M.2 Drive in Aspire TC-780-ACKi5

davwon
davwon Member Posts: 4 New User
edited March 1 in 2020 Archives
I recently purchased a TC-780-ACKi5  running Win 10 Home, 12GB ram, and a 2TB HD. 
I have read a lot of chatter about the ability to install and clone an SSD on this model because of issues with setting the boot sequence in the BIOS.
Specifically can I install a Samsung EVO 860 M.2 SSD in a TC-780-ACKi5, clone the existing HD , and boot from that SSD? 
A clean Windows install is not an option...too many installed programs.  
There is an available M.2 slot on the mother board.

Any advice or assistance would be appreciated

Comments

  • JordanB
    JordanB ACE Posts: 3,729 Pathfinder
    edited February 2018
    @davwon

    So after you clone with Samsungs software, here's what I would do.

    I would disconnect the SATA power cable from the 2 TB HDD just to make sure the EVO 860 is booting and working properly.  After I confirmed that, I would reconnect the 2 TB HDD and then I would boot my USB recovery drive (make sure you enable the F12 boot menu in the BIOS so you can boot it). 

    I would navigate in the USB recovery drive's menu to Command Prompt and use "diskpart clean" to completely wipe my 2 TB HDD so I can delete the OS and use it as a data drive.

    From the command prompt, type

    diskpart
    list disk
    select disk x    (x=your 2 TB HDD) Don't select the wrong disk number.  That would be bad.
    clean
    exit
    exit


    And then I would restart the computer and go in to Windows Disk Managment and format the 2 TB HDD.

    Edit: the samsung 850 works so I assume the 860 works too.  I don't know if your SSD comes with a M.2 screw.

    https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=2RC-00MF-00007

    I'm not an Acer employee.
  • davwon
    davwon Member Posts: 4 New User
    Great stuff JordanB, most appreciated for the detail of your reply.  It is my understanding the 860 is simply an upgrade of the 850 with increased longevity...if cloning works on your 850 I should indeed be OK.  I have not yet booted my machine from the USB recovery drive.  I will test that before I begin.  And yes, unless Samsung includes a M.2 screw I will need to order one.  Thanks for the reminder.
    Can I delete the HDD partition with a partitioning program rather than working from the command prompt?  Bad eyes, fumble fingers, & DOS are not a good mixture    
    Just a question of interest, did the addition of the M.2 SSD meet your expectations?


  • JordanB
    JordanB ACE Posts: 3,729 Pathfinder
    edited February 2018
    davwon, I don't have a TC-780 and I don't have a EVO 850 or 860.   But from everything that I've read and seen on youtube, the Samsung software is really good to clone.

    I have installed an M.2 SSD drive on a desktop, but I clean installed Windows and/or used the Acer Recovery USB drive.   I do understand how it can be a little tricky on some desktops when having two boot drives and one of them is on an M.2 SSD....especially if the BIOS wants to default to the original SATA drive.  Obviously if you only have the OS on the M.2, there's no other choice for the BIOS to boot.  :)

    Yes, you can delete the HDD partitions however you want or feel comfortable.

    This link shows someone cloning on youtube with samsung software.  But I'm sure you can find a better link on youtube. You should be able to clone while the M.2 is installed inside your computer.  But if for some crazy reason you couldn't, you might have to use an M.2 enclosure to clone.  I don't think you'll have to use an M.2 enclosure to clone.  I haven't heard of anyone having to use an M.2 enclosure for the cloning process.  That would be a worst case scenario.  

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06Y5N428V/ref=psdc_160354011_t1_B00T8F298Y

    Good luck.

    Edit: You should post a step-by-step on how to install M.2 on your TC-780 and clone so you can help others.  Here's a couple photos you can use.






     


    I'm not an Acer employee.
  • davwon
    davwon Member Posts: 4 New User
    Again thanks JordanB.  I'll give it a try.  A detailed game plan to follow and note the results just like Physics lab.  One thing I read that does make good sense is to temporarily removing the bios battery and hold down the on/off button to bleed off any residual power before rebooting. I will also disconnect power to the HD as you suggested as well.  I it boots if has to be from the SSD...maybe a little fairy dust will help.  I'll report back however uploading photos may take a little study.  I a bit new here (3 total posts).
  • Ingrid1990
    Ingrid1990 Member Posts: 21 Networker
    You can do that cloning if you are able to install the new SSD and uninstall the old without difficult. Samsung SSD comes with Data Migration Software (SDM) and you can perform the cloning with that. 
    As to M.2 SSD, sometimes it cannot be detected by Windows, BIOS, or the SDM, so you need do some changes in BIOS to let it recognized. In specific, change SATA mode to M.2 mode. You can learn more detailed steps in Samsung SSD not detected Windows 10
    Hope that is helpful. 
  • davwon
    davwon Member Posts: 4 New User
    I'm afraid I am a bit tardy reporting back.  Thanks to both Ingrid1990 & JordanB in assisting to bring this chapter to a close.  Try as I may, I could not get the TC-780 to recognize the Samsung M.2 so I took the more conventional route and installed an EVO 860 2.5" 500 GB drive using the Samsung migration software to clone via a USB 3.0 port.  The process could not have been easier.  The SSD was attached to the HD SATA cable and the HD attached to the SATA port originally occupied by the CD.  I had to order screws, SATA cables, & a mounting bracket for the SSD to allow for physical installation.  It took a couple steps with Win 10 Disk Management to recognize the HD, delete the original Win 10 volume, & create a new volume.  I lost the use of the CD but not a big deal.  The best news is the final product works perfectly and exceeds all expectations.  Of course Windows boot is faster as is software loading but the biggest improvement is with my genealogy software.  Family Tree Maker 2017 was excruciatingly slow to load both the software and my relatively large data and media files.  That is all in the past.  When it works (another subject) it is a beast.  Thanks to all.
  • JordanB
    JordanB ACE Posts: 3,729 Pathfinder
    @davwon

    Sorry to hear you couldn't get the 860 EVO M.2 to work.  But glad you were able to get 2.5 inch ssd to work.

    I found a review on amazon where they got the M.2 860 to work.

    https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Desktop-i5-7400-Windows-TC-780-ACKI5/product-reviews/B073YHNPC6/ref=cm_cr_othr_d_paging_btm_3?ie=UTF8&reviewerType=all_reviews&pageNumber=3




    I'm not an Acer employee.
  • Eh220750
    Eh220750 Member Posts: 1 New User
    Bringing this back up almost 2 years later. I just got a Crucial MX500 Sata M.2 SSD. Was excited to put it in, when I found out that I can't. I found the M.2 slot and tried to put it in, but I swear it's not the right fit. Every video I looked up said that it should go in without much force, and I even tried wiggling it in, but I swear it looks like an NVMe slot instead, but it's the same prebuilt Acer TC780 Acki5. I don't know what I'm doing wrong, but I don't want to break the brand new SSD I bought. If anyone could help me that'd be great
  • ttttt
    ttttt Member Posts: 1,947 Community Aficionado WiFi Icon
    Dear Eh220750,

           The M.2 slots sometimes create confusions. There are "B" key and "M" key differences. As you view descriptions of  M.2 SSD enclosures you can tell the differences between them. One good way to insert M.2 SSD is to insert it at an angle close to 20-30 degrees.