m.2 SSD bootable in older machine?

Goof

Could anyone clarify for me, I'm upgrading an older skt775 machine with an SSD, I've gone for the M.2 version of the Crucial MX500 CT1000MX500SSD4.

I'd planned to connect this to the PCIe with an adapter, however, having delved a little further (perhaps too late) I've discovered there's a chance older motherboards might not support the SSD as a bootable drive this way? My motherboard is a fujitsu D3041-A11 gs3.

EndlessWaves

The M.2 form factor/connector supports a couple of different protocols, so the answer can differ depending on whether it's an SATA or PCI-E drive.

That one is an SATA drive so an appropriate PCI-E adapter would essentially be an SATA controller card/HBA with M.2 slots instead of sockets and I'd expect most computers from the past couple of decades to be able to boot from one of those.

Goof

Thanks EW - I wasn't sure on a couple of the connection variations (my pci-e port has 2 sets of connection pins but some of the adapters have 3, which I'm guessing is m-sata format).
Would this adapter suit? It has a couple of options, looks like my drive will be the 'key B 2280'?

EndlessWaves

mSATA is a different sized card won't go in M.2 sockets at all. It has nothing to do with M.2 SATA drives like the one you're got.

The gaps, called keys, were intended to help compatibility but haven't been very successful among SSDs so you just have to make sure they're not physically in the way. As your MX500 has both keys it'll be physically compatible with any slot so that's nothing to worry about.


The card linked has a terribly unhelpful description. Going by the picture it's appears to be simply a holder and power supply, with the SATA SSD data connection to the computer being via an SATA cable from the card to the motherboard.

So your drive would be like any other SATA drive connected to the motherboard and fully compatible with anything.

Not the neatest solution, but likely cheaper than a PCI-E card with an actual SATA controller on it.

Goof

Thanks again EW - I was under the impression that connecting through standard sata cable would be a bottleneck and not take advantage of the 6 Gbps maximum transfer rate...so I'm still unsure as to what type of adapter will allow the fastest transfer rate

EndlessWaves

I haven't seen cable vs. M.2 slot tested for the same drive but if it's true it's not going to be a big effect.

6Gbps after encoding but before other overheads is 600MB/s and 2.5" SATA SSDs (cable connected) regularly hit 550MB/s data transfer (i.e. after all overheads). If there's any improvement to be had it's 5% at the very most, and more likely 1-2%.


One factor that would limit the maximum speed of your drive is that your motherboard's SATA controller only support SATA II, which is a ~270MB/s transfer rate, rather than SATA 6Gbps.

Whether that would be a bottleneck depends on the programs you're running. For typical home use the benefits mostly come from the increased random access speed and the reduced maximum speed is rarely going to affect things. Especially on an older computer like that where the CPU is more of a limiting factor.


If you did want to get the maximum out of it you'd need a SATA 6Gbps controller card.

You'll need one that can connect via a PCI-E x2 or x4 interface, also known as 2 lanes/4 lanes. The PCI-E x1 slot on your motherboard only transfers at 500MB/s. That means if you've got a graphics card in the PCI-E x16 slot it's a no-go.

You can go for a one with either an M.2 slot on board or one with SATA ports and an M.2 to SATA cable adapter.

Something like a Lycom DT-122 is what you're after:
Lycom DT-122 M.2 SATA SSD to PCIe HHHL Adaptor

Goof

Good to know EW, thanks again. Sorry to labour the point, but looks like I've already wasted funds going for the m.2!?

There's no gfx card, so the x16 slot is free - is there an option to connect the drive through that, that will result in speed benefit?
If I can't get any speed benefit through the PCI-E I'd rather just go with a lower cost adapter option. It looks like SataIII is backwards compatible, in which case could I just got for one of these ?

EndlessWaves

It's an SATA drive so it needs to be connected to SATA. Whether that's an SATA connection on the motherboard or an SATA connection to an SATA controller card plugged into the PCI-E bus.

The only speed benefit you'll see is the newer, faster SATA controller you could add with a PCI-E card which would connect the drive via the SATA 6Gbps interface rather than the SATA II 3Gbps interface your motherboard supports. That'd boost sequential transfer rates from 250-270MB/s to 500-550MB/s.

But if you've got no particular need for high sequential transfer rates then I'd go for the cheap M.2 to SATA cable adapter too, you'll still get almost all the benefits of an SSD.

The one you linked would do but is a bit expensive and doesn't have horizontal mounting points which a lot of the old small form factor desktop cases with 2.5" drive bays use.

Although most bigger towers only had 3.5" drive bays, so if you're going to stick it to somewhere it won't matter.

There are plenty to choose from around the £3-5 mark if you're not in any hurry. Here are a couple with horizontal mounting points:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/NGFF-2-5in-SATA-Adapter-Converter/dp/B07P2GQ8DQ/ref=sr_1_47?ie=UTF8&qid=1552736337&sr=8-47&keywords=M.2 SATA 2.5"

https://www.amazon.co.uk/KESOTO-B-key-NGFF-Adapter-Converter-Black/dp/B07L2ZHZ6M/ref=sr_1_19?ie=UTF8&qid=1552735871&sr=8-19&keywords=M.2 SATA 2.5"

Goof

I'm with you now EW, thanks - I've gone for a PCIe-to-Sata3 expansion card and added a 2.5" M.2 NGFF to Sata3 board. Fingers crossed!

mdbarber

might of been wise to check the version of PCIe your main board is, if the machine is only sata 2 it will likely hit a bottle neck on the PCIe slots.