vinyl stickers to make it glow all sorts of colors or patterns. I personally have a pink one that I used to have on my 15" 2011, and is now on my 13" 2015. (They're reusable.) You could probably even find someone who would make them with a custom graphic.

Thanks for your input i feel much better about using this machine now. I checked but it seems i only have one slot for SSD. I went with the following adapter a few others i found had success with.

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CWWAENG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The best way to see is to search for the model number + tear down / upgrade and see if you find stuff. Otherwise it is boring technical docu. Usually you will find videos or guides.

In regards to that probook, it is nice. Those are business devices that have been retired (generally used well for 2-3 years.) The nice thing about those is they are usually well made, cheap, and you can find replacement parts easy because of how they flood the market at the end of their expected life cycle. If it doesn't fail in those 90 days, it probably won't. I've bought a few refurbs without issue... some have had but they usually get resolved quickly. Just make sure to put it through its paces early and quickly.

As far as 6th vs 7th, there are differences. They may not affect you as much as someone else. The reality is that the performance jumps between intel gen isn't huge. It is there but not so much to say, you must upgrade. Now, when we talk about 8th gen... to me the core count is a massive upgrade. 9th gen hopefully will be a new architecture (this one has spanned 3 gens now... ugh) and should be a significant increase that could justify an upgrade. That said, so long as you don't skimp too much now, you won't have any issues for years.

The caddy is fine, I've done stuff like that no problem.

As far as benchmarks... https://www.notebookcheck.net/ and sites like tomshardware are great to look at. There are others. Also the site you linked (userbenchmark) is great as well. http://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Intel-Core-i5-6200U-vs-Intel-Core-i5-7200U/m36796vsm153577 this is their compare tool. Very handy. Combine that with notebook check and other resources to get an understanding of its real world performance.

I still like that dell the most... https://www.boadica.com.br/produtos/p141935/dell-computer-inspiron-15-5559

Here is a guide on how to replace the boot drive.
http://laptopmedia.com/highlights/inside-dell-inspiron-5559-disassembly-upgrade-guide-and-internal-photos/

If you do this I suggest buying something like the below link. You can use it as a backup drive in that case which is great though I strongly suggest multiple backups.

https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1512077029&sr=8-3&keywords=external+drive+enclosure

Here is info on the caddy upgrade for it...

http://www.tomsguide.com/forum/id-2862858/dell-inspiron-5559-replace-dvd-drive-ssd.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSLvD6jIJ4A



http://www.tomsguide.com/forum/id-2862858/dell-inspiron-5559-replace-dvd-drive-ssd.html

As far as the SSD, you would want a minimum of 250gb in my opinon. Ask yourself how much data you are really storing... Consider use of services such as Onedrive, Google Drive, SpiderOak, icloud, dropbox, etc... (some are better than others)

For example, I have a surface with 128gb on it.. perfect for what I use it for. I have never had an issue. It is almost entirely a work device.

I have a gaming laptop with 256gb ssd. This is great for a couple games and some work stuff. No problems.

I have a main desktop with 2tb of SSD storage and 4tb of standard HDD for backups. This is my main work horse and I use it for work and pleasure. That still isn't enough storage ha!

I have a server with 16tb of storage and I am working on building a NAS with 100s.

I have some cloud servers with as little as 20gb of storage and as much as 200tb. It ranges depending on use...

You get the idea. So, ask yourself how much you actually need. I think a 250gb+ ssd is plenty. If you had that 1tb as external and used online services, you'd be hard pressed to use it unless you start doing some data processing, media creation, or gaming.

https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW/

Looks like now the cheapest is a bit over that.

If you keep an eye out for cheap drives they come along on Amazon often:

https://www.amazon.com/Zheino-240gb-Internal-Notebook-Desktop/dp/B07DK6YDS5/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1539316356&sr=1-1&keywords=240gb+ssd&refinements=p_n_feature_three_browse-bin%3A14027458011

https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1539316471&sr=8-11&keywords=usb+3.0+hard+drive+enclosure+2.5

Most external SSDs aren't priced as competitively compared to internal. What I'd do is get a decent cheap 2.5" SSD and a 2.5" external enclosure that runs off of USB 3.0.

https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1539532693&sr=8-4&keywords=2.5%22+usb+sata

​

Since there's only one drive bay, maybe you could use something like this?

Ignore the guy who says it's not fast. It IS fast to use external SSD. Nearly as fast as internal and you will NOT notice a difference in day-to-day use. External SSD is a fantastic solution.

All you need is an external enclosure that supports UASP. You CAN buy an external SSD with its own enclosure, sure. That works too. Just make sure it's USB 3.

For example, this: https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1550755412&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=ORICO+uasp&psc=1

Coupled with any decent 2.5" SSD will work. So a Samsung, Crucial or Intel SSD put into that enclosure will work. And as I said, you'll get speeds of 400 to 475 mb/sec no problem. You can't tell it's not internal. Period. Don't listen to anyone who hasn't done it on multiple Macs.

I have a 2014 mini with a cheap USB 3 ORICO external enclosure that supports UASP. Inside, I threw in an Intel 545p. Fast. Works great. Use it for boot and apps.

Just buy a hard drive enclosure like this and then plug it into your laptops USB port and explore the drive and see if you can pull your photos, documents etc from the Users folder.

There are many options regularly cheaper than this for 2.5" drives. Some are much better than others for HDD, most are just fine for SSD. No great deals at the moment, but here's one example. Sorry, I'm tired :/

The only thing that makes this a good price is it fits 3.5" drives, one should expect twice the price for anything used on a daily basis to be decent, not that this one is.

First option would go together with something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Kingston-120GB-Solid-SA400S37-120G/dp/B01N6JQS8C/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=128gb+ssd&qid=1571334669&sr=8-4

plus this:
https://www.amazon.com/ORICO-USB3-0-External-Enclosure-Supported/dp/B01M08LCXW/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=sata+enclosure+usb&qid=1571334903&sr=8-1

Any old small-capacity 2.5” solid state disk should work.

Personally i would get a 2.5inch SSHD (almost as fast as an SSD but as cheap as a HDD) and get any external USB 3.0 2.5inch enclosure. I picked up a the 1tb Seagate Firecuda for £55 and its great.

Edit: This is what i use

Firecuda SSHD


External Hard drive Enclosure

It’s an all around speed boost for any game and the home screen too. You’d need a drive and case like this:

Samsung 860 EVO 500GB 2.5 Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-76E500B/AM) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0781Z7Y3S/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_3f2YBb1ZKD6J4

AmazonBasics 2.5-inches SATA Hard Drive Enclosure - USB 3.0 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5RLG2C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_qi2YBbKVBC0R0

Samsung hardrive with Amazon enclosure for around $65 is what I bought and couldn’t be happier.

No worries.

If you just want to do a full reinstall of windows you take out the HDD, put in the SSD, and install windows from scratch.

If you want to clone from the HDD to the SDD you need software and either a USB to SATA cable or a drive enclosure.

If you go with a M.2 you will insert it and use the cloning software to clone your HDD to the M.2 drive.

Something else to look into, if you have a smaller SSD and larger secondary drive, is to move the search index, Windows temp files, and such onto the larger, slower drive. Doing this frees up the precious space on the M.2 drive while reducing the overall read/writes.

Personally I would save up for the M.2 drive, make that primary, and keep the HDD as a secondary.

Something like this

AmazonBasics 2.5-inches SATA Hard... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5RLG2C?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Yes, the UI will benefit as well. If you are looking for load time improvement absolutely snag an SSD.

I just snagged this guy

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-t5-500gb-external-usb-type-c-portable-solid-state-drive-alluring-blue/6026201.p?skuId=6026201

You may be able to go cheaper or smaller. The Xbox One supposedly only works with drives 256GB and up, but people have reported 250GB drives working just fine.

Your other option would be to get an internal SSD like this one

https://www.amazon.com/Blue-NAND-500GB-SSD-WDS500G2B0A/dp/B073SBZ8YH?keywords=ssd&qid=1537845235&sr=8-1-spons&ref=mp_s_a_1_1_sspa&psc=1

And nabbing an enclosure like this

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-2-5-inches-SATA-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B01N5RLG2C?crid=2V660C4JJT86R&keywords=2.5+hard+drive+enclosure&qid=1537845347&sprefix=2.5&sr=8-4&ref=mp_s_a_1_4

Could save you a couple bucks

I got the Amazon Brand. Make sure it has usb 3.0 is the most important factor.
AmazonBasics 2.5-inches SATA Hard Drive Enclosure - USB 3.0 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5RLG2C/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_jRNPBb4R5M2ZN

Here are the 2 items I bought:

SSD:
https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-500GB-Internal-MZ-76E500B-AM/dp/B0781Z7Y3S/ref=sr_1_2?crid=35Q4L14LCTHR1&keywords=samsung+evo+ssd&qid=1555963266&s=gateway&sprefix=samsung+evo%2Caps%2C174&sr=8-2

Enclosure:
https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-2-5-inches-SATA-Drive-Enclosure/dp/B01N5RLG2C/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=amazon+basics+2.5+hdd+enclosure&qid=1555963193&s=gateway&sr=8-3

depends what you mean by "better"

internal would probably be more effective, however it is much harder to install and you could seriously screw something up in your console if you install it improperly

external is much easier to install and setup, while still giving you a massive boost in speeds

here is what I bought, it is external.. you plug the ssd into the case and plug the case into console, simple as that

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N5RLG2C/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07864WMK8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You don't need any external hard drive, you need a solid state drive (SSD)
I bought this one for my OG xbox and the loot is all spawned every time i hit the ground. Buildings are totally rendered. It makes school very fun: killing kids who haven't had loot loaded in.

SSD:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071KGRXRH/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Case:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N5RLG2C/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

You need both parts. Since then 4 of my friends have made the same purchase with the same results. Wish we would have done it sooner

M.2 SSD to 2.5in SATA Adapter, here's one on Amazon.

Your welcome. just make sure the type of m.2 ssd works with the adapter you get, the one I saw when double checking had some restrictions on which form factor (the size) worked with it.

Sabrent M.2 SSD to 2.5-Inch SATA III Aluminum Enclosure Adapter (EC-M2SA) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6PMZLW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_BpVxDbT54PZES

If the M.2 SSD you have is a SATA drive (rather than a PCIe based one), you could also just get an M.2-to-2.5" adapter and then plug it into a normal SATA connection on your current motherboard. They should only be about $10, for example this one.

If your SSD is an NVME one, they also make adapters so you can mount the M.2 drive and connect it to one of the PCIe slots on your motherboard. The should be similarly cheap, like this one

Note: I'm not endorsing either of those specifically, but they seemed to be some of the cheaper ones on Amazon with decent reviews on a quick search.

Yes, at Dell. Was easy to miss.

M.2 in enclosure is just fine and it does add flexibility for a cost, although it depends on capacity. 2TB TLC in that form factor just isn't quite there yet. Also be aware that if you intend to use a USB3.1/C enclosure later, you take a massive performance hit on 4K and especially 4K writes (example). Reliability of something like the Sabrent aluminum enclosure should be just fine - physically, the M.2 socket directly exposes SATA (and USB for that matter) so the circuitry is uncomplicated; in fact, SATA Express is an example of this as it supports both protocols as well. I would advise caution when installing in an enclosure because people often do the standoff incorrectly which esp. on a double-sided drive can short it out (might be the basis of some of the poor reviews - I've had people do it wrong without knowing).

I wouldn't worry about capacitors with modern SSDs. This is something tackled by the controller/firmware and NAND (I believe Crucial actually advertised the fact the MX500 didn't need to rely on capacitors). You're right that this was an issue in the past, although it's generally an area worried about more in enterprise. It is one reason I suggest getting a drive with DRAM cache - this defers writing to the NAND copy for translation/wear - but the cache doesn't hold any actual data. You can of course be in the middle of a write, but this also involves the OS and its settings, and of course I suggest everybody use UPS on their primary system (I sure as heck do). But I don't consider it a major issue with current consumer SSDs.

Yes, they make 2.5" enclosures for m.2 drives that will operate just like a regular 2.5" SATA SSD.

Amazon link

Note that it won't work with NVMe drives though.

Storage space is an often overlooked issue when building for the first time. Games, especially modern titles, take up a LOT of storage space as you have discovered. It also presents a quandary - we need a lot of space but at the same time we want fast drives to reduce loading times. Problem is, fast + big = expensive. I think even if you got a 1TB NVMe, you'd still manage to fill that up pretty quickly and within a few months would be back to doing that 'uninstall game shuffle', which is a pain in the ass. I know, I've been there.

One solution I wholehearted recommend (and I've put this on a couple of other posts here) is primocache. It's a great program that costs around $30 and you can use it to turn an SSD into a cache disk for a large HDD. There's a couple of ways I see you implementing this solution:

First solution is that you get yourself a low capacity NVMe, 120-256 GB, a decent sized rotary HDD (2-4TB) and a m.2 sata adapter like this one. Install your WD blue in the adapter, hook up the power and data cables and keep this as your boot drive - if you're finding it fast enough for that. Install the NVMe and the HDD and use the NVMe as a cache for the HDD. Install all your games to the HDD and there you go, fast + big for relatively cheap. The caveat of course is that the first time you load up a game it will be slow, but as the data gets cached load times will reduce dramatically.

Second option is that you get yourself a 240-512GB NVMe. Install this in the bottom slot at first, then migrate your OS over to the NVMe using the manufacturer's migration tools if they have them, or something like minitool's partition wizard - this way you don't have to install the OS again from scratch, but you might have to uninstall a few games until there's enough space if you get a NVMe that's smaller than your WD Blue. Remove both drives, plug the NVMe into where your WD Blue was and set it up as the boot drive. Get yourself a decent sized HDD as above, and a 120-256 GB SATA SSD to use as a cache. You could get the m.2 to SATA adapter above and use your WD Blue, but I would recommend something better like a Samsung 860 Pro and selling your WD Blue.

Option 2 is a little more complicated and expensive, and games will load a little more slowly with it, but you'll have an NVMe as your boot drive. Not sure if the slightly faster boot times and snappier response from the OS or applications installed to it will make a huge enough difference for you though - I'd probably go with option 1 for faster games.

​

Some small notes - when partitioning your HDD, set the cluster size to 16k or 32k. This will help reduce the RAM overhead required to cache it, and most game files are large enough that 16k or 32k clusters will make no difference. Match the cache block size as close as you can to the drive's cluster size so that it doesn't use a ridiculous amount of RAM as overhead. I would not recommend using primocache unless you have at least 16GB RAM as you will need some for this overhead, and also level 1 caching a.k.a. RAM cache - this can make a huge difference in load times. Give it about 1GB and keep the level 2 cache (SSD cache) overhead to <1GB - your system should still have 14GB to play around with - more than enough for today's titles.

In future if you ever feel like your not too sure about getting an m.2 for your mobo, you can always grab one just in case and get a 2.5" enclosure which basically turns it into an internal 2.5" ssd. It can be real handy if you have any spare m.2 drives lying around but no longer have any slots on the mobo available!

Heres a link to the one Tek Everything uses if your interested: https://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Aluminum-Enclosure-EC-M2SA/dp/B01N6PMZLW

Thank you, This one worked

In my experience, the biggest difference between internal and external is price. An internal SSD is cheaper, and it's only about 10 bucks for the enclosure that basically turns it into an external drive.

Here's the drive I got:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01K8A2A0E?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_title

And the enclosure:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd_title

I used one of these for a while and it worked well enough.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ3UJ2S/

usb3 case

ssd

This the right stuff you recommend?

Samsung SSD:
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B07CLC8B2V/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1526058196&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=256gb+samsung+ssd&dpPl=1&dpID=41MdHnbD43L&ref=plSrch

Enclosure for the SSD?:

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526057915&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=sabrent+2.5-inch+sata+to+usb+3.0&dpPl=1&dpID=41va1KY8YEL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B073SB2MXW/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1525459077&sr=8-2-spons&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=wd+blue+3d+nand+250gb+ssd&psc=1#nav-search-keywords

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00OJ3UJ2S/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1526069290&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=ssd+enclosure

These will work however..

I took some one else suggestion from on here don’t remember who though to give them credit.

SSD

enclosure


100% worth it so far

Some may say segate backup plus but won't tell you the risk when you open it up you lose warranty and those segate drives can fail a lot and I see a lot of ppl complain and it turns out the hard drive broke its really a 50/50 shot some works fine some not some have a beeping problem some not. So I would get this one since it's a 1 year warranty and is only 10 bucks more last time I checked here it is http://amzn.com/B00I8O6OQ4 and some may say well you get to use the case for the old ps4 hard drive to use it as a external I got you covered on that as well man http://amzn.com/B00OJ3UJ2S happy gaming.

My setup is a little more permanent/expensive than just a portable HDD, but I really like it, and love that it adds several 3.0 USB plugins to my xbox as I find the ones on the Xbox rather odd.

http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-2-5-Inch-Internal-ST2000LM003/dp/B00MPWYLHO?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00

Really any 2.5" HDD will do, but that is my current setup.

you could try this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1469834997&sr=8-1&keywords=collective+minds+xbox+one+media+hub

I have a question. will the Xbox One Media hub work with this smaller model Xbox one?

https://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465906303&sr=8-1&keywords=xbox+one+media+hub

I have this media hub and a 2.5 inch 2tb hdd installed on my Xbox one. if the Xbox One Slim can be used with this media hub, I can potentially have this console run at 4TB of storage. does anyone know if this media hub will work with the Xbox one slim. this hub is connected through the side of the Xbox One, so I should probably look and see if there's any pictures of the Slim on its left side to see if there's a USB port there.

also will this come in Black?

https://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO

It actually has three USB 3 ports! It's a great product.

This is what I use. It's pretty wonderful.

Edit: Beat me to it! It's a fantastic product.

What about this?

Collective Minds 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure & 3 Front USB 3.0 Ports Media HUB - Xbox One https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_2BhkzbVGR2ZMC

If you want to use one these types of external enclosures:
https://www.amazon.com/Upgraded-Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Enclosure-EC-UK30/dp/B00LS31KQG/
or an Xbox One fitted solution: https://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO/

Then this drive is basically your only option at the 4TB size: https://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Barracuda-2-5-Inch-Internal-ST4000LM024/dp/B01LZMUNGR/
No one else seems to be making 2.5" 4TB hard drives, not HGST, Toshiba, Western Digital and etc.

So any 4TB drive at the 2.5 inch size is going to be probably going to Seagate.

I did find a WD My Passport Ultra in the 4TB size on Newegg: https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA1K65850201 (no idea if that's any good for you, you're going to have to check with the WD rep)

External enclosure = a shell that holds the hard drive, these do not come with a drive.
External hard drive = a shell + a hard drive.


---

If you can do 3.5 inch drives at 4 TB you will have far more choices as to what brand and model of drive you have to work with.
You can use either a drive of your choice and an external enclosure or an external hard drive. But of course there may be demerits that I mentioned in my previous comment if you intend to take the drive with you on the go.

Or if 1TB or 2TB is enough for you, you can find many more drives from different manufacturers at the 2.5" size.

Note: I only checked Amazon and Newegg big box stores and less known sites may have older drives in the 4TB size

For the XBOX one, if you're using it for game storage, NO YOU CANNOT SPLIT THE STORAGE.

If you're using it for media, then you don't actually need to split it, as it will recognize NTFS just fine.


That said, you should probably get two drives.

And assuming you're not using the smaller, newer XBOX ONE, you may want to get something like this and throw a small drive into it, and then get yourself a dedicated drive for media.

If you want something sleek and not just an external sitting on or next to your Xbox you could always looks into a Collective Minds Media Hub: http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO

It's $40 and will fit pretty much any 2.5" drive, plus you get an extra 3 USB 3.0 ports. Pair that with this 1TB 7200RPM HGST hard drive ( http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemnumber=9SIA2W02KN0922 ) and you've got a nice looking external storage for $100. If you want more storage and don't mind to sacrifice a couple seconds off loading times you could probably find a bigger hard drive at 5400RPM. I use the media hub with a 2TB drive and love it.

I just got this in yesterday and am loving it so far. I installed a 2.5" Samsung Seagate laptop drive and it's running like a dream.

http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452626631&sr=8-1&keywords=xbox+hard+drive+enclosure

http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO

I've heard good things about this one, if you have a 2.5" HDD. I haven't personally used it though.

I don't personally have this but would work for for you, not having a hard drive laying around. Can have any 2.5 drive inside and also adds some more USB ports.

http://www.amazon.com/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front-Ports/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1451567279&sr=8-6&keywords=hard+drive+xbox+one

Collective Minds 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure & 3 Front USB 3.0 Ports Media HUB - Xbox One

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Collective-Minds-Drive-Enclosure-Front/dp/B00T76ZGDO

I'm going to be getting this once my harddrive starts getting more full.

Collective Minds 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure & 3 Front USB 3.0 Ports Media HUB - Xbox One https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_FoPywb1NV482Z

For me it's the External HDD enclosure that keeps the aesthetic intact

I got it for $30 and couldn't be happier, slap a 500 GB - 2TB HDD in there and you're all set.

It's made by Collective Minds and it is available in the US. Amazon is out of stock atm. If you search the sub you will find numerous posts and links.

http://www.amazon.com/Collective-2-5-Inch-Enclosure-3-Front-xbox-one/dp/B00T76ZGDO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1427248324&sr=8-1&keywords=xbox+one+collective+minds

Here is the link to their site with description and pictures;

http://www.collectiveminds.ca/cm00111.html

Sold in the USA on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Collective-2-5-Inch-Enclosure-3-Front-xbox-one/dp/B00T76ZGDO

2TB Seagate

Not sure of model number. I bought an external drive (because it was cheaper), then removed it from the enclosure to install this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00T76ZGDO/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1483968790&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=xbox+hard+drive+enclosure&dpPl=1&dpID=31i1YiAouiL&ref=plSrch

Best thing ever. Looks like part of the unit.

I use the hard drive enclosure from Collective Minds with the added 3 USB ports. The hard drive is Seagate 2tb. I haven't had any problems with it at all. Worth looking into!

Here

what drive are you using? and I bought this for a drive. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T76ZGDO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I really like this external HDD enclosure:

Collective Minds 2.5" Hard Drive Enclosure & 3 Front USB 3.0 Ports Media HUB - Xbox One

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00T76ZGDO

Yes you can only use DESKTOP style hard drives without there being a ton of leftover space in the accessory. If you have a portable one and like it then why get the enclosure?

Honestly get one of these.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T76ZGDO?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00
This is a much better one seeing as if you want to add a ssd or sshd there are more available hard drives out there that are laptop sized. Not only that but it fits the aesthetics of the xbox one itself. Seriously the nyko data bank is gigantic. My friend has one and wishes that he would've waited until the one that I got came out. most people can't tell that I added it onto my xbox.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00T76ZGDO/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1451330988&sr=8-1&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=creative+minds+xbox+one&dpPl=1&dpID=31i1YiAouiL&ref=plSrch

Plus i purchased a seagate hybrid drive 1tb

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B99JUBQ/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1451331093&sr=8-1&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=seagate+1tb+hybrid+2.5&dpPl=1&dpID=4117xnCvY6L&ref=plSrch

I've been wanting to get these for the longest time.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00T76ZGDO/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1480027261&sr=8-2&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=xbox+collective&dpPl=1&dpID=31i1YiAouiL&ref=plSrch#nav-search-keywords

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0136JPA56/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1480027291&sr=8-1&pi=SX200_QL40&keywords=xbox+chatpad&dpPl=1&dpID=41XRXu-CCfL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T76ZGDO/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

This product is awesome. It has sata connectors inside the device and 3 more USB 3.0 ports. So you can just buy a standard SSD and use it. Plug and play. NO! this is not overkill. idk the speed of the hard drives in the xbox but it cant be a 10k RPM or 15k RPM. But SSD is 100x faster than any mechanical hard drive EVER.

>If so are there other serviceable options?

What do you mean by this?

Not free software, but I have heard of people having good luck with this once loaded up:

https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/

Yes, plenty of times, it is an IODD Hard Drive enclosure, highly recommend as you can load as many isos as you want and choose which one to boot from. Great for tech. However I have also tried a regular bookable USB drive on here as well.

I bought one of these a while ago, but it was branded as 'iodd'. It looks identical to that Zalman one.

Link.

I just copy the latest .iso from the website in to the ISO folder on this thing: https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU and boot away, I can even keep multiple versions of the SPP, Windows Server ISOs, etc.

Longer tappable link for mobile users

Don't get this one, apparently it has issues. Get the ioDD one https://www.amazon.com/Iodd-Iodd2531-Black-Virtual-Enclosures/dp/B00TDJ4BJU

That's the one I use, it has never failed me.

You should put one in an iodd external enclosure:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TDJ4BJU/

You can put ISOs and VHD files on there and select them from the little LCD screen to boot off of them like they were CDs or thumb drives. I have one full of Windows installers, memtest, Linux distros, etc. 128GB SSDs are perfect for this application.

Well, for one thing, I know /u/Steve2926, who is a friend of mine, and who helped me repeatedly in the past.

So I know about Easy2Boot, and the last thing I'll ever do will be to go behind his back, to create a utility that is more or less a clone of his even as he is still actively developing it, to try to undercut all the effort he has put in it. Sorry, but that's just not how it works.

Also, you can read my stance on multiboot in the Rufus FAQ. While I do very much understand why people think they absolutely need multiboot (and while some SysAdmins actually do), I also came to the logical conclusion that it is a complete waste of time for the vast majority of users, who only need to boot a single image right here, right now, and don't go around trying to boot multiple targets computers in the same day. Of course, the people who need multiboot exist, but they are a minority of users and I consider that, since it's very usually their job, and therefore should already have the knowledge required for it, they don't need to get their hand held to achieve the custom multibooting scenario they require (since every single multiboot scenario is different, and comes with its own problems).

So, sorry, but investing a lot of my development time, which is already very limited, to cater to what is actually a small number of people, when I can use it to add features that will be more beneficial to a much larger majority, doesn't seem like a wise investment of my time. As such, I will continue to do what I do and advise people interested in multiboot to look at the current existing solutions, one of which being Easy2Boot, or invest in something like an IODD drive, which is probably what they are really after (since only BIOS/UEFI level CD/DVD-ROM emulation can guarantee your ISO to boot as expected).

Also, it seems that your main issue here is that you don't trust the work that somebody else's did, mostly because their site doesn't use HTTPS, and also, because the application may be closed source, which is a bit silly IMO, especially as I know that Steve makes good use of FLOSS projects like Grub4DOS (even if the application itself might have parts closed).

Besides, as someone who, like Steve, has put a lot of effort in developing their software, I would say that, if you do have an issue with a utility, your first reaction should be to contact the author of that utility and hear what they have to say about it (Maybe Steve is working to add SSL to his website? Maybe he is also planning to do things that will ease your woes?), rather than ask a completely different software developer to go around the back of the first one, and develop a directly competing application. Al in all, what you are asking doesn't sound like a very nice thing to do, unless you have exhausted all other options...

> You should look into Zalman HDD enclosures. You can grab ISO files directly from the hard drive and mount them as virtual CD drives. No USB burning needed. Ever.
>
>

I was looking at those on amazon and the reviews are awful. This one is similar with much better reviews:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3DTN7G6WLC6UY

You should consider the [iODD](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00TDJ4BJU/ref=nosim/appleink
). It's one drive that can act as a boot disk for an unlimited number of software installers. Instead of carrying around multiple CDs or USB flash drives, you carry this. It works with multiple Windows, Linux and Mac OS operating system bootable disks. It's similar to your partitioned drive but arguably, more versatile and easier to update. Adding a new OS to the mix is as simple as copying the ISO file to the ISOs directory on the device.

If you want to do a lot of that kind of thing, and you don't mind spending more (Especially if you have a 2.5 inch drive laying around!) you should consider getting an IODD 2531.

It has a physical switch and menu to mount and unmount ISOs and VHDs, and they show up as actual devices to boot from. I've got mine set up with an old 128GB ssd that I wasn't really using, and I've got all the ISOs I might use with a 60GB VHD windows install with a bunch of repair tools and such on it, as well as a 10GB linux install with the same. Mount VHD, reboot, select to boot from that VHD, and it boots like a regular hard drive. It's only SATA 2 internally, so it doesn't hurt all that bad to stick in an old laptop drive either, but it's still waaay faster than any USB stick you are going to get, even most of the 'ssd with USB bridge' ones you can buy assuming you stick in a cheap-as-possible SSD.

If not for the windows installer having a specific check for installing to a drive connected over USB, you can literally mount a blank VHD and iso, then install windows to the VHD. Linux doesn't care either way, so you can happily do that.

The swap is actually really simple, buy this adapter and follow this guide. After you've made the replacement, start up your Mac with the option key held down and do a network recovery. Good luck, the swap is well worth it and actually sped up my MBA a noticeable amount!

Probably this one:
Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card for Upgrade 2013-2015 Year Macs(Not Fit Early 2013 MacBook Pro) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CWWAENG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_E.UrDb5HY0E6T

Those adapters are not recommended anymore for the new EVO 970 blades - this one is: M.2 PCIe SSD Adapter for Upgrade of 2013-2015 Macs

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Here is the exact items I purchased, and the exact video I followed!

7 Pieces Screwdriver Tool Kit Pentalobe Screwdriver for Macbook Air/Pro and Retina https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0797MN6GL/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_CKZCCbA48E9EB

Samsung 970 EVO 1TB - NVMe PCIe M.2 2280 SSD (MZ-V7E1T0BW) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BN217QG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_ZKZCCb0E8KJGS

Sintech NGFF M.2 nVME SSD Adapter Card for Upgrade 2013-2015 Year Macs(Not Fit Early 2013 MacBook Pro) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CWWAENG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_VLZCCb6RBVN00

https://youtu.be/NU6yatTvyyk