Solid-state drives have superseded HDDs as data storage devices because of their electrical circuitry and lack of mechanical movement. But you might be wondering about the limit of the number of SSDs you can install on your computer.
Depending on the SATA, M.2, or PCIe ports, you can put 3 to 6 SSDS on the motherboard. A few SATA drives can support up to 8 SSDs.
It’s important to assess your requirements when deciding how many solid-state drives to put in a computer or laptop. We’ll explain all of this below before you invest in more than you need.
How Many SSDs Can I Have?
Some motherboards have limited slots for drives, while others allow for more. Before purchasing any SSDs, check your machine’s specifications to see how many slots are available.
Almost all new computers come equipped with either a dedicated SSD, an M.2 SSD slot + HDD mix, or perhaps a hybrid slot that could accept both. When you don’t have a dedicated SSD slot, you can still use a caddy to install an SSD drive in the optical drive slot of your laptop.
M.2 slots are relatively small and utilize PCIe interfaces suitable for laptops with a small profile or docking stations.
Slots with a SATA interface are considered best as a standard hard drive option.
PCIe Slots are vastly superior to the other two in terms of physical size and are meant for high-end laptops or RAID configurations.
Identifying SSD Slots
Identifying the number of SSD slots can be a straightforward process if you know where to look. We’ll make sure that our methods make things easy for you to locate the slots before you spend money buying extra SSDs and regret your decision.
We’ll also discuss seeking the help of your manufacturer if all else fails. So without any delay, here are the five methods of figuring out the number of SSD slots on your motherboard.
SSDs available in the market often have a limited storage capacity of 128GB as they are costly. However, you can buy an SSD with up to 30.72TV storage capacity.
Method #1: Refer To the User Manual
Check the user guide that comes with your laptop or desktop as a starting point. Technical specifications, such as the number of SSD slots, should be listed in the manual.
Method #2: Check Specs Online
If you can’t find any help from the user manual, you can search online to determine how many SSD slots your motherboard can support. This information is readily available on the websites of nearly all computer manufacturers.
Method #3: Watch a YouTube Tutorial
Another quick way to know about the number of SSD slots is to look up an instructional video on YouTube for your specific model to learn how to install an SSD. If there isn’t a lesson for it, there’s a good possibility it doesn’t have any free spaces.
Method #4: Seek an Expert
A computer expert is your best bet if you can’t figure out the SSD slots your system supports. You can consult an online expert or take your system to an authorized dealer to get the information you need.
Method #5: Contact Your Manufacturer
If you find the above methods difficult, inquire directly from the manufacturer if you cannot find out how many SSD slots your machine has via the internet. It’s safe to assume that it is the most knowledgeable source about your device’s SSD compatibility.
Physically disassembling your system and inspecting SSD slots is usually not recommended as you may unintentionally damage important computer parts resulting in a complete malfunction and costly repairs.
What To Do If There Is No SSD Slot Available?
If your system doesn’t have any available SSD slots, you will still be able to install an SSD by switching the hard disc. Unless you’re an expert computer disassembler, you’ll almost certainly need assistance from a professional to do this task.
Summary
In this guide about how many SSDs you can have, we’ve discussed the types of SSDs and explored different methods to identify the number of slots your motherboard supports to install them.
A solid-state drive (SSD) can significantly improve the speed and responsiveness of your computer or laptop. Additionally, it is a godsend for those who love to play games on their computers. Hopefully, you can now figure out how many SSDs you buy for your system.
Frequently Asked Questions
For a system in general, the answer is, without a doubt, yes. However, It’s not recommended in a RAID array. Since the slowest drive in a RAID array is the one that will be the bottleneck for any NVMe SSDs in a collection, you will wind up bottlenecking NVMe SSDs by adding a SATA SSD to the particular array.
