Inspiron 3020S: Unable to see new ssd’s connected to pcie 4 port sata card?

Hello RoHe. I am extremely new to upgrading. I only see 2 available slots on my motherboard. PCI & Pcie express slot. I have the sata card plugged into the pcie express slot & the 2 SSD cards attached to 2 of the 4 sata ports on card & sata power to both. I can see power lights on card (2 are lit out of the 4). I cannot see the card or ssd’s in bios, disk management or file manager to be able to format or assign a drive letter. 

  I watched a video on YouTube specifically for this JESOT 4 port sata card. Insert sata card into pcie express port, attach sata cables from sata card to SSD, attach sata power cable to SSD, turn on computer, go to disk management & format disk was supposed to automatically pop up, it did not. Been stuck on this ever since.

Both slots on this motherboard are PCI-Express. There are no PCI slots. So which PCI-E slot are you using, x1 (#15) or x16 (#14) in this pic of 3020S motherboard? 

If you're using the x16 slot, move the card into the x1 slot. The x16 may only accept a video card. 

Are those LEDs on the card indicating that 2 of the 4 ports have a drive attached?  Does the card have a required order for which of the 4 ports are supposed to be used?

You still haven't told us the version of Windows. If BIOS is set to RAID, that might prevent system from booting with those other cards attached, even though this motherboard does not support RAID0 or RAID1. 

In that case, you may have to disable Intel Rapid Restore Technology software, and then change BIOS to SATA.  You should image the entire boot drive on external media before you make these changes to be safe. Otherwise you might lose all your files...

I was talking with someone else & they sent me the software/driver download file. I right clicked device manager, then add drivers, selected file. Message said drivers successfully installed. After that the person asked me to check disk drives, but still no sata card or ssd’s anywhere on computer. He thought downloading drivers would solve problem. Said to contact sata card manufacturer, problem is I can’t. No information included with sata card when it arrived, just card, SSD sata cables & a box.

Did you look in Windows Disk Management to see if those two SSDs are available for formatting now? Unless they're formatted, Windows can't assign driver letters and use them for storage.

But, if Windows and BIOS are set to use RAID, PC may not be able to see them in Disk Management. So you'll have to image the boot drive, to be safe, and then disable Intel Rapid Storage Technology.

And please tell us the version of Windows installed on this PC...

I am using Windows 11 Home. The pcie sata card is in X1 (#15) slot. I do not know if there is an order to the lights on sata card. There are 4 lights visible on sata card when cpu boots up, then 2 lights starting closest to the cage on back side of cpu are lit, the other 2 are not. I do not know how to disable the Intel Rapid Restore software or mirror it?

 I see instructions for Rapid Storage. The sata card or SSD cards are nowhere on pc. Device manager, disk management or file manager.

Sure the driver is compatible with Win 11?

The service manual calls it Intel Rapid "Restore" Technology, but that may be a typo and it probably should say Rapid Storage...  Before you disable it, be sure to image the entire boot drive (all partitions) and save the image on external media. You don't want to risk losing everything. 

You can use Macrium Reflect (free for 30 days), or other imaging software you choose, to create the image. Save the image on an external USB drive.  Be sure to use the imaging software to create the bootable USB stick you'd need to boot PC if you need to restore your image. Do all that before you disable Rapid Storage.

Then change BIOS to SATA and save the change when you exit setup. Make sure the PC still boots. And then test the card again.

If all else fails, I'd return this card for a full refund and look for a one from a known brand that comes with decent instructions...

@RoHe​ Ron, thank you very much for the guidance. I will try this. Once I mirror this to usb, if I need to reinstall (change back to raid), what are the steps to do this. I will let you know if this procedure to activate sata card is successful. Could you recommend a good pcie sata card? If this does not work need to know a more reputable card. Thanks.

Don't forget to create the bootable USB stick using the imaging software so you can boot the PC, if/when needed. You should test that this USB stick will boot the PC before going any further, too. Having a saved SSD image, without a bootable USB that works, won't be pretty...

If you need to revert to your saved image, reboot PC and tap F2 to open BIOS setup. Change SATA Operation back NVME, save the change and exit setup. Power PC off and plug in bootable USB stick and USB HDD where you saved your image.

Then power on and tap F12. Select the USB boot option from the menu. The imaging software should load and allow you to copy the stored image back onto the SSD in the PC.

No experience using any specific PCI-e SATA expansion cards but there are some reviews here, and probably others elsewhere, so search for them. Just make sure the card supports Win 11.

BTW: you may want to contact Teamgroup and make sure their 4T SSDs are compatible with any PCI-e>SATA adapter card, either the one you have now or a different one you may need to get.

Thank you for the explanation Ron. I am really just looking to add a sata card to add the 2 Teamgroup 4TB SSD cards (add 8TB more) total storage to my cpu. The initial video I watched for this JESOT sata card, it was put card in e sata slot, connect sata/power cables, boot cpu, go to disk management & format new disks.

I viewed the list of sata cards you sent. I don’t see any of them listed as Windows 11, or use of 4TB SSD specifically. Maybe this is why not showing up anywhere on pc. I did notice the cards in the link you sent did not require drivers. I know you mentioned no direct experience with installation of sata cards. Just trying to explain the difficulty of trying to add these SSD cards. Thank you very much for your time & guidance on this issue I am experiencing. Plug card, attach ssd’s & format was what I expected. I will keep searching for solution. This has turned out to be something very frustrating due to my ignorance of such issues. Thanks again, I will not use up more of your time. Enjoy your weekend, Ron!!

Glad to (try to) help...

I'd also contact the SSD manufacturer to ask if they can recommend a specific PCIe SATA card they know works with the SSDs you have, in Win 11. And/or if they have any advice on your issue.

Maybe also contact a company like SIIG, listed in that review, to see if their card or one of their others works in the PCIe x1 slot, and with Win 11.

Ron, thanks again for taking the time to explain! I contacted Teamgroup & will also contact SIIG and ask. At this point I will try to find a sata card that is truly plug & play (if there is one). Or one that comes with clear instructions of the process for installation.

I'd still try changing BIOS from NVME to SATA before spending any more $$. 

Just do it carefully and have your boot drive fully backed up and the bootable USB re-imaging stick prepared and tested ahead of time.