How to Install OS on the SSD part of a Hybrid Disk

Zed-Kay · Apr 26, 2014

I've just bought a new HP Envy laptop (HP ENVY 15; 16GB, 256GB SSD + 1TB HDD, Touchsmart; 4th i7-4700MQ; Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit).

The machine has a hybrid disk with 256GB SSD and 1TB HDD capacity.

Strangely the Operating System (and everything else) is installed on the HDD part of the disk and the SSD part is completely empty.

I understand that if I would have the Operating System on the SSD part of the disk then my computer's boot time and performance would increase significantly. (Right now it takes around 32 seconds to boot and get fully functional, which is a good speed nonetheless).

My question is how can I move the Operating System to the SSD part of the disk?

I don't have any personal data/files on the computer as yet and I am not a tech savvy person so would appreciate if someone could explain it to me like you would explain it to a dumb kid, (in a step by step guide please).

Your response would be very much appreciated. Thanks

theadler · Apr 26, 2014

You can not install it there. It is managed by the system. It will store there the things you use the most over time. Just leave it and within a couple of weeks, it will store your OS there on it's own, as well as your most used programs/files.

Zed-Kay · Apr 28, 2014

theadler :

Thanks Night Owl, this is great.
I'll wait for the operating system to move to the SSD and then mark this post as solved.
Thanks again for your help.

tiny voices · Apr 28, 2014

It does not move your OS there over time. It is used as a cache system. If you open a certain program alot, it will Cache it to the SSD portion. BUT, it will NOT move your Whole OS there. Sorry. Won't happen. Also, a Cache SSD (what this is) resets every time you restart the computer, so then it will take a few times of starting all your favorite programs before they get cached on the SSD again. Honestly, hybrid drivers are kind of gimicky and don't really give any real performance boost over a traditional HDD, unless you NEVER shut down your computer. If you shut it down every 3-4 days or more frequently, you will never see the performance gains at all.

Again, there is no such thing as the OS moving to the SSD. This is not real or even possible.

theadler · Apr 28, 2014

No, it will not move the entire os to the ssd part of the drive. Only the bits that are accessed and used most frequently, such as for booting. The cache is nonvolatile, so the data doesn't disappear when power is absent.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2012223/hybrid-hard-drives-how-they-work-and-why-they-matter.html

Zed-Kay · Apr 28, 2014

Thanks guys.

I turn off my computer everyday so I don't think anything will actually get cached on the SSD. Is there a way I can take any advantage of the SSD part of the disk? An IT professional has offered to clone the operating system for me on the SSD part for a $120 fee. Would this result in better/faster performance?

Right now it takes around 30 seconds to boot up. I was using a Dell Studio 1558 (Windows 7) laptop that was taking around 2 minutes to start, so 30 seconds is a huge improvement for me, but I still want to take full advantage of the SSD.

theadler · Apr 28, 2014

Zed-Kay :

The cache isn't cleared when you power off the computer. It is a nonvolatile cache. Tiny voices doesn't know what he's talking about. Read the information on this link.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/2012223/hybrid-hard-drives-how-they-work-and-why-they-matter.html

tiny voices · Apr 28, 2014

You are correct, it seems. Older (first generation) Hybrid drive software did act like a stand alone SSD cache drive and certain acts would cause the cache to have to be rebuilt, but it seems the newer drives have ironed this out, and it now acts like a cache registry, not a separate drive with data cached to it.

I still stand by my statement about them not being worth it. Aside from boot times they really don't do much faster than a normal HDD can.

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How to Install OS on the SSD part of a Hybrid Disk

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