Precision M6400 Owner's Lounge *Part 2*

Ok it seems to be only effecting strategy games.

 

Sorry if this has been asked before.

I've a stable Vista64 running on my m6400 on a 64GB SSD loaded with my video apps. (runs like a dream so I don't want to disturb anything on it!)

I'd like to experiment with Win7 as a preliminary to loading an alternative editing sytem, but have no space on this drive. So I'd would like to boot from an external drive, pref the eSata.

I'm not very IT literate and when I hit F12 for boot options a mounted eSata drive does not appear on the list. Does this mean I cannot do it this way or is there a setting somewhere to enable eSata booting? (my current eSata drive is formatted FAT32 if that makes a difference?)

Thanks for any assistance

Alan (uk)

 

Or perhaps would fitting a HHD tray like this: http://newmodeus.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=269

Would give me space for another bootable drive?

Alan

 

why not just install a second hard drive in the second drive bay?

 

Well i guess my question is not going to be answered. Well does anyone get such heat flowing out of the machine, even in power saver mode?

 

I have my second drive divided into three partitions and Windows 7 is on the D: one. E & F serve various storage needs. You say you're using the m6400 so I'll take a leap and take it it's the same two drive machine I've got. Can't you rearrange whatever you have on disk 2 and make a 60GB partition for Win 7? I'm not sure I understand that you have any problem, unless I missed something because the 'problem' you're describing should be very simple to solve. I also have a small 64GB SSD for my main drive and OS but Windows 7 runs fine and fast on a 7200rpm spinning partition. As for the e-sata drive I've been thinking of putting my Vista on that and the drive shows up on all my partition and imaging and defragging software but I haven't checked to see if it shows up in the BIOS. I usually turn it on after the computer boots up but I often leave it on and it boots up right along with everything else. I'll check it out next time I start up and let you know if I find anything interesting.

And if you have spare drives laying around you could do what I do when I'm experimenting, clone your SSD to a regular disk and your SSD stays safe.
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Precision Covet | QX9300 | 4GB 1066 | 64GB Samsung SLC SSD & 320GB Seagate | XP Pro 32bit & Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit

 

Then I'd recommend going back to the Dell provided drivers, because my fans only come on when I'm really working it hard, very hard and mine aren't loud by any measure of laptop fans I've seen and used. When I first got my 6400 I thought maybe the fans weren't connected or something because they never came on. Turns out they were but I couldn't hear them. Now I have the fan speeds displayed along with temps for every sensor in the thing. I don't have a clue what the chipset or memory temps should be but they're in the same range as the other parts I mentioned. I have it on a Zalman pad but I don't even know what, if any difference those fans make, I can't hear them at all. But it raises the deck just right for typing and just that'll cool things down some itself. Right now I'm just doing this and running a deep scan with BitDefender while a movie is copying from F drive to a memory stick and my CPU is 37 Celsius and my quadro 3700 sits at 46 degrees and running at 2534Mhz and it says the fans are both on low and I can't hear them at all. There's ambient noise but I have to really listen even when they're both running on high.
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Precision Covet | QX9300 | 4GB 1066 | 64GB Samsung SLC SSD & 320GB Seagate | XP Pro 32bit & Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit

 

Right now I have it on high performance and its well, just warm right now. I have a few programs to show temps but what do you recommend?

 

I swear by 18Kfangui that I've used for years. It hasn't been updated in quite a while and it doesn't seem to work on 64bit OSs and the GPU temp reads low by a constant 15 degrees fahrenheit but that's OK. It's only for Dell laptops and is only officially updated to the M90 but it picks up all four cores and temps and let's me set when I want the fans to come on and displays everything next to the clock in the taskbar. Checked it against others and the boards own sensor readings and it's the only one that's spot on (cept for the GPU and that's a known figure) Maybe there's better out there but it's what works best for me.
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Precision Covet | QX9300 | 4GB 1066 | 64GB Samsung SLC SSD & 320GB Seagate | XP Pro 32bit & Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit

 

My second HDD's full of work, and if I get w7 running off another drive I'll be accessing the work from that

Alan