SSD troubles
SSD troubles
I purchased a ready-made PC in 2020 (meaning someone gave me a checklist of components, I followed it) and wasn’t told exactly where to store files. Being clever, I thought putting everything on the SSD would work. It held up okay for a while. Roughly a year ago, while gaming, the display would freeze and emit noise, forcing me to shut everything down. Now, after moving in, the technician at Staples mentioned my SSD was being overworked. He suggested replacing it with a new one and doing a memory swap. As someone who isn’t very tech-savvy, I tried searching for fixes on my own but didn’t find clear guidance. I’m unsure if what’s already inside my system is worth changing or upgrading. I thought it would be best to ask someone more experienced for advice on handling this.
Relevant specs for the CPU:
- AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6GHz [4.4GHz Turbo]
- 8 cores / 16 threads
- 36MB cache
- 65W power consumption
- Processor fan: CyberPowerPC DEEPCOOL Castle 240EX ARGB 240mm AIO Liquid Cooling System (with copper plate, +20)
- HDD: 240GB WD Green SSD + 3TB SATA III drive combo
- HDD2: None
- IUSB ports: Built-in USB 2.0
- RAM: 16GB (8GB x 2), DDR4/3000MHz dual channel, ADATA XPG Z1
- Motherboard: GIGABYTE X570 UD ATX, Gigabit LAN, 3 PCIe x16, 2 PCIe x1, 6 SATA3, 1 M.2 SATA/PCIe
- Network: Onboard Gigabit LAN
- OS: Windows 10 Home (64-bit)
- Overclocking: None
- Power supply: 600W – standard 600W, 80 Plus Gold
- Video card: AMD Radeon™ RX 5700 XT 8GB GDDR6 PCIe 4.0 (single card)
Setting everything onto a new SSD is quite straightforward and can be completed swiftly. I've done this several times using a Samsung tool named Migration. Simply plug in both drives, choose the one you want to clone to the new one, and it handles transferring Windows and files seamlessly. That said, I recommend installing Windows and all your apps from scratch on the new SSD to prevent any installation conflicts and to start fresh.
It doesn't mean an SSD is working too hard. It might get overloaded (you need at least 20% free space, more is ideal) or experience heavy read/write activity which can shorten its life. What's the point? Run "Disk Cleanup" in Windows, then select both regular and "clean system files" options for everything. Next, use Hard Disk Sentinel to check the drive. Share the results.