It’s safe to assume that at this point, most tech savvy Windows 10 users have transitioned from SATA hard drives to SSDs by purchasing a relatively new PC or upgrading themselves.
Windows 10 has many features to help SSDs reach their full potential, but it doesn’t always turn them on by default. In addition, many of the “mandatory” rules from the early days of SSDs are no longer necessarily binding and we intend to break them down here. (You might be particularly surprised to learn that defragmentation isn’t such a bad idea!)
Read on for the latest list of do’s and don’ts regarding SSD.
In this article, Niketrainers.com.co will tell you:
1. Disable fast startup
Yes, it might seem counterintuitive considering Fast Startup is designed to speed up the boot process for people with SSDs.
But right now, the time saved with Fast Startup is negligible if you have an SSD, and disabling Fast Startup means your PC gets a clean, full reboot every time it shuts down.
There are also a few niche problems that can get you started quickly. For example, with a dual boot, you may not be able to access the Windows drive because it is locked. It’s not necessary to disable fast startup, but it can be useful.
To disable Fast Startup, go to “Settings -> System -> Power & Sleep -> Additional Power Settings”.
Then click “Choose what the power buttons do”. If the options at the bottom are greyed out in the next window, click “Change settings that are currently unavailable” and uncheck the “Enable fast startup” box.
2. make sure your hardware is ready for it
One of the easiest mistakes you can make when purchasing a new SSD is to assume that it will come with the cable and that everything will fit perfectly into your existing computer setup. This is the case with laptops with 2.5 ″ expandable bays. Just insert it into the replacement bay and you’re done.
However, for a desktop computer, if you’re getting a SATA SSD, you’ll need to make sure your power supply has enough replacement slots or cables to accommodate the SATA cable connector. If not, you can always geta Y dividerwhich allows you to plug two SSDs into the Molex power jack on your PSU. SSDs don’t draw a lot of power, so that shouldn’t be a problem. Of course, you’ll also need to have free SATA slots on your motherboard, but that shouldn’t be a problem unless you already have a lot of hard drives.
There are also newer M.2 SSDs that plug into the M.2 connectors on the motherboard. Basically only newer generations of motherboards have this connector, so if you have an older computer you’ll be out of luck. Or find your motherboard on the internet to make sure it has an M.2 connector. You also need to know if your M.2 connector is PCI-E (NVME) or SATA and make sure your M.2 SSD is formatted correctly.
3. Update the SSD firmware
To make sure your SSD is performing at its best, it’s worth looking for a firmware update. Unfortunately, they are not automated; the process is irreversible and a bit more complex than, say, a software update.
Each SSD manufacturer has its own method for updating SSD firmware, so you’ll need to go to the official websites of SSD manufacturers and follow their guides.
However, a handy tool that can help you isCrystal Disc Info.which displays detailed information about the drive, including the firmware version.
4. Enable AHCI
The Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI) is a basic feature to ensure that Windows handles all the functions related to running an SSD on your computer, most notably the TRIM feature that allows Windows to help the SSD with routine garbage collection. The term “garbage collection” is used to describe the phenomenon that occurs when a drive discards information that is no longer considered used.
To enable AHCI, you need to enter your computer’s BIOS and enable it somewhere in your settings. I can’t say exactly where the settings are as every BIOS works differently. You’ll have to hunt a bit. Newer computers will most likely have this turned on by default. It is highly recommended that you enable this featurebeforeinstalling the operating system, although you may avoid enabling it after installing Windows.
5. Enable TRIMMING
TRIM is crucial for extending the life of an SSD, i.e. keeping it clean under the hood. Windows 10 should turn this on by default, but it’s worth checking that it’s on.
To make sure TRIM is on, open a command prompt and enter the following command:
fsutil behavior set disabledeletenotify
Now what you want to see next (counter to your intuition) is a notification that says “Disabled” which means TRIM is enabled as shown below.
6. Verify that System Restore is enabled
In the early days of SSDs, when they were much less durable and more prone to failure than they are today, many people recommended turning off System Restore to improve the performance and life of the drive.
Nowadays, this advice is quite redundant. System Restore is an extremely useful feature that we recommend you keep an eye on, so it’s worth going into System Restore settings to make sure your SSD didn’t stealthily disable it.
Click Start, type “restore” then click “Create a restore point”
Then right-click the SSD in the list -> Configure in the new window, then click “Enable System Protection”.
7. Leave Windows Defragmentation turned on
Another relic from the early days of SSDs: Defragmenting an SSD was not only unnecessary, it potentially damaged the SSD as defragmentation reduced the number of read / write cycles left on the disk.
That’s true, but Windows 10 already knows this, and if you enable scheduled defragmentation, Windows will identify your SSD and actually defragment it (because contrary to popular belief, SSDs are fragmented, albeit much less).
With that in mind, it’s best to think of the current defragmentation option in Windows 10 as an all-round disk health tool. (Even Windows now refers to this process as “Optimization” instead of “Defragmentation”). The process will also “recover” the SSD with the lovely TRIM feature we talked about earlier.
In other words, Windows Defrag adapts to the SSD, so don’t turn it off!
8. Configure write caching
On many SSDs, user-level write caching can have a detrimental effect on the disk. To fix this, you need to disable the option in Windows and see how the drive works afterwards. If your drive is not performing well, turn it back on.
To go to the settings window, right-click “Computer” in the Start menu and click “Properties”. Click “Device Manager”, expand “Disk Drives”, right-click the SSD and click “Properties”. Select the “Rules” tab. On that tab, you’ll see an option called “Enable write caching on device.”
Compare your SSD with and without the option and compare the results.
9. Set the power option “High Performance”
It should be obvious. With your SSD turning on and off all the time, you’ll notice a slight lag every time you use your computer after a certain period of inactivity.
To change the power options, go to the control panel, click “System and Security”, and then click “Power Options”. Select “High Performance” from the list. You may need to click the “Show additional plans” button to find it.
On a laptop, you can click on the battery icon in the notification area and select “High Performance” from there.
Congratulations! You have now attained SSD enlightenment. For more tips on Windows, check out our guide on how to get a list of all the software installed on your system and a summary of all the ways to open the task manager in Windows 10.