How to make an SSD the primary drive in Windows 11

Why make SSD the primary drive in Windows 11? Advantage Description

The difference between HDD and SSD is not a matter of degree, but a matter of kind. HDDs have many moving parts—spindles, spinning disks, read/write arms, etc.—and damage to any of them can cause the disk to fail. Therefore, durability is not HDD’s strong point. They also can't match the speeds offered by SSDs.

HDD uses mechanical components, while SSD uses flash memory to save and access data. Since they have no moving parts, they are durable and less susceptible to damage from drops, which also makes them faster and more power-efficient.

In most cases, SSDs will also last longer than their traditional counterparts. If you frequently introduce new files to your SSD, your SSD will degrade over time. However, if you do this infrequently and keep your SSD used only for hosting Windows and other commonly used files, they can last a long time. On the other hand, as mentioned earlier, a single failure of one of the moving parts of the hard drive can render it unusable.

Sure, SSDs are also four times more expensive (per GB) than HDDs, but their cost decreases over time and will only get cheaper as demand grows.

How to make the most of SSD and HDD?

Because SSD performance degrades with frequent writes, it's best to use them for specific tasks. If longevity is your goal, they're best used to host Windows, resource-hungry applications like games and editing tools, and files you need to access frequently. For everything else - storing large files, saving and deleting files, and basic computing - use an HDD.

Using an SSD and HDD together will give you the best of both worlds while minimizing their disadvantages, such as the higher price of SSDs and the slower speeds of HDDs.​

How to Make an SSD Your Primary Drive in Windows 11

Now that you know why you want to use an SSD as your primary drive, let’s look at a few methods you can use.

Method 1: After installing Windows (using BIOS key at boot)

If you have a new SSD and want to set it as the primary boot device before installing Windows, you can Follow these steps:

Of course, if you want to install Windows, you first need Windows installation media in the form of a bootable USB. You can download the media creation tool using the following link:

Download: Windows 11

Select the "Create Windows 11 installation media" option.

Download and run the media creation tool and make it bootable using the USB option.

#Then follow the on-screen prompts to make your USB bootable.

Prepare your SSD

Now, it’s time to prepare your SSD. Power off the PC and unscrew the side panel. Then plug the SSD into the SATA connector and power cable, tighten the side panel, and power on the system.

After booting, right-click on the Start menu and select "Disk Management".

#Device Manager will automatically detect the SSD and take you to the initialization window. If not, right-click the disk and select Initialize.

Then select GPT (for better Windows 11 compatibility) and click OK.

Note: If you want to use the MBR format, you must ensure that the boot mode is set to Legacy in the BIOS. To learn more about accessing the boot sequence from the BIOS, see the section on accessing the BIOS below.

Installing Windows on SSD

Now, insert the USB drive used for Windows installation. Then press Start and click the "Power" button.

Hold down the Shift key and click Restart.

Your computer will now boot in the Windows Recovery Environment. Click Use Device.

Select your bootable USB drive.​

#Wait for the system to restart and boot into Windows Setup. Then click "Next".

Click Install now.

If you have a product key, enter your product key and click Next.

Otherwise, click "I don't have a product key."

Select the desired version of Windows and click

Next.

Accept Microsoft's software license terms and click

Next.

Then click

Custom Installation. This is an important point because the next screen will let you delete the previous partition and select the new SSD for the Windows installation (which will later be set as the primary drive).

To delete a hard drive partition, select the drive where Windows is installed (primary) and click

Remove.

When prompted, click

Yes.

Otherwise, you can simply select the SSD (with unallocated space) and click "

Next" to install Windows.

# Follow the on-screen prompts to install Windows. Once completed, your PC will boot directly into the BIOS (since we deleted the main boot partition).

In the BIOS, go to the Boot Options tab.

Then select Operating System Boot Manager.

Then select your SSD.

If you did not delete the hard drive partition, you would have two operating systems - one on your hard drive and a new one on your SSD.

(

Note: The original Windows had a lower volume number, the new volume number on the SSD is higher).

Access the BIOS and make the SSD the primary drive

If you deleted the previous version of Windows on your hard drive, the new installation on the SSD will automatically become the primary drive. However, if you install it with an existing Windows on the HDD, you must access the BIOS to make it the primary drive. There are several ways to access the BIOS, depending on your manufacturer and whether you are using legacy or UEFI boot mode.

The first method involves accessing the BIOS the traditional way, by pressing

F2, F8, F10, or while the system is booting Del key (the key will vary depending on your PC manufacturer. For more information, see the later section on accessing the BIOS).

But in short, you will use the arrow keys in the BIOS menu to get to the Boot Options tab, select your operating system boot manager and select your SSD to make it your primary boot drive.

Quick Tip: If you want to change the boot mode between Legacy and UEFI, you can also do this from the Boot Options menu, depending on which one you selected respectively. MBR mode or GPT mode.

Method 2: After installing Windows (changing default Windows from WinRE)

If you have two Windows installations (one on HDD and one on SSD), you can Make the SSD the primary drive after installing Windows by letting the computer restart, and then on the Windows selection page, click Change defaults or select a different option.

Click to select the default operating system .

Here you will see Windows installed on your system just like on the first screen. But this time you can set it as default permanently. Choose the one with the larger volume number (that is, the SSD introduced later).

Alternatively, click Choose other options on the Windows selection page.

Click Troubleshooter.

Now click on Advanced Options.

Click UEFI Firmware Settings.

Click Restart.

Now you will see entering the BIOS/UEFI setup page. Use the arrow keys to enter Boot Manager.

#Then go to your SSD and select it to make it boot priority.

#Note: Your BIOS may differ from the one shown above. However, the options are more or less the same.

After booting into Windows 11, you can remove other Windows from your hard drive by formatting the drive. Alternatively, you can delete the partition (and all its contents) by deleting the drive during Windows installation, as shown in the first method.

Method 3: After cloning Windows 11 to SSD

After cloning Windows from HDD to SSD, you may also want to change the boot order to ensure that the latter is used as the primary drive.

To learn how to clone Windows 11 to an SSD, see our tutorial "How to clone Windows 11 to an SSD".

Then, as before, to make the SSD the primary boot drive, press F8 on boot to enter the boot manager and select your SSD.

How to set up an SSD as the BIOS master boot drive for different PC manufacturers

Now, since each manufacturer has a different boot key and a different BIOS layout, let’s see how Set up the SSD as the primary boot drive from some popular manufacturers.

turn on computer. Then, while the screen is still blank, press the F10 key repeatedly to enter the BIOS menu options. Make sure you do this before you see the Windows logo. If you miss your window of opportunity and Windows starts to boot, shut down your system and try again.

With the BIOS menu open, use the arrow keys to get to the Boot Options tab (on a desktop computer, you must go to the System Configuration tab and select Boot Options from there).

Here, select OS Boot Manager under Boot order and press Enter.

Select your SSD and press Enter.

Then use the arrow keys to go to the Exit tab and select Exit to save changes.

ASUS

Here's how to access the BIOS on an ASUS system and set the SSD as the primary boot drive:

• Reset Start your PC and press F2 key (or delete) on the first screen.
• Click under Boot Priority to access boot options.
• Now use mouse drag or keyboard to select your SSD.
• Alternatively, you can press the F7 key in the BIOS to enter "Advanced Mode".
• If you are in Advanced Mode, click the Startup tab.
• Then go to "Boot Option Priority" at the bottom and select your SSD.
• Now just click the "Exit" button and when prompted, select "Save changes and exit" .

GIGABYTE

Here's how to access the BIOS on a Gigabyte motherboard and set the SSD as the primary boot drive:

• Restart your PC and then Press the Del key on a screen.
• If you are in Easy Mode, click on the Boot Order section in the lower left corner of the screen.
• Then use your mouse to drag the SSD to the top of the list.
• Then click "Esc" at the bottom.
• Then in the lower right corner, click Save and Exit (or press F10).
• Click Yes when prompted.

If you are in Advanced Mode, press F2 to enter Simple Mode and continue with the above steps, or navigate to the Boot tab to make changes.

Dell

Here's how to access the BIOS on a Dell system and set the SSD as the primary boot drive:

• Restart the PC and press F2 repeatedly key.
• Navigate to Settings and select Boot Order.
• On the right side you will see the boot options. Make sure there is a check mark next to SSD.
• Then, select the SSD in the list on the right and click the up arrow to place it at the top of the boot order.
• Click " Apply" and then click "OK" when prompted.

FIX: Clone SSD won't boot

If you've cloned Windows 11 to an SSD and found that it won't boot, something may have gone wrong.

First, you must ensure that Windows 11 is cloned correctly without any interruptions. See our tutorial on how to clone Windows 11 to an SSD.

Second, make sure the SSD is indeed the primary boot drive. You can do this by referring to the method given above in this tutorial.

Third, you may run into problems if the BIOS boot mode is not compatible with your SSD. This may occur if your boot disk is MBR (Legacy BIOS) instead of GPT (UEFI Boot Mode). If so, you'll have to set the SSD to GPT or make the partition active if you want to stick with MBR.

Please note that after converting from MBR to GPT, you must clean the disk and reinstall Windows on it.

To convert a disk from MBR to GPT, follow these steps:

Boot to the Windows Setup screen using the Windows installation disk (USB).

On the settings screen, press Shift F10 to open the command prompt.

Now type the following command:

diskpart

Press Enter. Then type the following:

list disk

Press Enter. Note the SSD disk number.

Then type the following command:

select disk (disk number)

Make sure to change with the actual disk number "(disk number)".

Then press Enter.

After selecting the desired disk, type the following:

clean

Press the Enter key. This command is important because Command Prompt can only convert empty disks.

Now enter:

convert gpt

Press Enter key.

Now close the command prompt and reinstall Windows.

If you want to stick with legacy BIOS (MBR), you must activate this partition. To do this, follow these steps:

On the Windows Settings screen, press Shift F10 to open the Command Prompt.

Now type the following command:

diskpart

Press Enter.

Now type the following:

list disk

Press Enter. You will get a list of disks on your system. Note the disk number associated with your SSD.

Now enter:

select disk (disk number)

Replace "(disk number)" Enter the actual disk number associated with your SSD and press Enter.

Now enter:

list partition

Press Enter. Make a note of the partition number you want to activate.

Then enter:

select partition (number)

Replace "(number)" with the Active partition number and press Enter.

Now enter:

active

Press Enter.

You have now made the MBR partition type SSD active and should now be able to boot from your SSD.

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