XPS 8700, Samsung SSD PM830, issues

Question

My XPS 8700 came with a Samsung SSD. I do not know if it was originally the boot drive or not. Right now it shows up on the BIOS as:

Volumes
- ID Name: DevCache Level: Raid0 Strip: 128KB Size: 29.8GB Status: Normal Bootable: No

Physical Devices
- ST20000DM001 Size 1.8TB Non-Raid Disk
- Samsung SSD PM830 Size 29.8GB Cache Disk(1)

Once the system boots up, the Hardware Manager does not show that an SSD even exists. Nor does it show in Disk Manager. It also does not show up as an option in the Boot Sequence.

I have all the latest updates for Win10, as well as BIOS from Dell site. Running DIAGNOSTIC test (pre-boot) shows everything as being OK.

The computer was worked on by a Dell tech when it was about a year old - crashed, they sent me a recovery disk for the Win8.1 (originally installed) Without me really knowing what he was doing, I seem to remember him changing the RAID config, but did not change it back? Anyway, the computer worked, so I didn't think anything more about it... didn't know enough to even question whether it was configured right or not at the time.

But now, I'm wondering about why the SSD doesn't show in Device Manager OR in Disk Manager? (Well I do know it is because it never gets past POST, but that doesn't solve the issue.)

Can I make the SSD Bootable? or will that mess up anything. I see a lot out there about changing an SSD from Raid to Non-Raid, but it looks like I should have had a configuration for BOTH the SSD and HDD to have been RAID from the factory??

Very confusing, but I know not to do anything until I get more info. System boots up very slow, crashes often... I figure it has to be better than this?

RoHe · Accepted Answer

The 32-GB SSD is a cache used only for storing files that Windows may need quickly in order to speed up system responses. It's has to be invisible to the user in Windows so you can't intentionally or accidentally write new files onto it, which would corrupt the cache.

In order for the SSD to be used as a cache, BIOS has to be set to RAID. If you change BIOS to a non-RAID setting now, the PC probably won't boot and you'll have to do a clean install of Windows, which would leave the SSD as only a rather small amount of extra storage that you could use for backups.

A 32-GB SSD is barely big enough to be the boot drive and have room to store your software. Windows Update will also have serious issues because that SSD won't have enough free space to store all the temporary files created while an update is being installed.

As for slow booting and crashes:

Exactly what do the BSODs say?
Have you scanned thoroughly for malware lately?
What antiviral app are you running? Some of them, like McAfee, can hog the system
Do you have Dell SupportAssist or Dell Update running at boot time? Try disabling them
At the desktop, open Task Manager and click Startup tab. See what "junk" may be loading when you boot, and temporarily disable it. Don't disable the antiviral app as a test, unless your PC is fully disconnected from the internet.
And sometimes, especially after going from a previous version of Windows, eg Win 8.1, to Win 10, the best solution to slow performance and crashes may be to wipe the hard drive and do a clean install of the latest release of Win 10. You can get the latest installation (ISO) file for free by downloading it directly from the Microsoft site, but you still want to use the SSD as a cache...

DByrdnest · Answer

Thanks for the info.... you answered my question. Not what I was hoping, but at least I know what's going on with the SSD.

1. BSOD pops up to just say "Windows encountered an error and must reboot" Happens too quickly to pick up any error codes. Guess I could look at the logs...

2/3. Scan quite frequently using McAfee Total Protection app. Keep it updated both automatic and manual from time to time, especially when saving anything to hard drive. (May go to Norton if it is less of a hog.)

4. Don't think Dell SA or Udate is running at boot time. I've had to re-install them.. somehow they got corrupted or missing. Dell site would scan for updates, tell me I needed SA, then when I tried to download it got an error it was already installed. Even went to control panel and uninstall/download/repeat until it finally loaded for me.

5. Yep, some junk during boot, but not much. I use CCleaner, but TM would probably be better. More than anything it is Processes that are running and up resources. Normally it runs at about 22% memory as a rule.

6. Yes it was an update to Win10 from 8.1. I keep the updates automatic and sometimes do a manual check. Not really comfortable with a clean install just yet until I found out about any SSD issues.

Biggest problem I have seems to be video/graphic related. Screens white out on websites or freeze up where only option is a forced shut down. Even Ctl/Alt/Del won't free anything up. But that is probably for another forum.

Appreciate your insite and help...thanks

Tesla1856 · Answer

That Intel caching non-sense has never been very reliable. Heck, it's not even fast.

I suggest you backup your data and clean-install Windows-10 64bit. Try to get another year or two of use out of that older machine before it dies.

Since you are clean-installing anyway, get yourself a 240gb SSD and make that C:

https://www.dell.com/community/XPS-Desktops/XPS-8900-running-out-of-space-GPU-upgrade/m-p/6178113/highlight/true#M18387

and

https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/M-2-NVMe-bootable-options/td-p/6073037

RoHe · Answer

Glad I could answer your questions...

IMHO, uninstall SupportAssist and Dell Update and be done with them.

You might try running a scan with the free version of Malwarebytes and/or SuperAntispyware, since no one app finds everything.

Don't understand your answer #5. What process(es) is using 22% of system resources? That's a big number...

With that BSOD and your video issues, you may just have to bite the bullet and do a clean Win 10 install...just saying... :Wink:

DJCaptainKirk · Answer

My 8700 SE Dell PC has started showing this message, (your system is reporting one or more events, and the data may be at risk). I've tried looking around these forums for some answers but have not found them yet. I tried to google it and found all sorts of people having similar issues with newer XPS PCs. I have also tried to find a replacement online line but that doesn't seem to exist. I would appreciate any help that I can get from someone in this community on what to do without having to reinstall Windows 10 Pro. Should I find a replacement, can I turn this drive off & still have a working PC? Thank you all so much for your help & advice.

speedstep · Answer

NVME issues are based on endurance or lack therof for SSD's

F6 drivers are required to prevent the Computer encountered an Error STOP 7B

STOP 7B inaccessable Boot Device

No more blue screens Hide as much as possible any error.

OptiPlex 3050 support for PCIe M.2 SSD hard drives

Frequently asked questions regarding NVMe Solid State Drives (SSDs)

Requirements to Install Windows 7 on M2 Drives in Non-Volatile Memory express (NVMe) Storage Environ...

RoHe · Answer

You can use the free 'home use' version of Macrium Reflect to clone that SSD on external media. Then you'll have to buy/install a replacement drive and copy the image onto it. I presume the SSD is your boot drive, and if you remove it, the PC won't boot. So clone the SSD ASAP, before you lose all your files...

XPS Desktops

XPS 8700, Samsung SSD PM830, issues

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