Amateur in need of setup/configuration help.

[Zephiran]

I apologize in advance if this is the wrong place/format/medium to solicit help; that said, I am vastly too inexperienced with computer configurations to be able to sort through jargon, tech support everywhere has been absolutely useless, and I figured I might give community forums a shot. Please let me know what I might be doing wrong and show me the proper course of action, if possible.

Background: I've recently purchased a Lenovo Ideapad Y580 from the Microsoft Store. Prior to this, I've also purchased 2 Intel 330 SSD's. Each SSD was adequately configured into a second and third laptop without a hitch, simply by cloning the existing drive into each SSD, and then swapping out the stock HDD for the Intel 330's via a USB-SATA cable and some 3rd party data management software (EZGig I believe).

This was my same approach for the recently purchased Y580, but it seemed that this laptop came with a 750 GB HDD + 32 GB (flash memory?) configured in some way that was beyond me. I initially just cloned the 750 GB HDD into one of my (formatted) Intel 330 240 GB SSD's and swapped their places. The configuration worked swimmingly for about a day; speeds on everything were absurdly fast relative to what I was used to. 4 A.M. the next morning, Windows decided to update and abruptly crash. Figuring it was a fluke, I tried to just boot up again - but to no avail. I tried booting from the old drive, switching the boot order through F2/F12, booting in safe mode, nothing. It's here that I realized the old OS must've been erased or removed somehow when the HDD/SSD were switched, though I still have no idea how. Lenovo tech support offered their premium technicians' help only if I would feed them $60 and wait for a recovery disc to come in, so I opted to purchase Windows 7 Ultimate from a 3rd party instead.

At this point, I'm pretty fed up with the 32 GB portion and just wanted to get Win7U to install onto the SSD and be over with it. However, when trying to install onto the SSD, I kept getting and error message saying that the drive needed to be under GPT? I resigned to just installing the OS on the 32 GB portion. This allowed my laptop to function normally again, but at the cost of having no space (there was maybe 7 GB left after the OS installation). Now I try cloning the 32 GB into the Intel 330 240 GB since I could boot without any 2.5 drive in the laptop. However, no matter how I tried to reorder the boot configuration via the startup menus, I could not get Win7U to boot up from the SSD instead of the flash memory. This was mainly a problem because all the documents, media, program files, and everything on the desktop needed to be on the SSD in order to have space.

As far as I know, the 32 GB flash memory portion cannot be removed. Ultimately, I just want to have at least all the programs/media stored by default onto the SSD (D: drive). It doesn't matter if the OS would be stored on the 32 GB portion and the two drives be linked somehow (although I know absolutely nothing about RAID or how to set this up), or if I were to bypass the 32 GB portion altogether and just have everything run off of the SSD. I just want my new laptop back :\

And yes I am aware that:
- I could just install the programs/put user files on the SSD directly, but this wouldn't really be a feasible set up.
- I should stop being stubborn and just attempt to restore the original 32 GB + 750 GB configuration, as it is efficient enough and that's how it was meant to run. Be it as it may, I only really wanted to have 1 SSD and it would be an optimal setting for me, despite the whole process being a pain in the ***.

Please let me know if you have any suggestions and/or if I could clarify anything in the post. Thank you.

 

[zCypher]

Hi Zephiran and welcome to the forums, glad you decided to stop by here, it's an awesome place. It sounds like your Lenovo laptop has a 32GB SSD + 750GB HDD configuration, originally, and you are having difficulty getting it to really be wiped clean and start fresh with that sweet Intel 240GB SSD you have there.

Are you able to access the BIOS of your laptop (usually by pressing DEL or an F key upon the first seconds of bootup)? If so, does the 32GB appear somewhere in there? Also, the BIOS should have an option that determines the order in which your system boots from its devices.

You wrote "However, no matter how I tried to reorder the boot configuration via the startup menus" - are you talking about the BIOS, or something different?

You say that the configuration (with 240GB SSD) worked seemingly ok initially, and it only started acting up after a while. It sounds like the SSD isn't being detected any more. It would be helpful to get back into the BIOS and see if the Intel SSD shows up or not. Is it possible to test the drive in another system to be sure?

In response to the 32GB being linked or set up in RAID or what not, I think it's more likely that it would either serve as another volume/partition of 32GB, but not used as the boot drive - OR , used as a cache for the boot drive.

SSD, I kept getting and error message saying that the drive needed to be under GPT

Now that seems a bit odd to me. When you get into the Windows installation, there should be an option for custom install, and then a screen that shows you all your existing drives. In order for things to work out properly, you probably need to select the 32GB volume and delete it (may need to click "advanced" or whatever it's called before you see the delete button). I'd delete the 240GB one too to start clean, and then make sure you have the 240GB one selected as the drive you're installing Windows to. Hopefully it's just a side effect of the cloning process that borked things, and not the SSD itself acting up.

 

[Zephiran]

Hey, and thanks for the warm welcome

I believe so, it's called InsydeH20?

http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&...w=183&start=0&ndsp=53&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:74

That picture isn't mine but I believe it's the same utility. If so then yes, the 32 GB SSD is one of the options. I did try rearranging the boot order so that when the OS was cloned to the Intel SSD, it would have booted from that Intel SSD first. Never got that to work though.

At one point I stopped getting the GPT error when trying to install on the SSD but it would still crash mid-install and then reverse all the progress.

The Intel SSD is still definitely detected by the system. I don't think that was ever an issue however.

 

[zCypher]

Yeah, that screenshot definitely looks like the BIOS screen. If you are putting the Intel as first in boot order, and you still get the system booting off the 32GB, that means the Intel drive isn't currently bootable.

If the install is not completing, this speaks to something being wrong with either the install media or the SSD. Could equally be the CD/DVD drive itself, motherboard, RAM, etc. Though I think based on the info we have so far, the CD being used or the SSD are likely culprits.

If you have access to the 750GB or another hard drive, try installing a fresh copy of Windows on there. If it works fine, you can rule out the install CD as being the issue with reasonable certainty.

If that turns out to be the case, you could try doing a secure erase on the SSD before installing Windows. I'm not too familiar with how to do that on the Intel drive, Google or other forum members could help more on that front.

You mentioned something about a USB adapter. Is the SSD plugged in through that right now? That's also a possible issue, though I can't really say for sure.

 

[Zephiran]

I suppose the Intel SSD might not be bootable, but I'm not sure how since I did a direct clone (via that USB-SATA cable) shortly after the fresh install onto the 32 GB SSD. I know it's not the Win7U disc because I managed to successfully install that onto the 32 GB SSD AND activate it.

Although I guess I've never actually installed Windows onto the Intel SSD before, I've gotten Win7 to run off of it on another laptop. I read somewhere that if I have 2 bootable drives then the computer reads them in a certain order?

And the Intel SSD is currently INSIDE my laptop attached via whatever you call the main connector.

 

[zCypher]

I suppose the Intel SSD might not be bootable, but I'm not sure how since I did a direct clone (via that USB-SATA cable) shortly after the fresh install onto the 32 GB SSD. I know it's not the Win7U disc because I managed to successfully install that onto the 32 GB SSD AND activate it.

Although I guess I've never actually installed Windows onto the Intel SSD before, I've gotten Win7 to run off of it on another laptop. I read somewhere that if I have 2 bootable drives then the computer reads them in a certain order?

And the Intel SSD is currently INSIDE my laptop attached via whatever you call the main connector.

The SSD should definitely be bootable unless there's a problem with it. In the BIOS menu you have an option to select which disk is used to boot. My system currently has 3 different drives that are bootable, it doesn't give me any trouble.

If you run the Windows install right now, do you see the SSD as one of the available drives to install it onto?

 

[Zephiran]

Managed to remove the 32 GB but then ran into the GPT error when trying to install on the Intel SSD again. Tried to clone onto the Intel but just recently lost my USB-SATA cable. Tried to follow a guide to boot from an image that would repartition my Intel but anything I owned that had a burner died on me. This has been much more trouble than I expected.

 

[Zephiran]

After finally managing to format the drive to MBR (doesn't work) then back to GPT (still didn't work), I had the Intel formatted while running Win7U off of the initial SSD. FINALLY got Win7U to install on the Intel SSD, but now I have a few problems that really mess things up together.

1) I can't boot up with just the Intel (while the 32 GB SSD is removed), apparently it needs a Atheros LAN driver to be installed. This wouldn't be a problem except for..

2) I can't seem to install ANY of the drivers specific for my Lenovo from ANY location. Apparently they install to the C:\ drive by default and there's no way to adjust the installation location prior to it happening. I would just change the drive letter of the Intel from D:\ to C:\ but..

3) I simply CANNOT change the drive letter for whatever. Not to C:\, not to any other letter. This is with and without the 32 GB SSD physically attached to the drive (via the direct SATA connection used for the original HDD). When I try to put the 32 GB SSD back in, I can't change that drive letter from C:\ to anything else. I then try formatting the Intel again, which allows me to switch the drive letter. But upon reinstalling Win7U on the Intel, I can't change the drive letter anymore.

I went through Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Computer Management -> Storage -> Disk Management -> Right click the appropriate drive -> Change Drive Letters and Paths -> Change.. for the appropriate drive -> Assign the following drive letter -> C:\ -> Warning message that says some programs might not work correctly with the drive letter -> OK -> The parameter is incorrect.

Yes, I've already tried to relocate/readjust the page file through system properties -> virtual memory, but ultimately I still get the error, with or without the 32 GB SSD installed. I know I can boot to through the Intel, I just can't seem to get it to be the "main drive." If it helps at all, http://i.imgur.com/mZblb.png

 

[Denithor]

So you can remove the 32GB SSD physically but then cannot perform a clean install onto the Intel SSD?

If that's accurate, can you plug the Intel drive into another system (USB or SATA) and format it? Sounds like your partition tables have gotten borked up somewhere along this process.

Once clean format has been done you should then be able to insert into the Lenovo by itself and perform a clean W7U installation.

Welcome to the fun - and sometimes frustrating - world of computer upgrades.

 

[TemjinGold]

What happens if you yank both the 32gb and the 750gb and JUST have the Intel in there? Would things install fine then?

 

[Zephiran]

@Denithor: I CAN perform a clean install on the Intel SSD. The weird thing is I can't do it without the 32GB SSD being inside at the same time. Maybe that's why my laptop never recognizes the Intel as the primary drive?

I thought the way I've been formatting has been good enough. Been using EaseUS Partition Master to repartition from GPT -> MBR -> GPT. For some reason Windows will only let me install at certain times.

And you're not kidding it's damn frustrating especially with final projects due soon and not having room to get MS office installed :\

@TemjinGold: I've been operating without the 750GB for a while now. Things have been installing fine only WITH the 32 GB in there. Without the 32 GB SSD I get an error message along the lines of my old Windows files would be replaced (if I just had a fresh Windows install). Then it's something along the lines of Windows can't find a partition to install Windows on (again, only without the 32GB).

 

[Zephiran]

http://imgur.com/a/WPGou

some visual representation of the last post.

 

[Cerb]

Is there a setting for caching in your BIOS? On Dells and HPs, it's generally pretty easy to find/change, but I haven't messed with a Lenovo using it. Somewhere other than the boot order, possibly named with SRT (smart response technology), or something like that.

Also, what happens if you:
1. Remove the 32GB drive, so the 240 is the only one in the machine.
2. Boot Windows setup.
3. Delete all partitions on the disk--all data will be gone (not that you're using much of the new SSD anyway). You can do this from dDrive options (Advanced).
4A. If it let's you move on, let it partition and format automatically.
4B. If it stops there (I forget if it does or not, but probably not), reboot, and let setup run again, with an apparently blank drive.

From your screenshots, it looks like the partitions have been left alone. After Windows installs, you should see 1 disc with 2 parti