Reinstalling Windows 7 on ssd. Setting up the system after installing the SSD
However, in order to ensure maximum performance of Windows 7 when using solid-state drives, you will have to work hard. Windows has evolved over the years and is optimized primarily for working with traditional hard drives. Functions like SuperFetch, PreFetch and ReadyBoot are designed specifically for monitoring and redistributing files launched during system boot in order to speed up access. However, SSD drives have no moving parts, so these technologies do not provide any performance gains for them.
Windows needs special tuning in order to fully realize the full potential of solid state manufacturers. If this setting is not done, there will not be much benefit from using an SSD - I have seen this from my own experience.
In October 2009, I purchased a Dell Latitude XT2 laptop with a 256GB SSD. The first thing I did was remove the pre-installed Windows XP Professional and replace it with Windows 7 Professional. The disk was fast, but not breakneck, and the Index Windows performance(Windows Experience Index) persistently gave it a rating of 5.9.
Last summer I decided to finally address this issue and discovered that many similarly configured Dell laptop users were experiencing the same issues. As it turns out, the Samsung PB22-CS3 SSD needs a firmware update to work correctly with the disk management features included in Windows 7. The update was supposed to come from Dell, but it was not yet available last July.
The CrystalDiskInfo utility confirmed that this disk does not support the TRIM command, which is one of the prerequisites for the normal operation of a solid-state drive. This command allows the system to delete blocks of data in background. Windows 7 supports TRIM by default, older ones Windows versions- No.
I recently returned to this issue and discovered that a few months ago Dell finally released necessary update. Since the update erases all data on the drive, I had to completely reinstall Windows 7.
After this, the system performance increased several times, which is confirmed by the test results. The table below shows Windows System Assessment Tool (WinSAT) indicators for July (in the original OEM configuration) and for December 2010 (after updating the SSD firmware and installing the latest disk controller drivers from Intel).
In the new configuration, the drive's overall Windows Experience Index score increased from 5.9 to 7.4, and the performance gain was quite noticeable. The speed of random read operations has increased 12 times, which has a direct impact on the performance of the system in everyday use.
The firmware update unlocked the drive's performance, but this is not the only prerequisite for normal operation. Below I'll explain how to configure your system to take full advantage of the SSD's capabilities.
To install Windows 7 on a solid-state drive, you must first prepare the system. Here's what I recommend doing:
1. Make sure that the latest version of micro is installed on your computer software for SSD. Updating the firmware erases all data from the disk, so you should take care of this before installing the operating system. You can download updates from the website of the computer manufacturer (if you purchased it assembled) or the solid-state drive (if you purchased it separately). Install new version firmware, following the instructions. As a rule, to update you need to boot the system from external media - for example, from a USB flash drive.
2. Set the disk controller to AHCI mode. Before installing the operating system, BIOS settings activate AHCI (Advanced Host Controller Interface) for SATA controller. Using legacy IDE or ATA modes will prevent you from installing the correct disk controller driver in the future and will result in poor performance.
3. Use the Secure Erase utility to completely erase the disk. This is not necessary, but may be useful if the drive has been in use for quite some time. Just don’t format the drive with built-in using Windows. For Intel drives, you can use the Intel Solid State Drive Toolbox. For Lenovo computers, the Disk Cleanup feature is available as part of the BIOS Menu Setup Extension utility. For OCZ drives, the Secure Erase utility can be downloaded from the OCZ Forum. In addition, you can use the HDDErase utility, which supports a wide range of solid-state drives.
4. Boot the system from installation disk Windows and run a clean installation. Create partitions on the disk using Windows installer. If the disk already has partitions created using other tools, delete them and recreate them using Windows 7. This will ensure that the partitions are properly aligned.
5. Install the latest driver for the disk controller. If your computer is equipped with an Intel SATA controller, you should use the latest version of the Intel Rapid Storage Technology driver from the manufacturer's official website. At the moment the most current version - 10.1.0.1008.
6. Once you have completed installing the operating system, check the Windows Experience Index for the drive. To do this, right-click on the “Computer” link in the “Start” menu and select “Properties”. In the window that appears, click the “Windows Experience Index” link. The Performance Information and Tools window opens. Rating in the column “Basic hard drive"(Primary hard disk) for a properly configured SSD should be higher than 7.0. If necessary, click the Re-run The Assessment link to update your scores.
To make sure that all SSD functions are working properly, install the free utility
SSD is a popular type of storage device that is significantly superior to a hard drive in some respects. However, if it concerns the installation of Windows, due to serious differences with the hard drive, it is worth considering some features.
The instructions below for installing Windows on an SSD are universal, which means they apply to both desktop computers, and to laptops with a solid-state drive.
Installing Windows on SSD
Previously on our website we have already talked about the advantages and disadvantages of SSDs over hard drives.
We immediately draw your attention to the fact that you should not even try to make it work with versions of Windows younger than version seven, since for older versions of Windows, which are currently not fully supported by Microsoft, there are no drivers available for working with SSDs.
Actually, from this moment you can proceed to installing Windows. Previously published on our website detailed instructions starting with creation bootable flash drive and ending with installing Windows on the computer.
Additionally, I would just like to draw your attention to a few points:
- Use only original Windows image. For some reason, in some third-party builds of Windows, SSD drivers are often “cut out”, and therefore, after loading the installer, the SSD is simply not detected.
- If possible, use a Windows distribution disc. From the recommendations of many users on the Internet, it follows that to correctly install Windows on an SSD, you should use a special installation disk, which you either purchase or burn yourself. We consider this advice to be quite dubious, since in our case, installing Windows 10 on an SSD was successful from a flash drive.
- Install versions of Windows 7 and higher on SSDs. Lower versions of the operating system SSD systems will not be seen.
Actually, installing Windows on a solid-state drive is not much different from this procedure performed with a hard drive. Considering just one small issue with setting up the BIOS, you can easily install the operating system on your device.
Recently, solid-state drives have been gaining considerable popularity and becoming more affordable. Considering that the speed of SSD drives is much higher than the speed of conventional HDD drives, it is quite logical that many people decided to increase the performance of their computer by purchasing this miracle. modern technologies. Solid State Drive can really help your computer “think faster”, but for this you should take into account several points, which we will talk about now.
Make an SSD your system drive
Performance gains can only be achieved by installing a solid state drive as system disk. Otherwise, the speed will increase only in those applications that are installed directly on the SSD, and then not by much.
Update the drive firmware
The newer the firmware version, the faster your SSD drive will work. The latest firmware version can always be found on the manufacturer's official website. Download the driver and install it according to the instructions (must come with the driver).
Install the system from scratch
It is best to install the operating system on a new SSD drive from scratch rather than restore it from an image. This will help avoid compatibility conflicts in future operation.
Disconnect other drives
Before installing the operating system on an SSD drive, it is recommended to turn off the power or unplug the SATA cables from all other drives. This is necessary for Windows 7 to accurately determine the type of drive and reconfigure services to work with an SSD drive.
Install a clean image
Only the original and complete image of Windows 7 should be installed on the SSD drive. “Optimized” builds of Windows certainly take up less disk space, but they may disable or even remove services and functions that are vital for the stable operation of the operating system on the SSD.
Activate AHCI mode
Before installing Windows 7 on your SSD, enable recognition of SATA devices in AHCI mode in the BIOS settings. This option allows you to activate some new Windows features aimed at speeding up the disk subsystem.
Format the drive
If your SSD drive has been used before, you will need to completely format it before installing the operating system. Since the principles of recording data on HDD and SSD are significantly different, quick formatting an SSD drive will not be enough
Mark up wisely
Partitioning a solid-state drive into partitions is more convenient and reliable using utilities from third-party developers, for example Acronis Disk Director.
Check
After installing Windows 7 on your SSD, it doesn’t hurt to check how correctly it is recognized by the system. For this it is best to use free program CrystalDiskInfo. We launch the program and look at information about our disks. In line Rotation speed The disk type must be specified - SSD. Also in line Possibilities The TRIM function must be specified.
Now let's check if AHCI mode is active. We go to the Task Manager and in the item IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers We are looking for a controller called AHCI. If there is none, then restart the computer, go to the BIOS settings and try to activate the AHCI mode again.
Disable indexing
Indexing feature helps speed up searches in the OR environment Windows systems. However, this option increases the load on the disk, thereby accelerating its wear and slowing down its operation (a little, but still). In addition, the solid-state drive, due to its high speed and without indexing, quickly finds the necessary files. Therefore, you can safely disable indexing. To do this, go to Explorer, right-click on the icon of our SSD drive and select context menu paragraph Properties. Then uncheck the option Allow the contents of files on this drive to be indexed in addition to file properties.
Disable the defragmentation service
Due to a different operating mechanism than HDDs, the defragmentation service is not needed for solid-state drives and is even contraindicated (NAND memory used in SSD drives has a limited number of rewrite cycles). As a rule, Windows 7 automatically disables the defragmentation service during installation on an SSD drive, but if this does not happen, then we can disable it manually. Open the menu Start, press Execute and write in the line: services.msc. Now we find the service in the list Disk defragmentation, double-click on it with the mouse and in the field Startup type select a parameter Disabled.
Disable creation of restore points
When the point creation function is active Windows recovery the operation of the TRIM function, which is very important for SSDs, is blocked, which ultimately leads to a gradual decrease in the speed of the SSD disk. To disable the creation feature operating system restore points, right-click on the icon My computer, go to Properties and go to the tab System protection. Click on the button here Tune and select the item disable system protection.
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The developers of SSD technology guarantee high loading speeds and operation of the system software. As noted by programmers who are already using the new drives, they have not identified any features of installing Windows 7 on an SSD that could prevent an ordinary user from doing so.
Initially, the process is divided into two stages:
- the first stage is setting up the media itself for Windows 7, which is easy to do using the SSD Mini Tweaker 2.1 utility;
- The second stage is the direct transfer of the operating system itself to the new device. It should be noted that you should not try to use Windows versions below 7th, even the use of “XP” will not show any significant differences between its operation on an HDD or on an SSD.
Things to consider before installing Windows 7
Before proceeding directly to downloading and configuring the operating system, you must firstly disconnect all other storage drives, for example, HDD drives, check the firmware version of the SSD drive on the website of the manufacturer of the SSD drive and, if necessary, update it, then update the BIOS help changes to the disk operating mode by moving from IDE mode to AHCI (Advanced Host Controller Interface) mode.
Physical installation of a new drive can only cause difficulties in cases where it will be used on laptops, since most models have only one connector for connecting the drive to motherboard. A way out of the situation may be to use an HDD drive as external device, and place an SSD drive in its regular place.
A situation may also arise when there is no space in the computer case to connect 2.5-inch devices, in which case you should use a “2.5-inch to 3.5-inch” adapter, which is often included in the basic SSD drive kit .
After physically installing the new disk, open the BIOS, and sequentially go first to the “Advanced” menu tab, then to the “SATA Configuration” item and in it we go to the “Sata mode selection” sub-item in which we mark the module AHCI mode.
After this, press F10, which saves all changes made.
The procedures described above are all you need to know and do before directly installing the OS.
OS installation
It is best to install Windows 7 not by transferring the system image from the HDD, but directly from the installation disk, and disconnect the hard drive itself from the motherboard at the time of installing the OS.
Initially, you need to make sure that the physical installation and connection of the SSD drive to the SATA interface is done correctly and that the BIOS sees it and correctly identifies it. The necessary information is displayed in the “Information” menu item, where all connected devices are displayed.
Photo: Windows 7 Ultimate for SSD drive
After making sure that a new disk is present in the list of connected devices, go to the “Boot” section, which indicates the device (CD or DVD) from which the system will be loaded and installed.
The further installation process is completely similar to that carried out when working with a hard HDD drive and, apart from the increased speed of downloading and copying information, there are no differences. You must act in accordance with the prompts of the installation program.
After the installation is complete, you again need to enter the BIOS and switch the boot point from the CD (DVD) to the SSD device, from which the Windows download 7 on the computer.
Correct installation of the software will instantly affect the performance of your computer.
Photo: computer performance assessment
Important! Before starting the installation, it is imperative to confirm that the SSD is formatted for file system NTFS (New Technology File System– developed by Microsoft Corporation for the NT line of OS).
It is best to do this manually by entering the appropriate commands in the CMD line in the following sequence:
- “Diskpart” - launches the Windows command interpreter;
- “List disk” - displays a list of all connected storage media with detailed characteristics and data;
- “Select disk X” - select the device to format, the “X” parameter is replaced by the letter designation of the SSD drive in the list above;
- “Create partition primary align=1024” — creating an offset parameter;
- “Active”—activate the section;
- “Exit”—exit CMD mode.
Video: WINDOWS installation
Setting up the system on SSD
Initially, “Seven” was developed to interact with HDD drives, since although the SSD production technology was already known and proven, it was not intended to be widely used due to its too high cost.
In this regard, for the correct operation of all OS services, it is necessary to optimize Windows 7 so that its operations increase their performance and do not lead to the creation of internal conflicts when interacting with the SSD disk.
Adjustment of OS utilities is also necessary to increase the service life of a new disk, since the technology of solid-state drives itself is critical to frequent rewrites, which wears out the disk, which is structurally similar to a huge “flash drive”.
The optimization process is preceded by the procedure of having drivers loaded and enabled in the system to support AHCI mode and the TRIM command of the ATA interface is activated.
Important! The TRIM command optimizes the performance of solid-state drives by providing them with information about unused blocks by the system that can be used for recording. Full support for TRIM mode is provided only in Windows 7/8/Vista; it was not provided in earlier versions.
The presence of enabled AHCI controllers is displayed in the “Device Manager” on the “Control Panel” in the “IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers” tab.
The status is checked and the TRIM mode is activated from the line of active commands (the sequence of pressing “START” - “Run” and entering the CMD command) but only if you have administrative access rights to the system.
The CDM command for checking the status is “fsutil behavior query DisableDeleteNotify”.
After entering it, there are two possible answers:
TO TRIM enable command – “fsutil behavior set DisableDeleteNotify 0”.
Now you can proceed directly to the procedure for optimizing the OS for the SSD, namely:
- the paging file is either moved to another disk or disabled;
- SSD caching and indexing processes are turned off;
- defragmentation of the SSD disk is prohibited;
- the TEMP folder is transferred to the HDD and hidden;
- The system recovery and hibernation functions are disabled.
Disable indexing
The information exchange speed of SSD devices is much higher than that of HDDs, for which Windows 7 was developed, so there is no need for indexing and caching. Disabling these two functions will only increase the reliability and safety of information in cases of computer power problems.
Indexing is disabled in the SSD disk properties tab by unchecking the option "Allow indexing for quick search» (Allow files to have contents indexed in addition to file properties).
Photo: “Allow indexing for quick search”
After clicking “Ok”, the computer may show resistance, but to do this, just click "Ignore All" in the drop-down window.
Defragmentation service
Windows 8 independently detects the media type and automatically disables the defragmentation function for the SSD drive, thereby increasing its service life by eliminating the need to repeatedly move file blocks, to which it is very sensitive.
In Windows 7, disabling is carried out by excluding the SSD drive from the list of drives for which this mode is configured.
Photo: setting an optimization schedule
Creating restore points
By deactivating the System Restore function, the user minimizes the number of accesses to the SSD device for writing and saves its space by prohibiting the creation of copy files.
Disabling occurs in the “Computer Properties” folder in the “System Configuration” tab, checking the “Disable protection system” option.
Optimization with SSD Mini Tweaker utility
"SSD Mini Tweaker"- a useful utility with free distribution and a small amount of memory space. When you start it, only one window appears in which all the settings described above are displayed, enabling or disabling which is necessary to optimize the OS for collaboration with SSD drive.
Photo: “SSD Mini Tweaker” launch window
Just check the boxes next to the required functions and click on “Apply changes” and all actions within the Windows 7 OS will be automatically performed.
The transition to a new type of media is completely justified in terms of increasing the performance of the Windows 7 operating system and even with minimal user skills does not cause complications.
Many have already appreciated the performance of SSD solid-state drives - perhaps this is one of the most desirable and effective computer upgrades that can seriously improve performance. In all parameters related to speed, SSDs outperform conventional hard drives. However, when it comes to reliability, not everything is so simple: on the one hand, they are not afraid of shocks, on the other, they have a limited number of rewrite cycles and a different operating principle. The latter must be taken into account when setting up Windows to work with an SSD drive. Now let's move on to specifics.
First of all, solid state SSD drives do not need to be defragmented; defragmentation will not bring any benefit, but harm is possible. I already wrote about this in.
All latest versions Windows “knows” this and automatic defragmentation, which is enabled by default in the OS for hard drives, is usually not enabled for solid-state drives. However, it is better to check this point.
Press the Windows logo key and the R key on your keyboard, and then in the Run box, type dfrgui and click OK.
A window with automatic disk optimization settings will open. Select your SSD (the “Media Type” field will indicate “Solid State Drive”) and pay attention to the “Schedule Optimization” item. For SSD, you should disable it.
Disable file indexing on SSD
Next point that may help SSD optimization- disable indexing of the contents of files on it (which is used for quick search necessary files). Indexing continually produces write operations, which can potentially shorten the life of the SSD.
To disable, make the following settings:
- Go to “My Computer” or “File Explorer”
- Right-click on the SSD drive and select "Properties".
- Uncheck "Allow the contents of files on this drive to be indexed in addition to file properties."
Despite indexing being disabled, searching through files on the SSD will occur at almost the same speed as before. (It is also possible to continue indexing, but move the index itself to another disk, but I will write about this another time).
Enable write caching
Enabling disk write caching can improve the performance of both HDD and SSD drives. At the same time, when this function is enabled, NCQ technology is used for writing and reading, which allows you to more “intelligently” process requests received from programs. ().
To enable caching, go to the manager Windows devices(Win + R and enter devmgmt.msc), open “Disk devices”, right-click on SSD - “Properties”. You can enable caching on the “Policies” tab.
Pagefile and hibernation
Windows paging file (virtual memory) is used when there is not enough RAM. However, in fact it is always used when it is turned on. Hibernation file - saves all data from RAM to disk for subsequent quick return to a working state.
To maximize the life of an SSD, it is recommended to minimize the number of writes to it, and if you disable or reduce the page file, as well as disable the hibernation file, this will also reduce them. However, I will not directly recommend doing this; I can advise you to read two articles about these files (they also indicate how to disable them) and make your own decision (disabling these files is not always good):
- (what is how to reduce, increase, delete)
Perhaps you have something to add on the topic of tuning SSDs for optimal performance?
