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November 20th, 2020 10:00
17 R4, runs horribly slow
My (out of warranty on June 23, 2020) Alienware 17 R4 runs extremely slow 80% in his activity. Opening a new tab in browser, opening a simple Word or PDF file, can take sometimes can take almost one minute, without any programs or apps running in the background. I did a ePSA test from BIOS and all tests passed. I have reinstalled Windows along with all the drivers that it needs and the problem is the same.
Please help, I have no idea how to solve this.
Thank you.
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Lunetrix
1 Rookie
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50 Posts
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November 20th, 2020 12:00
If you already did a clean installed of Windows.
I would try next : Another clean install of Windows but with a different SSD/NVME drive.
EDIT: Actually, try first : If you have two sticks of RAM. try with with one stick at a time.
It can be that you have a faulty Stick.
crimsom
7 Technologist
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6.1K Posts
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November 20th, 2020 13:00
Hi @nowutilus please download and install the Dell SupportAssist application to provide on-board automated, proactive, and predictive support. Restart your system, then click on [Start now]. If the problem persists, click on Troubleshooting tab and test the hardware, start with test the drives. The Top Solutions for your Alienware System includes support for System Running Slow. Hopefully this Dell support software will improve your system performance. Please provide an update. Thank you.
crimsom
7 Technologist
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6.1K Posts
1
November 20th, 2020 14:00
Hi @nowutilus not sure if the operating system is installed on a Hard Disk Drive (HDD) or a Solid State Drive (SSD)? Is Task Manager very busy? Download Belarc Advisor to profile your system and reveal the drive manufacture's name and model. Then go to their web page and download the drive's toolbox that will tell you the health of your drives. If they are starting to fail, clone them at your earliest opportunity. You should have a disaster recovery drive clone anyway, so if problems occur the drive can be swapped out and you get your system up and running within minutes. Getting an ultra fast NVMe Gen3x4 drive as your 1TB or 2TB clone is advocated.
nowutilus
2 Posts
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February 3rd, 2021 05:00
Ok, so I have placed a ssd m2, (wich runs on a different slot than hdd) install windows and everything works fine. Put outside the hdd and din a test with hdd sentinel and the hdd seems to be fine.
Took outside again the ssd m2, placed a different hdd on sata slot, install windows, and the problem is here again as before. So i guess the sata slot/ cable have some bugs. Or could be some bios settings that affects the performance?
There s a big diffrence between hdd s and ssd s in terms of speed i know, but in this case something s wrong here. I haven t seen an pdf document with couple of pages opening in a minute since early 2000`s.
crimsom
7 Technologist
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6.1K Posts
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February 3rd, 2021 08:00
Hi @nowutilus thank you for sharing update.
Having removed the rear cover, there are four drive Storage connection identities stamped on the internal metal covers, i.e. SSD-1, SSD-2 and SSD-3 and SSD/HDD. SSD -1,2,3 are M.2 connectors and the SSD/HDD connector is used by its cable to connect with the drive in the 2.5" bay.
To recap your diagnostic process,
(1) Installed your M.2 solid-state drive into one of the M.2 connectors and everything runs fine. Guess you are saying that the 17 R4 has normal performance and is not running very slow?
(2) External Sentinel test of the HDD says it is healthy. Install HDD into 2.5" bay and connect with cable. 17 R4 performance is very slow. Conclude SSD/HDD connection cable has fault.
Excellent diagnostic process. Guess you are now going to replace Cable 6WP6Y to fix your HDD connection problem? Hope that everthing works-out OK and that this fix is your solution.