15 DC15250, sata expansion cable

Question

I have a Dell 15 DC15250, which has an ssd on board. but it has an expansion for a 2.5 HDD. it has both the empty spot in the case, as well as the empty port on the board for the expansion sata cable. the problem I have having, is when I search the web, with my mainboard model, it gives me a list of memory. when I search through Dell, it get no where, because the laptop didn't come with the expansion cable/HDD from the factory. i have an extra hard drive I want to install in the computer, and everywhere I look, says I can, yet I can't find the proper cable. I need help finding the proper cable to install the harddrive, as i do not have the money to purchase a larger SSD. I just need  to find the cable. Help. please?

random_dell_user · Accepted Answer

I added a HDD to a DC15250 a few months ago. It is 100% possible and I'm posting from it now.

You will need:
1) JW93P SATA cable
2) VRFHK HDD caddy
3) G91J0 3-cell battery (which you may already have)

I spent hours going through laptop caddies until I found one matched the screw layout, so hopefully these model numbers help someone and save them the headache.

Adding a HDD seems to be completely unsupported and there's no official info about what is needed. I'm posting this to document my findings.

In the DC15250 online manual, there are actually photos of the laptop with a HDD installed. In the first image you can see the SATA cable being removed and it's attached to a HDD on the bottom left of the image. If you try to contact support over the phone and show them this, they will be completely clueless and gaslight you by saying not only is it not officially supported but that it's impossible to add a HDD. It's not their fault, it's just not documented anywhere for them to know.

This model comes with a 4-cell and a 3-cell battery option. If you have a 4-cell you will need to replace it with a 3-cell because the 4-cell is bigger and occupies the HDD spot. You will also need to unscrew and remove a small metal placeholder piece that occupies the screws that the caddy will use.

In the BIOS there are a few options you can configure for your new HDD too.

It's sad that not only does Dell not offer a HDD option for their laptops anymore, but they make it so incredibly difficult to add an aftermarket drive (by not documenting the parts needed) despite the motherboard actually supporting it. I wanted a HDD because I make heavy use of swap files and the constant writes absolutely kill the life of SSDs. Due to the rising cost of RAM, I suspect I'm not alone.

One issue I ran into is that my HDD was too thick. I think my HDD was a 9.5mm but the caddy is designed for 7mm. Due to this issue, I didn't fully screw my HDD into the caddy, but still managed to bend the caddy enough to force it to work. The case still closed without any problem, so from the outside it seems fine. While this is possible in a pinch, I don't recommend it.

(This is a temporary account just to post this info, so I can't respond to questions. Good luck!)

DELL-ChrisM2 · Answer

it has both the empty spot in the case, as well as the empty port on the board for the expansion sata cable.* Post a picture of this.The DC15250 sales page never offered SATA HDD. It only offered 1GB/512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD. The internal DC15250 parts page does not list any SATA cables nor SATA HDD. The online 15 DC15250 Owner's Manual 'Storage' section only list PCIe NVMe M.2 2230 SSD. No SATA HDD. The online 15 DC15250 Owner's Manual 'Internal slots' section only list =One M.2 Key-M (2230/2280) slot for solid state driveOne M.2 2230 Key-E slot for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth combo card

ChurchNerd · Answer

@DELL-ChrisM2​ I'm looking for the same thing.. Using the manual and getting to (Installing the system board)gets you to the board pictures... and while its not labeled.. its right here

ejn63 · Answer

The same board is likely used in other systems that do support SATA drives -- likely an all-in-one. Your current system has no such support. If you want to use a 2.5" drive, mount it in a USB case and connect it externally.

DELL-ChrisM2 · Answer

The predecessor computer model to the current 15 DC15250 was the Inspiron 15 3530.

The current 15 DC15250 is using that Inspiron 15 3530 motherboard but it has been updated/modified.

The SATA port you see is a carry over from the Inspiron 15 3530.

Is it ON, unknown.

Will the 15 DC15250 BIOS see if it you connect the Inspiron 15 3530 JW93P SATA cable and HDD, unknown.

abrokenjoker · Answer

@DELL-ChrisM2​ I have ordered the cable. When it comes in, I will test it and follow up on this post. The cable should be here sometime tomorrow. I will keep you posted.

DELL-ChrisM2 · Answer

@random_dell_user​  'I added a HDD to a DC15250 a few months ago. It is 100% possible and I'm posting from it now.'* Great job! 'In the DC15250 online manual, there are actually photos of the laptop with a HDD installed.'* I admit this is confusing. The 'Removing the 3-cell battery' pictures/instructions you show in the 15 DC15250 Owner's Manual were actually copied from the predecessor Inspiron 15 3530 Owner's Manual pages 60 to 63. They should have created new pictures from a 15 DC15250.

DELL-Daniel V · Answer

'The SATA port you see is a carry over from the Inspiron 15 3530.' Per the DC15250 owners manual, an additional HDD will not be officially supported by Dell. The reason would be that the product is not sold with that configuration. It is very unlikely that we as moderators can influence a change on that marketing perspective as well. As such, the owners manual will not be updated to reflect this capability. Agreed that Dell Tech Support will also not be aware of the port as they too would go off of the owners manual. Kudos to @random_dell_user for already doing the testing and confirming the port is functional. User upgrades will be at your own endeavor.

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15 DC15250, sata expansion cable

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