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Is 64GB enough?

H

Help Please

macrumors regular
Original poster
Feb 26, 2011
108
0
Iowa
I want to put a SSD into my new 13" MacBook Pro, but I don't know if I should get a 64GB or 80GB. I'm going to install OS X and Windows 7 Professional.

Outside of that I'm using D-Link's 2-Bay NAS for my music, photos, and other files.

So, will 64GB be enough or should I go with 80GB to be safe?

Also, what besides the OS should be stored on the SSD?

Anyone have any insight on this?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You should be alright with either size, although I'd go with the 80 GB myself. Keep in mind that as updates are released for Windows 7, the installed size of the operating system will increase so you'll want to leave a bit of breathing room for the future.

Hope that helps, have a great day!
 
Help Please said:
I want to put a SSD into my new 13" MacBook Pro, but I don't know if I should get a 64GB or 80GB. I'm going to install OS X and Windows 7 Professional.

Outside of that I'm using D-Link's 2-Bay NAS for my music, photos, and other files.

So, will 64GB be enough or should I go with 80GB to be safe?

Also, what besides the OS should be stored on the SSD?
Click to expand...

How large do you plan on having your Windows partition? 64GB is cutting it close, as the smallest I'd recommend any Windows 7 partition is about 32GB, assuming you're going to install software.

If you go for the 64GB version, be sure to scrub both OSs for "fluff" space so you get the most out of it (OS X: remove extra printer drivers, Windows: shrink page file, turn off hibernation, turn off system restore, remove SP1 "uninstallation" files).
 
At this point, I'm kicking myself for not just ordering my MBP with the 128GB SSD option.
 
dagamer34 said:
How large do you plan on having your Windows partition? 64GB is cutting it close, as the smallest I'd recommend any Windows 7 partition is about 32GB, assuming you're going to install software.

If you go for the 64GB version, be sure to scrub both OSs for "fluff" space so you get the most out of it (OS X: remove extra printer drivers, Windows: shrink page file, turn off hibernation, turn off system restore, remove SP1 "uninstallation" files).
Click to expand...

From the sounds of it, I should go with the 80GB.

Dagamer, is there any instructions / threads on how to remove all that "fluff"?
 
I would recommend 128 at minimum. Especially if you are running (2) OS's. Technically you can thin them both down and get them on 64 or 80 GB. However, I'm assuming you will want to actually run some software off of the drive to realize the benefits of the speed increase. So if you have a game you want to play, or if you have something like encoding / ripping to do, you want to use some SSD space. I had 128 for a long time and finally upgraded to 180 just to give a little more breathing room.

SSD's also tend to perform better with extra free space. YMMV.
 
Help Please said:
From the sounds of it, I should go with the 80GB.

Dagamer, is there any instructions / threads on how to remove all that "fluff"?
Click to expand...
When installing Mac OS X, click on "Customize" and remove X11 (if you won't be using any applications that require it), any additional languages that you won't need, and printer drivers that you won't need (these can be downloaded from the internet later on if need be). That's really all you need to do to slim down Mac OS X.

For Windows:

Disable System Restore and Previous Versions
  1. Click on the Start button, right click on Computer, and then click Properties.
  2. On the left hand side of the System Properties window, click on "System Protection"
  3. Select the partition that Windows is installed on (typically "C:"), then click on "Configure..."
  4. Select "Turn off System Protection", then click on OK.

Remove SP1 un-installation files
  1. Click on Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and then click on "Disk Cleanup".
  2. Select the partition that Windows is installed on (typically "C:"), then click on OK.
  3. Select "Service Pack Backup Files", then click OK.

Disable Hibernation
  1. Click on Start, All Programs, then click Accessories.
  2. Right click on Command Prompt and choose "Run as Administrator".
  3. If you are prompted, provide consent or the appropriate credentials.
  4. Type the following command into the command line: powercfg -h off
  5. Press Enter.

Hope that helps :)
 
1BadMac said:
I would recommend 128 at minimum. Especially if you are running (2) OS's. Technically you can thin them both down and get them on 64 or 80 GB. However, I'm assuming you will want to actually run some software off of the drive to realize the benefits of the speed increase. So if you have a game you want to play, or if you have something like encoding / ripping to do, you want to use some SSD space. I had 128 for a long time and finally upgraded to 180 just to give a little more breathing room.

SSD's also tend to perform better with extra free space. YMMV.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice! Now that I look at it, the price of a good 80GB SSD is only about $50 cheaper than a 120GB SSD.

I'm looking at this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227543

What do you think?
 
Kyzelios said:
When installing Mac OS X, click on "Customize" and remove X11 (if you won't be using any applications that require it), any additional languages that you won't need, and printer drivers that you won't need (these can be downloaded from the internet later on if need be). That's really all you need to do to slim down Mac OS X.

For Windows:

Disable System Restore and Previous Versions
  1. Click on the Start button, right click on Computer, and then click Properties.
  2. On the left hand side of the System Properties window, click on "System Protection"
  3. Select the partition that Windows is installed on (typically "C:"), then click on "Configure..."
  4. Select "Turn off System Protection", then click on OK.

Remove SP1 un-installation files
  1. Click on Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and then click on "Disk Cleanup".
  2. Select the partition that Windows is installed on (typically "C:"), then click on OK.
  3. Select "Service Pack Backup Files", then click OK.

Disable Hibernation
  1. Click on Start, All Programs, then click Accessories.
  2. Right click on Command Prompt and choose "Run as Administrator".
  3. If you are prompted, provide consent or the appropriate credentials.
  4. Type the following command into the command line: powercfg -h off
  5. Press Enter.

Hope that helps :)
Click to expand...

Wow. Thank you very much for the help!
 
Hmm

OP I would say no. 64GB is quite tight and I read an article about not filling your SSD as something about performance degrades when you fill more than 50% of your drive over a long period.

I can't find the link but this applies to sanforce SSDs.

For me I have 60GB and currently @ 30 GB with CS5, LR, Office and some other apps. I removed my DVD drive and installed the OEM HD in its place. I basically have all my files pointed there. I also create VM of XP (twice) and store that file in the OEM HD. THey take about 40GB each on pretty vanilla installs.
 
OatmealRocks said:
OP I would say no. 64GB is quite tight and I read an article about not filling your SSD as something about performance degrades when you fill more than 50% of your drive over a long period.

I can't find the link but this applies to sanforce SSDs.

For me I have 60GB and currently @ 30 GB with CS5, LR, Office and some other apps. I removed my DVD drive and installed the OEM HD in its place. I basically have all my files pointed there. I also create VM of XP (twice) and store that file in the OEM HD. THey take about 40GB each on pretty vanilla installs.
Click to expand...

Yeah. I've heard that too, but I realized I should just spend $50 more than a 80GB and get a 120GB.

I'm looking at this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227543

What do you think?
 
You can also disable hibernation in OS X. The downside is that if you close your laptop and let the battery die, you will not be able to resume to the state you left the laptop in.

To disable hibernation, run this from the terminal:

Code: 
sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 0

it will ask for your user password, so enter it for the command to execute. then you can run the following command to verify it worked:

Code: 
sudo pmset -g | grep hibernatemode

And make sure that hibernatemode is set to 0.

After you disable hibernation, you will want to remove the hibernation file if it happens to be present on your system - this can recover multiple GB of space if your system has been hibernated before!

Run the following from terminal to remove the hibernation file:

Code: 
sudo rm /var/vm/sleepimage


My other suggestion to save space is to use the application called GrandPerspective. You run the program and it analyzes all of the files on your drive and provides a representative map of everything. This map will make it very easy to see where the large files are that are eating up space. If you're unsure about whether it's safe to delete something, ask here or don't do it. I remember finding some Garageband tutorials and some video files that I deleted to save a good bit more space.
 
Voondebah said:
You can also disable hibernation in OS X. The downside is that if you close your laptop and let the battery die, you will not be able to resume to the state you left the laptop in.

To disable hibernation, run this from the terminal:

Code: 
sudo pmset -a hibernatemode 0

it will ask for your user password, so enter it for the command to execute. then you can run the following command to verify it worked:

Code: 
sudo pmset -g | grep hibernatemode

And make sure that hibernatemode is set to 0.

After you disable hibernation, you will want to remove the hibernation file if it happens to be present on your system - this can recover multiple GB of space if your system has been hibernated before!

Run the following from terminal to remove the hibernation file:

Code: 
sudo rm /var/vm/sleepimage


My other suggestion to save space is to use the application called GrandPerspective. You run the program and it analyzes all of the files on your drive and provides a representative map of everything. This map will make it very easy to see where the large files are that are eating up space. If you're unsure about whether it's safe to delete something, ask here or don't do it. I remember finding some Garageband tutorials and some video files that I deleted to save a good bit more space.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all the help Voondebah!
 
Help Please,

Question: Are you installing the SSD in addition to the drive that the MBP came with or is this going to be the only drive?

I ask because your applications and library directories could easily fill up all the space on the drive. You might want to make a list of the software you're going to use (both in Windows and Mac) and find out how much space each installed program will take up.

Just a thought. Good luck.
 
To give you an idea. I have about 50GB worth of boot and apps. I thikn you could get away with 40 if you run it lean. The problem is Mail, the folder is 15GB and rising by the day. Personally unless you are using something like an optibay or data doubler and have another drive for data then I wouldn't go under 120GB as it means you're only going to have 10-20 or so GB to play with for everything else which would be really frustrating. Being reliant on network storage or external storage defeats the purpose of having the mobility of a laptop IMO.
 
if you're within the 14 day period can't you just send it back and get the 128GB SSD option?
 
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