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New HP Laptop SSD

PAUL161

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I just ordered a new HP laptop with a SSD drive and am wondering if my Advance System Care Pro-12 software program is compatible? I've been told that a SSD shouldn't need optimizing or defraging at any time. I've used AVC pro for a few years and it has kept my computers running well with it'd many built in fixes. Any truth in "Don't optimize a SSD, don't defrag an SSD"! I get mixed results in the forums of so called professionals :rolleyes2: PJ
 

TR3driver

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I believe there is significant truth in that.
With a traditional hard drive, you pay a significant price in access time for every file fragment. With an SSD, that price is thousands of times smaller, too small to measure with conventional means. So there is very little advantage to defragging.
At the same time, the defragging process eats into the lifetime of the SSD. That's perhaps less of an issue than it used to be (lifetimes have gotten longer), but still a consideration.

I do still occasionally look for files that I plan to keep without changing, and defrag just the files with a lot of fragments. Each fragment still takes up a tiny bit of room in the file directory, and they can add up. But even this is probably a waste. I can't tell that it makes any difference in performance.
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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Thanks, that's what I wanted to know, the computer comes pretty packed with extras including antivirus software, which of course Ill have to buy when the free period ends. I won't know how to act if the speed of this thing is near what they say it is. The computer I'm on now, Toshiba Satellite, is getting slower and slower, I think the processor is slowly dying, something is! PJ
 

TR3driver

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I hear ya. In my case, it apparently was the hard drive, even though diagnostics said it was fine. Couple days ago, they started saying "What hard drive??" :smile:

But I cheaped out, the new SSD should be here tomorrow. Maybe I can whip a few more years out of that POS laptop.
 

70herald

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Defragging is not needed on an SSD since it is not a mechanical device. On a HD, the information is stored sort of like on a record, in concentric stripes. After time, because of the way files get written, the files get a bit out of order and the drive needs to go around and make several rotation with the read head moving back and forth to get the entire file. This makes even a fairly quick HD slow... SSDs don't have any physically moving parts so even if a file is spread out across the entire drive, there is nothing physical which needs to move to read the file and accessing any one location in memory takes about the same time.
there is some truth to the idea that defragging would reduce the lifetime since every write operation exposes the memory cell to higher voltages than read operations (in theory reading also eats into the lifespan) in any case, the drive controller deliberately uses a non-linear pattern in the memory to avoid continual re-use of a few memory cells. Defragging if the drive actually allowed it would be trying to override the life extending pattern built into the controller.
 

YakkoWarner

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Thanks, that's what I wanted to know, the computer comes pretty packed with extras including antivirus software, which of course Ill have to buy when the free period ends. I won't know how to act if the speed of this thing is near what they say it is. The computer I'm on now, Toshiba Satellite, is getting slower and slower, I think the processor is slowly dying, something is! PJ

A few years ago I put an SSD into a somewhat old Apple laptop in an effort to get a little better performance - if you've never used an SSD the difference is anything but subtle. I got a fantastic performance leap in startup time, app opening, saving, pretty much everything. Made the machine usable for quite a few more years. I didn't NEED to change the drive, but doing so made me a believer in the SSD.
 

DrEntropy

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There will be a noticeable increase in response with the SSD. We've built a number of workstations for clients using them and I'm always pleasantly surprised at the startup speed differences with Winblows compared to metal.
 

GregW

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the computer comes pretty packed with extras including antivirus software,
The last laptop I bought was from Acer. It had a lot of "value added software" as well. I was able to download a clean version of Windows 10 directly from Microsoft and wiped the SSD. Using the product key from Acer, I got Windows without all that crap Acer forced onto my machine.
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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I have a purchased copy of Windows 10 Pro on a disc if needed, but saying that, I don't like 10 that much because its too controlling, reason I have 8.1 in this machine and Linux Mint 19 on another one. Anxious to see how well it works on the new machine. PJ
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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There will be a noticeable increase in response with the SSD. We've built a number of workstations for clients using them and I'm always pleasantly surprised at the startup speed differences with Winblows compared to metal.

Thanks Doc, so far I've heard nothing but good about the SSDs, encouraging! :encouragement:
 

DavidApp

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So you got an installation copy of Windows, did the install on the laptop after clearing the Acer stuff the used the product key that came with the laptop?
Neat idea.

David

The last laptop I bought was from Acer. It had a lot of "value added software" as well. I was able to download a clean version of Windows 10 directly from Microsoft and wiped the SSD. Using the product key from Acer, I got Windows without all that crap Acer forced onto my machine.
 

TR3driver

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At least in theory, you can download a fresh copy of windows 10 from Microsoft, and install it on a machine that originally had Win 10, at no cost. If what I am reading is correct, there is a key stored in the BIOS that will authorize the new copy.
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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At least in theory, you can download a fresh copy of windows 10 from Microsoft, and install it on a machine that originally had Win 10, at no cost. If what I am reading is correct, there is a key stored in the BIOS that will authorize the new copy.

If this is possible, does it remove the original copy and replace it with the new and giving you full control of programs installed, meaning custom installation?
 

TR3driver

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Seems to work as advertised, I'm running it now. Took almost 12 hours for the download, minimum 8 Gb thumb drive, but installed slick and never asked for product ID or anything like that. Wanted my WiFi password right away, though.

I did a clean install, since I had replaced the HD with a SSD; but it gave me the option of updating files. No option (that I saw) for custom installation, but the clean install was pretty basic. There's a little bit of trash (like MS Edge, Candy Crush and Skype), but not nearly as much as the laptop came with originally.

My biggest complaint at the moment is the default touchpad driver doesn't have the option to disable the pad when a mouse is attached. Working on getting the updated driver from HP.
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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I just took delivery of the new computer, it is the fastest machine I ever owned! It is instantaneous on grabbing whatever I want, I never realized it would be this fast, really cool! :encouragement:
 

NutmegCT

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I just took delivery of the new computer, it is the fastest machine I ever owned! It is instantaneous on grabbing whatever I want, I never realized it would be this fast, really cool! :encouragement:

Congratulations!

What browser is giving you the fast results? M/S Edge?
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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Edge seems to be a little faster than chrome, but I have so many links in chrome and I understand how to customize it better than edge.
But saying that, on this machine, chrome is very fast also. So far so good. :encouragement:
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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Seems to work as advertised, I'm running it now. Took almost 12 hours for the download, minimum 8 Gb thumb drive, but installed slick and never asked for product ID or anything like that. Wanted my WiFi password right away, though.

I did a clean install, since I had replaced the HD with a SSD; but it gave me the option of updating files. No option (that I saw) for custom installation, but the clean install was pretty basic. There's a little bit of trash (like MS Edge, Candy Crush and Skype), but not nearly as much as the laptop came with originally.

My biggest complaint at the moment is the default touchpad driver doesn't have the option to disable the pad when a mouse is attached. Working on getting the updated driver from HP.


I have this problem also, they removed the option to shut the touch pad off. I use a mouse when I'm at the desk but want the touch pad when out somewhere. In the Toshiba I can turn it on or off at will, this HP won't let me do that. How can I get a driver that will let me do that? PJ
 

NutmegCT

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Paul, maybe it's HP or the touchpad mfr. who removed the touchpad on/off option?

Try this:

In Win10, open Settings. Choose Touchpad. Choose Click to Change Touchpad Settings.

That'll open your touchpad driver.

Now click the Mouse icon on that driver window.

You'll see toward the bottom "Disable Touchpad when USB mouse is present". Be sure that's checked.

Let us know how this works.
Tom M.
 
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PAUL161

PAUL161

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Thanks Tom, your suggestion worked perfectly! Thank you. :encouragement: PJ
 
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