Confused about SSD types for my e7270

Question

My Dell Latitude e7270, was dropped a couple days ago, worked fine when I used it right after. But when I closed the laptop and opened it back up later, I was welcomed with a 'No boot source' message. I proceeded to do some troubleshooting steps like checking BIOS settings, date & time and checked if primary hard drive was being detected, which it was not. I then ran diagnostics check and received a hard drive not detected message. I tried reseating the SSD with no luck. Now I am attempting to buy a replacement or upgrade and have no idea what I should look for. I know very low-level information about PC hardware like SSDs, RAMs, HDDs etc. But I took out the current SSD (SD8SN8U-256GB-1012 Sandisk x400 256GB TLC SATA 6GBPS M.2 2280 internal SSD) When searching for a replacement/upgrade I kept coming across SSDs that said 'NVMe' 'PCIe' but not SATA. I now know that NVMe is a newer version of an SSD that is faster and better. But I have no idea if I am able to install it on the laptop since I’ve read conflicting information while trying to find out. I found the link to recommendations of replacement SSDs from another post and results for both came up and watched a video with a guy upgrading his with a NVMe, so my question is... Can I install any of the two interfaced SSD on this laptop? as long as it's a M.2 2280? Or does it need to be a SATA specifically? Can I please get clarification or explanation for what exactly I should be looking for and thanks in advance for any responses.

crimsom · Accepted Answer

Hi McLovinsPC welcome to this free user-to-user Latitude laptop discussion forum.

Dell support for Latitude E7270 Documentation does not provide type of drive clarification. This review provides more information: Dell Latitude 12 E7270 Notebook Review - NotebookCheck.net Reviews. This updated version of the Latitude E7270 has the M.2 2280 SATA III drive X400-datasheet-v1-1.pdf (sandisk.com) where there is up to 1TB storage capacity. Search of internet found SD8SN8U-256G-1006 - SanDisk X400 Series 256GB SATA 6Gb/s M.2 2280 Solid State Drive (harddiskdirect.com). This Latitude E7270 is designed for M.2 2280 SATA III drives and M.2 2280 NVMe drives. Latitude E7270 will accept PCIe (NVMe) SSD since these are listed as an option in the data sheet. Install NVMe drives and get a performance boost.

Visit eBay to purchase any replacement M.2 2280 SATA III or M.2 2280 NVMe drive installed with operating system, it does not have to come from Dell laptop, OS can be Windows 10 (not Windows 11). When online, MS database will automatically register OS for you. Run Intel Driver & Support Assistant to get the current drivers.

JOcean · Accepted Answer

@crimsom has posted some good information. This model is an example of vague specs listed on the support page. Crucial here lists a number of compatible PCIe SSD (the E7270 is compatible with both SATA and PCIe though Dell ships with SATA). The itechguides page here confirms compatibility with both types. And farther down the page at notebookchecknet is the following statement :

"As just said, Dell does not install a PCIe SSD but rather a conventional 256 GB SATA III SSD in the M.2 form factor. It comes from LiteOn and carries the model name L8H-256V2G. Too bad that Dell waives a PCIe SSD even if it would have let the price skyrocket even more. We assume that it would easily be possible to retrofit a PCIe SSD since these are listed as an option in the data sheet."

Again very confusing since the specs do not specifically list the types on the support page documents. In addition the video at YouTube here clearly shows a PCIe SSD being installed replacing a SATA SSD.

McLovinsPC · Answer

@JOcean​ Thanks for the response I appreciate it! But yes, the Vague information and my lack of knowledge on SSDs was why I was a little confused. I saw the video of the guy upgrading his but was still unsure, I can now confirm that a PCIe 3.0 NVMe M.2 SSD does in fact work because I ended up upgrading it to a 1 TB Crucial 3.0 PCIe and am currently responding to you from the laptop. I also read that I still need to buy a thermal cover for the upgrade though, on the Spiceworks forum that I found here Dell support article.

McLovinsPC · Answer

@crimsom​ Thank you for the heads up, I edited the post and removed the service tag. But I appreciate all the source links to confirm that the Latitude e7270 is able to use a SATA & a NVMe SSD that was very helpful and hope your reply can help others in the future that encounter the same question I did. I ended up upgrading it to a Crucial 1TB PCIe NVMe 3.0 M.2 and so far, has been running wonderfully.

crimsom · Answer

Hi McLovinsPC thank you for sharing update.

The modern BIOS/UEFI boot drive can be enabled after converting NVMe drive partition format from MBR to the more secure GPT. How to Convert MBR to GPT Using CMD without Data Loss? (diskpart.com).

McLovinsPC · Answer

@crimsom​ Looks like it is already set to GPT. I appreciate the suggestion; I've learned a lot about my laptop in the past couple of days.

JOcean · Answer

@McLovinsPC​ Happy to see that it all worked out well for you!

crimsom · Answer

Hi McLovinsPC thank you for sharing update with image. Agree, your Disk 0 partition format is already set to GPT. The UEFI boot option should be enabled in BIOS boot tab.

Delligh-TED · Answer

@McLovinsPC​ And for the even better news, there is a second port (The WWAN port at the rear left hand side when the unit is face down) which accepts the 2TB 2242 M.2 PCIe Gen 4 NVMe SSD. I have a 2280 2 Tb in the original location and a 2242 2 Tb PCle gen 4 NVMe in the WWAN location which works perfectly.

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Confused about SSD types for my e7270

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