New ssd install problem

I bought a used working ssd just recently. I removed the old hard drive and inserted the new crucial m4 256gb 9.5mm into the steel bracket and plugged in the connector. Reattached everything, and started my computer.

Now the problem is after the alien head screen all I see is "remove disks or other media. Press any key to restart".

Bios is set to ahci, I'm using the alienware win7 did to fresh install. Still get the same message whether hdd or cd is first in boot order.

No clue what to do.

 

Have you validated the install of windows on this SSD? SSD could be a dud? Try your old HDD again just to be sure you didn't damage any of the connectors.
If you still have your old HDD you could clone it to your SSD, that's what I did using Arconis True Image and I've had no problems.

 

I didn't clone the hdd as I read it's better to fresh install, and also cuz my old hdd was crashing. I bought it off a trusted nbr member and the drive has 100% health. The only thing I could think of is that the alienware win7 DVD is a reinstall disc. Not a proper win7 install bootable disc.

 

I have the windows 7 ISO file and win 7 usb tool uploaded to google drive if you want to download them. Worked perfectly for me as long as you still have your licence number.

 

I do still have my win 7 serial. Never used google drive before. How would I go about downloading it?

Also, I've never made a bootable usb before. What size would I need, and how?

 

You don't need to download google drive, I'll just share a link with you, click it and it should start to download.
It's really easy to make a bootable USB. Just follow the instructions on USB tool and navigate to the win 7 ISO when directed to do so.
If you want to download these please PM me and I'll reply with the link.

 

How are these speeds? Did a fresh install, only a few basic monitoring apps installed, used up only about 20gb. The ssd has 100% health, but is used with nearly 5000 power on hours.

 

It seems normal to me. The amount of power on hours can be concerning though.

 

This is what my Samsung 840 250GB SSD can achieve using the same benchmark setting.


Slightly higher scores but nothing to shout home about, therefore I reckon you're good to go.
For reference I have:
Hiberation off
Virtual Memory set at 400MB->1024MB
Indexing Service/Search off
Prefetch/Superfetch off
Write Cache Buffer on!!! (very important for performance).

Consult this excellent guide on how to optimise your SSD.

Also never ever defrag your SSD.

 

That Crucial M4 is a very basic and first gen / low performance SSD, still miles better than an HDD though.

This is what my Samsung 850 PRO 256GB SSD (bought for $200 USD) score looks like with RAPID MODE OFF:

Single Drive:



RAID 0 with 2x850 PRO 256GB SSDs:



Few things to check:

1- Ensure you have our BIOS to AHCI, USB Emulation DISABLED, BIOS boot mode set to LEGACY not UEFI

2- Go to your LEGACY BIOS options and hit enter to be able to see the detailed boot order then ensure that your SSD is number one on the top of the list

 

M15x is limited by a SATA-II interface so it maxes out at 250MB/s seq read/write no matter what SSD you put in it, so can't really use your score as a reference.
Also M15x doesn't have a UEFI BIOS because its a 4-5 year old laptop and they weren't cool at that time.

 

Ooops, my bad........Didn't know that

Me right now as I read your post.........

 

Is that the dude from Firefly? Love that show longtime!

 

@fatboyslimer i've done some of the tweaks you mentioned prior to the test, but i left the pagefile as default, and i only modified the indexing, didn't turn it off entirely. Also i ran the x32 version of the test not sure if it makes a difference. either way i'm really satisfied with the drive coming from an hdd, and for a $100 definitely have no complaints

 

Some of those tweaks are for reliability and longevity more than performance. Don't want to be changing my SSD anytime soon.

 

Keep in mind that mostly all SSD manufacturers offer tools to set correct settings in Windows for optimal performance. You can even set it for max reliability, which ever you choose. I choose max reliability because the performance settings on the M15x will not be noticeable on the Sata II interface. I prefer to have the drive last longer.