Updating to SSD

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supton

supton

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I bought my laptop on the cheap--used laptop from work. Dell Latitude E6410. Other than the U button being sticky it seems to do what I want. Except run properly. It likes to come out of sleep mode (have prior thread about that) and about once a month it decides it will restart and do software updates. Except it spends 20 plus minutes installing, only to spend 20 plus minutes uninstalling. Infuriating.

As I bought this used, with no discs, is my only option to buy a new copy of Win10 so it can be fresh installed? I keep hearing about how I really should get a SSD, it'll boot faster, blah blah blah; but I'm not sure it's worth it on this machine. Nor how to do that.

We have a family desktop so it's probably worth about $50, no more than $100, to me, to have a laptop. When I'm home I'm usually on a tablet.
 
Spending money on a new Windows license on such an old/not worth much device seems a bit pointless to me. If you intend on keeping it and installing an ssd, would you consider running some free version of linux instead?
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Spending money on a new Windows license on such an old/not worth much device seems a bit pointless to me. If you intend on keeping it and installing an ssd, would you consider running some free version of linux instead?


Good question. Depends upon how painful Linux is. I had Ubuntu on my last desktop, it wasn't bad. Eventually though I realized I had zero interest in learning how to run that OS. I spend 8+ hours a day in front of a computer for work, only to come home and spend a few more in front of yet another LCD... just turn on and do your thing, thank you very much.

Actually, now that you say that, I wonder... I could buy an SSD, download whatever Linux version I wanted onto a jump drive (not sure if I have a CD burner in this), swap drives, and then load Linux from said memory device. Hmm, interesting possibility.
 
None one anymore spends time learning to use a linux desktop; just install and use.

Three years will go by and you'll realize you spent 0 time maintaining it.

Applications, software stack and OS all get patched simultaneously.
 
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Windows 10 is still activating on Win 7 license numbers as of last month. I picked up a Samsung 850 Pro 250 Gb for $110 and 8Gb Corsair ram for $60 from Newegg, it turned the old i5 powered Panasonic Toughbook CF19 into a much better performing machine.
 
Looks like a 2.5" drive, using SATA?

How much space do I need for a Linux install? 64GB, at a min, I'm guessing? I see this 120GB model for $48, that seems reasonable for the job.
 
If you dont use it much, not much point in spending the money. I had the same laptop for work and after a year or two of heavy use, they need work to stay good. If you plan to use it more, than swap out for an ssd if you can find a good deal.
 
Does that Latitude have a Dell license key sticker on it anywhere, like under the battery? If so, do a clean install of Windows 10 for free on an SSD and enjoy it for a few more years. Or even on the original drive, as long as it passes diagnostics (F12 boot menu option at POST) will make it useable.
 
you can get a windows key from kingquin.net for about $20 to $30. learned about this from Pauls Hardware and have had no issues with keys purchased from there. your performance issues would almost surely be resolved by a fresh install.

I would also highly recommend a cheap 120gb ssd or 250gb if price is similar enough. this is one of the best upgrades you can make on a pc today.
 
also you do not need any discs to install windows. you download the install files from Microsoft onto a flash drive which is then used to install windows.

to upgrade to an ssd there is usually an access panel on the bottom of the laptop wgich contains the hdd. simply unplug hdd, swap in ssd, plug usb with windows on it into the pc and then finally install windows when you boot up. you may need to enter bios and select the usb drive as your boot device before it will start install.
 
You could recover your product key on the laptop if it is currently running Windows 10:
Windows product key recovery

Then download Windows 10 onto thumb drive and install. This is how I did it:
Installing Windows 10 download

If it were my laptop I may just run a Linux from DVD or thumb drive to see if everything works. Sometimes video drivers or other drivers can be buggy. Since you do not want to mess around with Linux it may save some headache you were not wanting. There are some posts of others running Linux on this laptop if you search.

I play around with Linux for therapy. I work with people all day. They are much harder to fix if there is a problem.
smile.gif
 
You can use software to find your product key for your version (there is several one is magical jelly bean), and download the windows creation tool from Microsoft. They give you the ISO/USB flash install with your product key free.
 
Yeah, it has a windows key on it; when I let it update Win7 to Win10 I had to find that number. So it's a legit upgrade. I just don't know where to go from there, doing a fresh install. I'll check those links out next, thanks.

I really don't use the computer for much. Basic web surfing at times, although it might be nice to use it for file storage, podcasts, music.
 
Originally Posted By: JBinTX30
You wont need a key at all now then. Just download the media creation tool select what version is installed and pick ISO or USB flash. You install it without a key, once installed it auto activates.

Just go to this link and follow what it says.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10/


So:
-write down product key
-go to your link, install to a thumbdrive
-turn off computer, pull out HD, swap in SSD
-boot computer
-fiddle with BIOS so it will boot from USB?
-then let it do a fresh Win10 install from there?

Do I have that correct?

I know this is pretty noob stuff but I have done zero computer stuff for years. Ever since we got an IT dept at work I haven't had to mess with my work PC; and ever since having family I haven't felt like keeping up with technology that is ever changing.
 
Yes. I would write the key down for windows 7 you used to upgrade, but you shouldn't need it.

You can download the media tool without it, if it does ask for a windows key during install (which it shouldn't) you can skip it and it will activated when its installed.
 
Originally Posted By: supton
Yeah, it has a windows key on it; when I let it update Win7 to Win10 I had to find that number. So it's a legit upgrade. I just don't know where to go from there, doing a fresh install. I'll check those links out next, thanks.

I really don't use the computer for much. Basic web surfing at times, although it might be nice to use it for file storage, podcasts, music.


If you do a fresh install of Windows there is also an option of dual boot with Linux. Though I prefer just having one or the other.

Linux is perfect for me. I download a lot of MP3 files into my Sandisk MP3 player and works great. The new version of LibreOffice plays well with my Word files.

There is also things like anti-virus and Windows Updates that are a hassle when using Windows. I find it much easier in Linux to just need to do occasional updates that still allow me to browse. For browsing Linux works well. Occasionally there will be an update that is buggy. Firefox was crashing. But it was fixed.
 
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