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Problem with 2nd HDD (CD to HDD caddy) in the Dell Inspiron 15R 5537
Hi, Dell community.
I'm using the Dell Inspiron 15R 5537, i7 4500U, Radeon R9 M265X (2GB GDDR5), 8GB DDR3, Full HD, Windows 7 64x laptop and am really enjoining it.
Intro - initially I was using a 1TB HDD, that came with the laptop, but I wanted to upgrade to an SSD and still keep the 1TB HDD as a second drive. So I did some research online about CD caddy tray that you can put a SATA HDD inside, and replace the CD drive with another HDD. This is exactly what I did, because I don't use the CD ROM at all - Now having a 240GB SSD as the main System disc, for insane boot speeds and the 1TB HDD for music, pictures, downloads etc.
Here's the problem - when booting up, the 2nd 1TB (CD caddy tray HDD) doesn't appear, only after 2-3 reboots it appears and works properly. No problems, the system recognizes it and works as it should. BIOS (A08 - the latest) recognizes the Caddy drive as well. Windows device manager sees it as well. So, no problems, right? No. The rebooting and the 1TB Caddy HDD drive not showing up persists constantly and it is really annoying. Sometimes the 1TB drive disappears mid usage, whiles't Windows is set to balanced power usage, so it must be something software/BIOS related with power management to reduce battery consumption. But I'm using it WITH THE AC ADAPTER.
What I did so far - Clean Install of Windows 7 64x, Set power manager to Max performance, in advanced power settings set everything to max performance, so no hdd turning off, no power efficiency - max performance. Updated all drivers, starting from Intel chipset drivers, ending with everything that was in windows device manager, component by component.
In conclusion - The 2nd HDD Caddy works, It works now, as I am writing this, so this is not a question of IF IT IS MEANT TO WORK AT ALL, because it does, but - what can I do to deal with the problem, that the 2nd HDD is booting up constantly with the system.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE SOMEONE REPLY AND GIVE ME A SOLUTION.
I'M BEGGING YOU.
MarKymoNs
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April 13th, 2016 17:00
Hope this will show up correctly.
http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/2nd-HDD-Caddy-9-5mm-SATA-to-SATA-Hard-Drive-Adapter-For-Laptop-Universal-CD-DVD-/281900002037?txnId=1488289687018
osprey4
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April 13th, 2016 17:00
Hi markymons,
What caddy did you buy?
osprey4
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May 15th, 2016 18:00
Hi Markymons,
If the HDD in the caddy is not recognized by the BIOS when you boot, then reinstalling the OS is a waste of time. This is a hardware issue. I really can't tell anything about the caddy from the Ebay description but it looks about as generic as they come. You really should shop with a reputable vendor that can give you some assurance that the component will actually work as it's supposed to.
Sorry I can't be more helpful.
MarKymoNs
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May 18th, 2016 08:00
Thank you for the answer. I do appreciate the gesture. Thank you.
MarKymoNs
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May 20th, 2016 14:00
This is interesting. I did a test, that every time I start up the system, I go into BIOS and watch if the 1TB Caddy HDD shows up. And it does. Every time. Still, when I get to the Windows 7 desktop, it randomly doesn't show up, not in my computer, not in device manager, not in disc management. Tho you think it might be the Caddy's fault?! What vendor do you suggest?
osprey4
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May 22nd, 2016 14:00
Another idea would be to use an external USB HDD enclosure. These generally have a very good success rate, and not terribly expensive, although admittedly not as convenient. If such an enclosure doesn't work, then I'd suspect a problem with the drive.
Barrnacles
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August 15th, 2019 19:00
I know it's years later, sorry to necro. But the solution is to go into windows disk management (type diskmgmt in start menu). Then initialise the disk (should be disk 1 if you only have one other drive attached), then right click on the disk block at the bottom of the window, and click format. Be sure you are doing this on your NEW drive, not your C: drive.
Kraut49
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January 23rd, 2021 19:00
I have the same problem with my Envy dv6. I know it is not the drive as I've tried different HD and SSDs. They all work in external caddy but only very intermittently in the DVD slot.