SSD Installation into XPS 8700

First off ( my standard warning...) BACKUP YOUR DATA FIRST. Ok, now that's out of the way....

I presume you are referring to a diagram with the ports listed by number. I don't want to guess which one so I'll use the names the system calls them.

My preference is to always put the boot drive on SATA0.

When I add SSDs to 8700s, I always clone the HDD. The samsung magician software is perfect to use for cloning.

After the clone is completed, I plug the SSD into SATA0 and leave the original HDD unplugged and powered off. I then power on the system and test with only the SSD. After I am convinced the SSD is working correctly I reformat the HDD and remove all the rescue, recovery and boot partitions, as this makes it more suitable for a data-only drive.

Oh, and another reminder. Backup your data first...

So, I didn't really answer your question, but yes you can use the other ports, but if you then intend to boot from it you may go into BIOS and choose the boot drive etc. I find the path I described is easy and works pretty well. The only downside is you need to clean up the source drive so it will fit to what is likely a smaller SSD.

The other option is to re-install Windoze and I find this to be too much work to get all the programs and user account data setup again. For me this isn't worth the cost in terms of time.

Thanks Dan-H. A quick and informative answer. I get the picture. I do have another question: I purchased a Samsung EVO SSD and I was wondering how the software knows to only clone OS ie. Win10? I have uninstalled all games and a few other programs to reduce the size of the HDD. Am I thinking about this too much?

I was wondering how the software knows to only clone OS ie. Win10?

The cloning software doesn't know the difference. It clones everything. 

Thanks Dan-H. OK here's the verdict.

I ran the Samsung Migration software and cloned the HDD. No problems.

I had to purchase a 3.5 inch adaptor and screwed the SSD onto this new adaptor.

I found out that the inside tower of my XPS 8700 would not accept the 3.5 inch adaptor so I had to buy a 5.2 inch plastic adaptor and with some minor tweaks, I inserted the 5.2 inch adaptor through the front of the PC case and then screwed the entire assembly (SSD onto 3.5 onto the 5.2) into the inside tower case.

I reconnected the SATA and power cables onto the SSD and then restarted the PC. Voila, the computer worked fine and continues to work as before via the new SSD. However...

I am still trying to enter the BIOS so I can learn the intricacies of this feature.. I have tried to enter the BIOS countless times by pressing the F2 key at start-up and I cannot for the life of me get into the BIOS. No luck. Any suggestions?

On my 8700s, they have only one HDD and one SSD and the drive cage for HDD0 and HDD1 has been removed, so I did a similar thing and I have the SSD in the lower optical bay with an adapter, and the single HDD in the HDD2 position.

For getting into BIOS, try this:

As soon as soon as you power on the system, repeatedly tap the F2 key. ( or is it the F10 key ?)

When I say repeatedly, I mean more than once a second from the moment the system starts to power on until you see "entering BIOS".

Of, if  Windows 8.1 ? Try this.

windows.gadgethacks.com/.../

Win10 has a similar way to reboot from windows back into BIOS.

Well, I tried and tried to access the BIOS via F2 and others...nothing worked until...

I googled "access BIOS for Windows 10" and voila these instructions came up:

To access your BIOS on a Windows 10 PC, you must follow these steps.

Navigate to settings. ...

Select Update & security.

Select Recovery from the left menu.

Click Restart Now under Advanced startup. ...

Click Troubleshoot.

Click Advanced options.

Select UEFI Firmware Settings.

Click Restart.

How to Access the BIOS on a Windows 10 PC - Laptop Mag

www.laptopmag.com/.../access-bios-windows-10

It worked. I can now gain access to the BIOS in my XPS 8700.

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My PC boots via the new SSD I installed. The old HDD has no power and no SATA cable attached.

Question:

Should I now connect the HDD SATA to any one of the available SATA ports on the motherboard? Or must it be a specific port?

Thanks. As I stated in my last reply, my SSD already boots from SATA0 but my HDD is not connected yet. When I do connect the power connector and then connect the HDD to another SATA connector (probably SATA2), how do I ensure that the HDD does not become the initial boot? I know I can change the sequence in the BIOS but I want to make sure I do it right. Any "youtube" videos or otherwise suggestions?

There is information in the owner's manual on page 82 about Changing Boot Sequence. If the HDD does become the initial boot device it will not affect your SSD. You will just need to fix the boot sequence and try again. I don't know of any youtube videos.

There is another method to re-initialize your HDD. Connect your HDD, disconnect your SSD, and boot your system from a bootable USB with software like DiskPart that can re-initialize the HDD. A program like Macrium Reflect Free Edition can create a WinPE rescue environment on CD, DVD, or USB that contains DiskPart. Google the DiskPart command for more information; the clean command is used to re-initialize the HDD. You can run DiskPart from a Command Prompt if you boot from your SSD but this method insures that your SSD is completely safe because it is not connected.