Want to install an mSata SSD into my new Alienware m14x R2

Hi apierion

Welcome to the Community.

You are right. mSATA SSD slot is under the Battery. You will need to remove the Bottom door and the Battery to install it.

Alienware M14x R2 may be offered with an mSATA SSD or WiHD/DMC Card. Both cards cannot be accommodated at the same time, since they use the same DMC card slot.

Hope these images will be helpful:

Locate the mSATA slot.

Unsecure the screw securing the mSATA card to the DMC board.

Kindly reply if the information was helpful

mSATA is just a  mini-card - look in the section on removing/installing mini-PCI Express cards.

Hi, amazing reply from Satya P :). I would like also to leave the article to remove or install the msata on the M14xR2.

Hi Juan and Satya P,

I am looking for a compatible 128GB msata III card to place in the R2.

Any idea which one will work. Cruicial says their cards are not working.

Best

Hi, TomTim please send us an email to alienwareupgrades@dell.com along with the service tag of your machine so we can answer any question you have about that upgrade :D

Hi, TomTim please send us an email to alienwareupgrades@dell.com along with the service tag of your machine so we can answer any question you have about that upgrade :D

Why not answer that here instead of through emails so others can benefit from it?

Actually, the only problem I have/had is that if you buy a laptop that doesn't come with its own mSata drive preinstalled, it also doesn't come with the screw to secure the drive in place. Naturally this also doesn't come from Crucial. Becuase the drive slot is a ZIF connector, there is literally nothing holding it down - except the battery. The battery is sandwiched so tight above the drive that it does a good job of keeping it locked down, but really, the empty screw hole should've came with a screw for aftermarket drives.

Hey, Dell, where can I get this screw? I really should secure my drive...

TomTim,

Hi. I'm the guy that originated this form post. I actually bought a Crucial m4 256gb mSata drive and it's working perfectly. Whoever told you they were problematic is either trolling you, Crucial, Alienware, or just got a bad drive.

Hi,

I am planning to buy the 14x R2, but there is no garantee so far, which msata are working.

And the fear of buying the 14x with the wrong msata, really keeps me from taking the next step.

(in Germany you can only buy the 16GB msata from Dell, which is very uninteresting, plus phone sales refused to help me with buy it without msata and giving information)

There are no system information on the msata slot, other than I found in a blog the information from a dell sales rep, that it's sata III and works with all msata drives with sata II + III (while Cruicial says that theirs is not working with Alienware).

That's why I tried to gather more information in this thread.

Actually, the only problem I have/had is that if you buy a laptop that doesn't come with its own mSata drive preinstalled, it also doesn't come with the screw to secure the drive in place. Naturally this also doesn't come from Crucial. Becuase the drive slot is a ZIF connector, there is literally nothing holding it down - except the battery. The battery is sandwiched so tight above the drive that it does a good job of keeping it locked down, but really, the empty screw hole should've came with a screw for aftermarket drives.   Hey, Dell, where can I get this screw? I really should secure my drive...

Whoever told you they were problematic is either trolling you, Crucial, Alienware, or just got a bad drive.

Actually, the only problem I have/had is that if you buy a laptop that doesn't come with its own mSata drive preinstalled, it also doesn't come with the screw to secure the drive in place. Naturally this also doesn't come from Crucial. Becuase the drive slot is a ZIF connector, there is literally nothing holding it down - except the battery. The battery is sandwiched so tight above the drive that it does a good job of keeping it locked down, but really, the empty screw hole should've came with a screw for aftermarket drives.   Hey, Dell, where can I get this screw? I really should secure my drive...

I got this feeling that it may be easier to take it to your local hardware store to find a screw.

@apierion

Thanks for the hint with Cruicial being working. And yes - it's Cruicials website showing that it is not compatible.

And thanks for the installation hint.

Hope you find your lost screw :)

well to be fair, the screw isn't lost, they never included it with the lapve been using it and between the one mounting peg that is present and the sandwiching effect of the battery i've had zero problems with the drive. was definitely a worthwhile investment.

Incidentally, for anyone curious, my current drive status is as follows:

1 256gb crucial m4 mSata for OS, Swap file, and frequently used programs +

1 750 gb Seagate XD Momentus XT (Hybrid) for data and large programs

This combination cannot be beat with the current technology. My total cash outlay for storage was something like $400, but the computer is already leaps and bounds faster than when i was just using the stock platter drive. Very responsive. Of course this is 99% because of the SSD, but the hybrid drive makes just about all my programs and data loading off the platters run like they're on a SSD too, so load times are basically nil.

Dumb question for you guys about mSATA.   Is this used for the OS and a regular HD for storage?   I saw that setup at the Alienware site and was not sure.  Thanks.