Upgrading to SSD

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560
Hi,

I am planning to buy a HP Envy 15-j100 laptop with the following specifications. (just to be specific non-touch)

Windows 8.1 64
4th generation Intel® Core™ i7-4700MQ Processor
Intel® HD Graphics
15.6-inch diagonal Full HD BrightView LED-backlit Display (1920x1080) /(1366x768)
8GB DDR3 System Memory (1 Dimm)
1TB 5400 rpm Hard Drive
NO mSSD Hard Drive Acceleration Cache
No Additional Office Software
Security Software Trial
6-Cell Lithium-Ion Battery
No Internal DVD or CD Drive
Standard Keyboard
HP TrueVision HD Webcam w/ integrated digital mic
802.11b/g/n 2x2 WLAN and Bluetooth® [2x2]

I am looking for the compatible SSD's to upgrade on this laptop. But i am not getting the details for this exact model, and heard that it is little difficult in upgrading to SSD on this laptop.

Can some one please help me on this.
Is CD/DVD drive mandatory to upgrade the hard disk to a SSD (I am little worried as this laptop doesn't come with a CD/DVD drive).

One more question, if i upgrade to an SSD, do I need to upgrade my RAM as well to 16GB? Is there any disadvantages in continuing with the 8GB RAM?

Thanks in advance.


 
Solution
SSD lifespan - a few years ago, when they were the 'new thing', there was an issue with lifespan. Current SSDs (anything bought in the last year), will (theoretically) long outlast whatever PC you put them in. Outside of actual 'fail', lifespan is measured in decades.

You can keep the image on whatever drive you want. An HDD would be far better than a flash drive.
Maybe redo it every few months. That's what I do.

VanillaSprinkles

Honorable
Nov 30, 2013
13
0
10,570
No, you dont need more ram. Also you will most likely need to have a DVD drive because you will need to reinstall windows onto the SSD. And you are right, installing an SSD on a laptop can be difficult
 

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560



Thank you for the response VaillaSprinkles.
My friend got the similar laptop and he did not get any CD for OS. It came by default with the laptop, so if i need to install windows again onto the SSD, do I need to buy it separately?
 

VanillaSprinkles

Honorable
Nov 30, 2013
13
0
10,570


You can install it via USB on to the SSD like what USAFRet said
 

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560




Thank you USAFRet, Is there a way I can take the OS back up from the current laptop and install onto SSD? or Do I need to purchase one new OS CD. I heard that the Key for this laptop is not mentioned any where and it is inside the boot. (Heard from some youtube video).
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator


That is a very good question !
What does HP say about creating Restore media? Usually, you can create a DVD set. But if you have no DVD drive....
 

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560


Yeah, that's true :) I will check with HP guys today and will see the options they have for me.
Thanks for your help USAFRet and VanillaSprinkles.
 

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560
I spoke to HP and they said, I need to create a recovery media with a flash drive and use it to install on SSD.

But i have one more question, if i some how got issues while upgrading it to SSD, can i put back my HDD and work as normal?

Also, if i upgraded to SSD luckily, and in future can i use my HDD (by removing SSD) and work as normal. Do i need to do any extra steps? (Will the OS still reside in the hard disk?)
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator
If the HDD is currently working, and you take it out to install on the SSD, yes.
For future use, if you don't remove it from the HDD, yes....you can theoretically use it as it is now.

However - Once you plug it back in and use it alongside your SSD, changes will be written to the HDD. You'll save some files there or whatever. It will not be exactly the same as it is now.

And it is highly unlikely that you'll need to do that. The SSD is probably far more reliable than the HDD.

What I would do is once you have the SSD set up to your liking, make an image of that. Save elsewhere. Blow away everything on the HDD. If things go sour, replace the SSD and reimage.
 

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560


Thank you USAFRet, Yeah, I am seseing in some of the forums, which says SSD are reliable but have a less span time and they might have an issue with more writes(not all the time though). So I am checking the possibilities to replace the SSD back with the HDD if I end up with any issue in future.

I agree it is the same scenario for HDD (they can also be corrupted)

So, making an image from SSD and keep as a back up. (Can I keep this image in a External Hard drive? (I have a 1TB Western digital External Hard drive) or Do I need only a flash drive?)

If I copy the image to a flash drive, can I assume, it will be safe for ever(At-least for a couple of years - do I need to fresh the image after a few months or so?) Do, I need to take any extra steps for that?

Sorry for many questions. They might be dummy. but want to make sure, I get every information before switching.
 

USAFRet

Illustrious
Moderator
SSD lifespan - a few years ago, when they were the 'new thing', there was an issue with lifespan. Current SSDs (anything bought in the last year), will (theoretically) long outlast whatever PC you put them in. Outside of actual 'fail', lifespan is measured in decades.

You can keep the image on whatever drive you want. An HDD would be far better than a flash drive.
Maybe redo it every few months. That's what I do.
 
Solution

vd129812

Estimable
Feb 12, 2014
17
0
4,560


Thanks USAFRet