Will an SSD Drive work with old Sata and computer?

[itakey]

I have an old HP computer that I want to drop an SSD drive into. I see that a lot of the SSD drives say Sata II and Sata III. If the board doesn't have this will the drive be backwards compatible?

Here is a link to the motherboard in my machine I want to upgrade:
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/...e=c01080282&lang=en&lc=en&product=3445431#N33

I am thinking a simple 60GB or so for the OS on this computer.

Any recommendations?

 

[mikeymikec]

I'm pretty sure it's part of the SATA spec that a controller / drive should be backwards and forwards compatible (though obviously plugging in a SATA 6Gbps into a SATA 3Gbps port won't get you SATA 6Gbps speeds).

I've only come across one controller that couldn't handle a drive with a higher SATA version. The controller was a VIA 8237, IIRC.

I would probably check what SATA controller is in the HP PC and find out whether that has any particular issues.

 

[Coup27]

Mikeymikec is correct that the SATA spec states that all drives should be backwards compatible.

That chipset will be pants in terms of performance so I would just get the cheapest reliable drive 64GB drive you can. An SSD will still make a big difference but on that chipset you won't see the kind of numbers others get.

The candidates would be the Crucial m4, Samsung 830, Intel 320, X25-M G2 (I have seen the odd one floating about).

 

[itakey]

I'm pretty sure it's part of the SATA spec that a controller / drive should be backwards and forwards compatible (though obviously plugging in a SATA 6Gbps into a SATA 3Gbps port won't get you SATA 6Gbps speeds).

I've only come across one controller that couldn't handle a drive with a higher SATA version. The controller was a VIA 8237, IIRC.

I would probably check what SATA controller is in the HP PC and find out whether that has any particular issues.

Thanks for the feedback. How can I check what SATA controller the board has?

Any recommendation an SSD that will be good for this computer. Obviously doesn't have to be the fastest thing in town. I'm thinking 60GB or so, saw some in the under $70 range with good reviews so I'm thinking somewhere around there. Anyone recommend a specific SSD?

Mikeymikec is correct that the SATA spec states that all drives should be backwards compatible.

That chipset will be pants in terms of performance so I would just get the cheapest reliable drive 64GB drive you can. An SSD will still make a big difference but on that chipset you won't see the kind of numbers others get.

The candidates would be the Crucial m4, Samsung 830, Intel 320, X25-M G2 (I have seen the odd one floating about).

EDIT:
I must have posted a little after you and I didn't see this before posting my message. Any deals going on for any of those recommended drives? I'll have to chech Newegg Early BF's, or are there any online BF deals?

 

[mikeymikec]

google for the HP model number, find that in HP support, spend a while trying to tally up the HP list of model numbers with what's written on your PC, hopefully end up with the right one, look at the specs, it should mention the SATA controller somewhere.

Alternatively, opening up the PC and look at what the chips on the board say and google for those

 

[Coup27]

Your motherboard is an ASUS M2N68-LA which has a NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE GFX chip and an nForce 430 chipset. According to this link, the chipset supports 3Gbps SATA which is good news. However it has not been beyond OEMs to throttle back SATA controllers for a variety of reasons so download CrystalDiskInfo and see what SATA connection speed the current drive is running at.

Regarding deals, I cannot help you there. I live in the UK so do not pay attention to American deals. In the UK, the Samsung 830 is the cheapest out of the list I gave you and it would also be my personal recommendation.

 

[Auric]

Your linkaroo shows an Nvidia chipset/controller which are notorious for incompatibilities so definitley research potential issues with any hardware additions.

 

[itakey]

Thanks for all the input everyone. If I find a drive at the right price I'm going to give it a try and if it doesn't work I have another machine that will definitely accept it. Good tips all around thanks!

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Thanks for all the input everyone. If I find a drive at the right price I'm going to give it a try and if it doesn't work I have another machine that will definitely accept it. Good tips all around thanks!

Concerning the nVidia chipsets "of olden days," I've got a 128GB Intel ELm Crest SATA-III SSD as boot/system disk on a motherboard with the 610i nVidia chipset and nForce controller. I'd have to look again to see whether that BIOS provides AHCI as well as IDE and RAID modes. This issue arose because the SSD generates a [hot-swap] device-removal icon in the system tray, just as you'd find with a USB flash drive in a USB port. Since this is "Mom's" machine and she has trouble just following windows update dialogs, I worried that she might dismount her boot drive with the wrong mouse-click in the wrong place, but it doesn't seem like much of a risk.

Otherwise, it has to be one of the fastest and more reliable systems I've built using LGA-775 C2D/C2Q processors and DDR2 -- regardless of the chipset maker -- Intel or nVidia.

 

[itakey]

Concerning the nVidia chipsets "of olden days," I've got a 128GB Intel ELm Crest SATA-III SSD as boot/system disk on a motherboard with the 610i nVidia chipset and nForce controller. I'd have to look again to see whether that BIOS provides AHCI as well as IDE and RAID modes. This issue arose because the SSD generates a [hot-swap] device-removal icon in the system tray, just as you'd find with a USB flash drive in a USB port. Since this is "Mom's" machine and she has trouble just following windows update dialogs, I worried that she might dismount her boot drive with the wrong mouse-click in the wrong place, but it doesn't seem like much of a risk.

Otherwise, it has to be one of the fastest and more reliable systems I've built using LGA-775 C2D/C2Q processors and DDR2 -- regardless of the chipset maker -- Intel or nVidia.

Sounds like there is hope, I appreciate the details!