Install SSD with HD data drive under Win 7

[camner]

1. AHCI speeds up the transfer times from the SSD. Set it after the installation is complete - in both the BIOS and Windows 7.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/61869-ahci-enable-windows-7-vista.html

Hmmmm…Now I've read both "be sure to enable AHCI BEFORE installing Windows and "set it after the installation is complete" Yikes! What's the difference between setting it before or after?

And whilst you are at it, reduce the pagefile to 2GBs.

With 8GB RAM I can do with such a small pagefile? Windows 7 seems to by default choose 1x RAM size for the min and 2xRAM for the max.

 

[camner]

In trying to track down the "missing space" (or the difference between what FolderSize reports as the size of the C drive [201GB] and the contents of the C:\ folder [about 71GB]), I see that there are about 130GB worth of restore points, which is about the difference.

Does this explain the difference? In other words, that FolderSize doesn't report the size of the restore points?

 

[whs]

1. AHCI speeds up the transfer times from the SSD. Set it after the installation is complete - in both the BIOS and Windows 7.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/61869-ahci-enable-windows-7-vista.html

Hmmmm…Now I've read both "be sure to enable AHCI BEFORE installing Windows and "set it after the installation is complete" Yikes! What's the difference between setting it before or after?

And whilst you are at it, reduce the pagefile to 2GBs.

With 8GB RAM I can do with such a small pagefile? Windows 7 seems to by default choose 1x RAM size for the min and 2xRAM for the max.

If you enable AHCI before the installation, your system may not boot because it was not enabled in the OS. But you can try.

A full size pagefile is only required if you care to get a dump after a BSOD, But with 8GB of RAM, it is not needed for paging. 2GB or even 1GB are enough.

 

[camner]

If you enable AHCI before the installation, your system may not boot because it was not enabled in the OS. But you can try.
….
A full size pagefile is only required if you care to get a dump after a BSOD, But with 8GB of RAM, it is not needed for paging. 2GB or even 1GB are enough.

Nope, I don't think I'll be going for a dump after a BSOD. My time for working with core dumps is long over (nothing like poring over core dumps on an IBM 370 mainframe….shows my age, doesn't it? )

Thanks for all of your answers and time. I think (hope?) I have enough to go on to get this install done.

 

[whs]

In trying to track down the "missing space" (or the difference between what FolderSize reports as the size of the C drive [201GB] and the contents of the C:\ folder [about 71GB]), I see that there are about 130GB worth of restore points, which is about the difference.

Does this explain the difference? In other words, that FolderSize doesn't report the size of the restore points?

Run this program and then this command in cmd.

vssadmin list shadowstorage

Then you'll know.

http://windirstat.info/

 

[gregrocker]

I'm a bit confused here.
You are saying it is better to have a SSD use Hibernate instead of Sleep ?
This would mean for overnight non-use, Hibernate is preferred ?

Yes, where was I unclear? I even specified suggested time-outs in Power Options>Balanced Plan>Advanced Settings.

 

[COMPUTIAC]

No, you were not unclear.
It has been repeated several times, for a SSD, Hibernation should be disabled as it will diminish the life span of it.
This has been referred to in some Tutorials as well.
Now out of nowhere you say it is a good thing to use, and you defend the use of it.

This is what had me confused.

 

[whs]

Hibernation does not damage the SSD and it is a valid function. But if you have a small SSD and are tight on space, the hiberfile may take a chunk of the SSD. I have always used 60GB SSDs and always disabled hibernation - for space reasons not because I was afraid it would damage my SSD.

 

[gregrocker]

Where has it ever been said Hibernation adds any extra wear to SSD's? The reason it is (mistakenly I believe) recommended to turn it off with an SSD is to save the space it takes for the Hiberfile. This is the file where the RAM is written when it transitions from Sleep to Hibernate. When the PC sleeps it stores what's on the desktop in RAM. When it times out to Hibernate it writes the RAM contents to the HD or SSD Hiberfile and shuts down. Pressing the power button triggers that file to load resulting in a much faster startup to the exact state you left the PC before it slept and Hibernated.

So the issue as I understand it is only to save space on the SSD, which once was at such a premium that such a sacrifice might have been needed. But now SSD's are affordable enough you can enjoy the full features of Win7 on the fastest drive, including System-Managed Paging File (the size of your RAM), Hiberfile, and all Programs. User folders don't suffer any speed loss from being on a HDD


It should be noted that you can manually trigger either of these states from the Shutdown button menu, which some do but I rely on Power Options settings to let Win7 sleep at 30 minutes and Hibernate anywhere from 45-120 minutes. This way I can walk away for 30 minutes or 30 weeks and it will start up in seconds to my work exactly as I left it.

 

[COMPUTIAC]

OK, I agree I was wrong about Hibernate causing wear on the drive. It was an assumption on my part.
It was always suggested to not use it. If I fully understood space was the only concern, I would have never disabled it when I built this machine.
Now I do understand and have re-enabled it and all is working like it used to.

 

[Britton30]

I was under the impression that the hiberfill is written to the drive when hibernating, then copied back into RAM when restarting? If so then there is a lot of read/writes going on with a very big file, 16GB in my case.

 

[Ranger4]

Samsung recommend disabling Hiberfile for their SSD'S as it causes a lot of unnecessary read/writes.

 

[Kaktussoft]

I was under the impression that the hiberfill is written to the drive when hibernating, then copied back into RAM when restarting? If so then there is a lot of read/writes going on with a very big file, 16GB in my case.

you're correct

 

[richnrockville]

Matter of personal taste. I never use hibernation and over night I shut everything off. On a small SSD, the hiberfile is a pita because it takes a lot of useless space - 4, 8 or 16GB depending on RAM size. Who needs it.

I agree that the hyberfil is a waste of space for those with SSD's. Also, I have had at least a couple of occasions that the user had serious problem after hibernating. Just my experience. I always turn it off which saves space as well as aggravation when there are problems. In a corporate environment, it is not a good idea for our users who leave their machines on for long periods of time. (By Corporate, I mean my life as a Volunteer for a non-profit..)

All in all, I recommend not having the hyberfil available. With fast machines and SSD's, it is not necessary IMHO

Rich

 

[gregrocker]

Hibernate is a perfected feature in Win7. I've never seen any problems associated with it in tens of thousands of installs. It adds great convenience with no known downside as seen in XP.

 

[whs]

Hmm, I have seen quite a few postings where people had problems with hibernation. But I never persued those because I know nothing about hibernation since I have no use for it.

 

[gregrocker]

Never seen one, and I've watched for them. Like CCleaner it seems to be leftover wives tale's from XP.

I consider Win7 to be the greatest invention in tech, and Hibernate to be one of its perfected ingenious features.

 

[camner]

1. AHCI speeds up the transfer times from the SSD. Set it after the installation is complete - in both the BIOS and Windows 7.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/61869-ahci-enable-windows-7-vista.html

Well, poking around I've learned that Dell "crippled" the Inspiron 620 by installing a BIOS that doesn't support AHCI, although the H61 Intel chipset on board DOES support AHCI. Hmmm..

I also found a spot Dell Insprion 620/Vostro 260 AHCI request where someone has created a patched BIOS update file that will allow AHCI to be enabled on this machine.

So, a couple of questions:

1. How important is AHCI to SSD performance? Is it just for those who want to tweak their systems for maximum performance, or does it make a substantial difference?

2. I presume that once I enable AHCI (in both Windows and in the BIOS) I will no longer be able to boot off the existing hard drive with a Windows 7 install that was created while in IDE mode. Do I understand that correctly?

 

[whs]

ad 1) I found that it wasa not that important. You might see a difference in the results of the measurement tools, but not in real life.

ad 2) I am not 1--% sure. You might still be able to boot from the HDD necause the whole OS is set to AHCI. Matter of trying.

Btw: If your BIOS has 'RAID" as a setting, that is just as good. Raid comprises AHCI.

 

[gregrocker]

What are the exact SATA controller or other storage settings available? If possible please post back a camera snap with all related listings expanded. Screenshots and Files - Upload and Post in Seven Forums - Windows 7 Forums