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What Are PCIe SSDs and How to Use Them As a Boot Drive for a Dell Computer

Summary: This article is a guide to the various types of Solid State Drive (SSD) that fit in the PCIe connector on your motherboard. This guide also explains what is involved in using such a drive as your main boot driver on a Dell computer. ...

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Symptoms

Table of Contents:

  1. Introduction
  2. What is a PCIe SSD and how does it work?
  3. Can I install an Operating System on it?
  4. Further Information:

Cause

Cause information is not applicable.

Resolution

Introduction

This article provides information about the Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) SSDs. They are now being offered for many Dell computers after initially only being available for Dell servers. We take you through what a PCIe Solid State Drive (SSD) is, what it does and how it does it. We cover what you must do to use one of these drives as your boot drive with a Windows Operating System (OS) installed. We go over any other relevant information that would be useful to know when dealing with this type of device.

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What is a PCIe SSD and how does it work?

PCIe SSDs are solid state drives which do not use the Motherboards SATA Chipset interface to communicate between the SSD and the Windows File system.

They have their own storage controller built into the SSD, which should not be confused with the standard SSD controller chip that all SSDs use. The storage controller in PCIe SSDs uses a driver that either the manufacturer or the OS itself provides. The SSD user must install the driver.

PCIe SSDs are not SATA drives, though some may share one or more aspects with SATA drives.

There are several ways that you can connect a PCIe SSD to your Motherboard:

  • A Standard PCIe slot (One that is at least x4.)
  • An M.2 slot
Note: Not all SSDs with an M.2 Interface are PCIe SSDs.
  • A U.2 adapter card and cable, that is connected to an M.2 slot or a Motherboard with a U.2 connector onboard (for a 2.5" form factor with a PCIe Interface.)
  • M.2 PCIe SSDs can be used with an M.2 to PCIe slot adapter card
Note: Using a PCIe adapter card with multiple x4 SSDs? Remember to fit the card in a slot of equal or greater capacity than the total of the cards. (For example: 2 x4 SSDs fitted in adapter - x8 PCIe slot or greater is needed. x16 is recommended for these cards, which can take up to 4 x4 SSDs.) Failing to do so can result in drives not being detected.

PCIe SSDs increase performance by getting rid of the SATA interface (Which so far has a maximum of 10 channels.) for PCIe. (Which has a maximum of 25 channels.) This makes it suitable for buffering and caching applications. PCIe is a multipurpose bus designed to put through all kinds of data to the processor. However its lack of specialization makes programming difficult. This means you could see a trade-off between interoperability and performance.

There are two types of non-Physical Interface:

Advanced Host Controller Interface (AHCI)

This is the same protocol used by SATA SSDs.

Non Volatile-Memory Express (NVMe)

This is a protocol designed specifically for SSD storage. It shares nothing with SATA and replaces AHCI with a better method of dealing with solid state storage. PCIe NVMe SSDs also have their own NVMe storage controller built into the drive.

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Can I install an operating system on it?

Supported Windows operating systems

You can use Windows 11, Windows 10, Windows 8 or 8.1, and Windows 7. (While some drive manufacturers say both 32-bit and 64-bit work, others advise only the 64-bit versions work correctly.)

Installation on Windows 7 can be difficult, especially with a PCIe NVMe SSD drive. There is a Windows 7 Hotfix for this issue available, go to Update to add native driver support in NVM Express in Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (English only) This hyperlink is taking you to a website outside of Dell Technologies..

Supported BIOS Types

The Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) BIOS is currently the only one which supports these devices.

Always ensure that you have the latest revision of your BIOS installed.

Ensure that your BIOS is configured to use the EFI boot loader.

Preinstall Instructions

Here are some different methods to get a PCIe SSD ready for a Windows Installation.

Tapping rapidly on the <F2> key at the Dell Splash screen, takes you straight into the BIOS on most Dell Computers.

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  1. Compatibility Support Module (CSM) is enabled by default on the Boot screen in your BIOS. Click on CSM to show further options.

  2. Look for the option Launch Storage OpROM Policy within CSM. Change the default setting from Legacy Only to UEFI Only.

  3. The Storage Configuration screen shows the SATA mode as default set to AHCI. This can be changed to RAID or IDE. (DO NOT set IDE at any point.) Most often this is left as AHCI, as you may be using additional SATA drivers or have one of the AHCI PCIe SSDs.

  4. Save and Exit from the BIOS and then go back into it.

  5. Your PCIe SSD drive may not show in the Storage Configuration screen or Boot Order List, but ensure that your Windows Installation Media (Whether USB or Optical Drive) does show in the Boot Order list.

  6. You should see UEFI: <Installation Media Device Name> entry in the list. (Where <Installation Media Device Name> is the Device that you have the installation media on.)

  7. If you see one with an AHCI prefix - Ignore it. You must use the entry with the UEFI prefix.

  8. Once you have selected the UEFI entry, Save and Exit from the BIOS again. The Windows Installation should begin.

  9. The windows Install is as normal. Follow a guide appropriate for the version that you are installing.

  10. Once Windows has installed, the boot drive should show in the BIOS Boot Order list as Windows Boot Loader or Windows Boot Loader: <SSD Name>, depending on your BIOS version.

  11. Remember if you are using a PCIe NVMe SSD, install the driver from the drive's manufacturer.

  1. Compatibility Support Module (CSM) is enabled by default on the Boot screen in your BIOS. Click on CSM and set it to Disabled.

  2. This has the same effect within Launch Storage OpROM Policy as changing the default setting to UEFI Only.

  3. For this method, the video source of your computer must be Graphics Output Protocol (GOP) compatible. (A fully utilized UEFI firmware requires this because it is an EFI graphics protocol.)

  4. The Storage Configuration screen shows the SATA mode as default set to AHCI. This can be changed to RAID or IDE. (DO NOT set IDE at any point.) Most often this is left as AHCI, as you may be using additional SATA drivers or have one of the AHCI PCIe SSDs.

  5. Save and Exit from the BIOS and then go back into it.

  6. Your PCIe SSD drive may not show in the Storage Configuration screen or Boot Order List, but ensure that your Windows Installation Media (Whether USB or Optical Drive) does show in the Boot Order list.

  7. You should see UEFI: <Installation Media Device Name> entry in the list. (Where <Installation Media Device Name> is the Device that you have the installation media on.)

  8. If you see one with an AHCI prefix - Ignore it. You must use the entry with the UEFI prefix.

  9. Once you have selected the UEFI entry, Save and Exit from the BIOS again. The Windows Installation should begin.

  10. The windows Install is as normal. Follow a guide appropriate for the version that you are installing.

  11. Once Windows has installed, the boot drive should show in the BIOS Boot Order list as Windows Boot Loader or Windows Boot Loader: <SSD Name>, depending on your BIOS version.

  12. Remember if you are using a PCIe NVMe SSD, install the driver from the drive's manufacturer.

  1. Ensure that the latest compatible version of your UEFI BIOS is installed on your computer.

  2. Set the Boot Order list in your BIOS so that the Windows Installation Media source is first. (Be that a thumb drive or optical drive.)

  3. Save and Exit the BIOS and the Windows installation should begin.

  4. On the Where do you want to install Windows? prompt:

    • If the SSD is listed, select it and click next.

    • If the SSD is not listed, then:

      1. Click Load Driver

      2. Go to the location that you have saved the file from the manufacturer.

      3. Select the file and load it.

  5. Your SSD should now be listed, select it and click on next.

  6. Follow the remainder of the installation instructions until the install is complete.

  7. Set the SSD in the BIOS to be the Primary Boot device.

  8. Save and Exit the BIOS.

  9. Boot to Windows and open the Device Manager for your OS Version.

  10. Under Storage Controllers, find your device, and right-click it and select Update Driver Software.

  11. Go to where you have saved the latest version and load it.

  12. Reboot your computer to finalize the installation.

Note: Best Practice for installing a Windows operating system is to only have the desired boot drive powered during installation.

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Further Information:

M.2 SSDs

When identifying your drive, be aware that there are several different drives that share certain characteristics. For example: M.2 SSDs are SATA drives are commonly available and are more commonly used than PCIe SSDs. These drives can share the M.2 interface. However, the part of the drive that connects to the M.2 slot has a different Key configuration depending on the drive type. M.2 SATA SSDs have two slots in the interface connector, while M.2 PCIe SSDs have only one slot in the interface connector.

Non-Standard PCIe SSDs

There are some PCIe SSDs that do not follow the M.2 interface. They tend to use a x8 PCIe slot interface, not the standard x4 interface. These drives also tend to be configured as RAID 0 arrays using two sets of NAND chip groupings with their own SSD controllers. There are other's out there, each with a decreasing chance of you ever coming across them.

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Additional Information

Recommended Articles

Here are some recommended articles related to this topic that might be of interest to you.

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Affected Products

Alienware, Inspiron, OptiPlex, Vostro, XPS, G Series, G Series, Alienware, Inspiron, Latitude, Vostro, XPS, Latitude Tablets, Fixed Workstations, Mobile Workstations
Article Properties
Article Number: 000132410
Article Type: Solution
Last Modified: 21 Nov 2023
Version:  9
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