How To: Optimize your SSD+HDD setup

If you're looking for the basics on how to optimize an SSD + HDD storage setup, then look no further!

Intro Screen Music Credit:
Title: Laszlo - Supernova

[acdcjor]

I save my happy content in C: drive, and my sad content in D: drive

[eliteexposure]

People, please stop COMPLAINING about advertisement's. People gotta put food on their plate's.

[snazzy]

Ugh. Stop motivating me to optimize my storage. SSD is filling up with Steam games. I've got to pick up a HDD to move everything over.

[pesterenan]

"Massive Steam Collection"
OK Luke, we know you meant "Porn Collection".

[Andrew-]

IMPORTANT PSA FOR BEGINNERS! - Be absolutely sure that that the drive you want to install Windows on is the ONLY HDD, SSD or RAID connected to your computer. For years, at least since Vista or 7 that I can remember, Windows will sometimes install the OS and recovery partitions on the drive you select but will install the bootloader on a different drive if one is available. This means that if you install your OS on your SSD for example with your HDD connected, the bootloader may end up on the HDD; if the HDD has a failure and cannot be accessed then you wont be able to boot into the OS on your SSD. I realize that the issue can be resolved after it occurs but it can be hard for beginners compounded by not having a working PC at that time and whether or not they still have a boot disc/usb and(or) are proficient in cmd. If you want more info on what causes this to happen I can post some links in response to help answer those questions, just play it safe and install Windows on the desired drive(s) with all other drives unplugged from power, then shutdown and reconnect them to initialize the disks. (Yes this can still happen even if the other drives are already initialized)

[Ingvariel]

2 hours before my first PC build, and with Ssd + hdd, thank you, Luke!

[ilovebeabadoobee]

Two seconds in and I still can't get weaboo linus outta my head.

[didtoknan]

That's more "organize" than "optimize".

[Tredok]

This is probably something that most of us already knows, but remember that there is always new people learning the basics, let them have this content.

[Slash]

I have 4 HDDs, two of which are duct taped to my side panel 😀

[eddiead]

thanks luke, im in the middle of my first build and i was curios how to do exactly this, great vid

[jackparkinson]

Finally! A video I can send yo people who I suggested to get an SSD boot drive and hard drive for data without having yo walk them through it every time.

[Seanmmvi]

Jesus fuck, more than 20% of this video was a fucking advertisement, not to mention the Youtube Ad that played before it.. SMH, annoying. 2 of the last 6 minutes I invested in this video was watching an advertisement...

[Catsrules]

Just FYI, I would recommend unplugging your HHD when installing windows. After windows is install plug it back in. I have seen a few systems where windows will install system boot information on the Hard drive and not the SSD. This works fine until your hard drive dies or you upgrade HHD to another drive. Your system is unbootable.

It can be fixed with an automated repair using the windows install media.

[EposVox]

Tutorials are improving! Nowhere near as awkward as they used to be.

[Aimela]

Uh, Luke, cloud saves still store local data within your Steam folder.
The way cloud saves work is that local save files are synchronized with the cloud save files, and the games read the local file. If games directly read from cloud saves, there would be a lot of people complaining about not being able to access their save files while offline.

[rapsoulhs]

Pro tip: Move both your temp files to the HDD as well.
Right Click on Start Menu, go to System, on the left hand side menu select Advanced System Settings, in the new windows go to Advanced Tab and click on the bottom button Environment Variables. Change the top box (user) variables of TEMP & TMP, to a folder on your HDD (follow same steps as described in video).
Changing System variables can be also done by doing the same on the bottom box.

[VilleFN]

I'd have also liked to see an alternative approach to optimising SSD+HDD setup, by using the SSD as a cache since most modern motherboards support it to my knowledge.

[lucarichiisover]

nah, this is actually something i was hoping for a video on tbh! these how to's are fantastic. psure i've learned 90% of everything i know about building and better upkeep of computers from these short, easy to understand, and specific/to-the-point videos. I don't comment much... but I still figure I oughta say thanks for the channel every once in a while : )

[DanielLecoqRooster]

I'm happy you guys are back to doing some beginner How To videos, but it would be nice to see some intermediate and advanced How To videos as well.

I had a terrible time cloning my old hard drive to an SSD, I followed some basic instructions but there was nowhere to find good information on the best practices for cloning. The problems I've had with cloning range from not being able to boot the OS on the new drive to certain programs (particularly Office) failing to load.

I also have no idea how to set up any RAID stuff. It would also be nice to see how you transfer Windows licenses between motherboards (if that's even possible) considering that Windows 10 doesn't show you the license anymore. I can find loads of random information by Googling, but I haven't found any quality videos on the subjects.