Advice please: Installing SSD and using original HDD as 2nd drive

[paulhannon]

So I'm installing a new SSD and plan to use the older HDD as a 2nd internal drive.


So i want the SSD to the main drive to boot from etc, so is it best to place the the SSD where the original one was and then place the HDD into the caddy that will replace the optical drive, or leave the HDD where it is? Or not?

Thank you all.

 

[simonsi]

Depends on the model and age....which you haven't said...

 

[paulhannon]

late 2011....I know i can do it, i just want to know the better method to use.

 

[simonsi]

late 2011....I know i can do it, i just want to know the better method to use.

Yeah, it still depends.

15" - put the SSD in the main drive bay.
13" - I'd try putting the SSD in the caddy, if you get full, reliable 6G then all good as you still get SMS protection on the HDD if it is in the main bay. If you don't get full 6G speed then swap the SSD to the main bay.

 

[paulhannon]

Sorry, it's 13".

Yeah I forgot about SMS protection, good call with that.

So my situation is this, my HDD is 750GB and the SSD is 512GB.
I've about 600GB used up on the HDD, vast majority of which is music.
So I was going to delete my music (after backing it up of course) to make the possibility of transferring to the SSD a bit easier and then add back my music after (would it matter which drive I use for my music?)

What's the best way to then transfer to the SSD (OSX, apps, docs etc), I'm a bit confused what to do here, what with all the different options i keep finding out there online.

Thank you

 

[simonsi]

Ok, I run 1TB HDD as a media drive, music doesn't need to be on the SSD.

I would:

1. Shutdown.
2. Open the machine, pull the Optical and install the SSD into the caddy, into the optical bay.
3. Close the machine.
4. Boot.
5. Use CCC to clone the HDD, EXCEPT your iTunes library.
6. Once cloned run the clone again. It will prompt you to install the Recovery partition on the SSD, let it do so. Running the clone a second time will be quick as nothing (almost), will have changed.
7. CMD-Option boot and select the SSD as boot drive, boot.
8. If all boots fine, select the SSD as your Startup drive in Preferences and reboot.
9. Now you can change/tidy the HDD media drive as you wish, when you have finished start iTunes and point it to wherever you left the iTunes Library. (same with your photo library if you need to).

Once running happily, check in About My Mac, choose the System Information and look at the SATA section and check that the "Negotiated Link Speed" on both drives is "6G", if the SSD is NOT running at 6G in the caddy, shutdown and swap them over.

That should be it

 

[paulhannon]

Thank you, ill try that now.