Add or swap 1G SSD?

[lakedude]

My kid has a new W10 laptop with decent specs except the M2 SSD is only 256G. I've got a 1T 2.5" to upgrade.

Thing is we did this already and it was fiddly to have the OS on the 256G and Steam stuff on the 1T. Unless you were vigilant Steam would try to put stuff on the 256G and clog it up.

So what to do?

Clone the 256G to the 1T and then remove the 256G and only run the 1T? If so which cloning software?

Put em both in and let the kid struggle with the fiddlyness?

Clone the 256G to the 1T, and then erase the 256G?

Make a drive pool out of the both of them? (how?)

Toss both and spring for a 2T M2?

 

[Shmee]

If it is a new laptop with nothing on it yet as far as data, I would just replace the current drive and do a fresh install. This would help by getting rid of some bloatware. Of course then update the drivers.

 

[lakedude]

So Rufus a W10 image to the 1T and what of the 256G? Rip it out to avoid confusion?

This is a "new" laptop I bought as a spare during covid when we had everybody working and going to school from home.

It was empty but now the kid has been using it a few days. Several game accounts were recovered and logged into but that 256 filled up fast!

 

[manly]

I know you've tried, but my default here would be to make it work as-is:

Steam Support :: Moving a Steam Installation and Games

help.steampowered.com

Failing that, I'd use just the 1TB drive and remove the 256GB. I like Macrium Reflect Free 8.0.7279 for cloning.

 

[Shmee]

So Rufus a W10 image to the 1T and what of the 256G? Rip it out to avoid confusion?

This is a "new" laptop I bought as a spare during covid when we had everybody working and going to school from home.

It was empty but now the kid has been using it a few days. Several game accounts were recovered and logged into but that 256 filled up fast!

Yeah using Rufus is one way to make a Windows 10 installer on a flash drive. Or you could use Ventoy to set up a multi-boot flash drive. That said, if there is anything that really needs to be saved from the old install, Macrium Reflect free or Aomei free are both pretty good.

Also, having multiple steam libraries is pretty easy these days, as mentioned above. This is if you have more than one drive installed of course. Some other launchers are less easy to manage, but it really just comes down to paying attention where you install stuff, and telling it where to go to manage space.

 

[lakedude]

I know you've tried, but my default here would be to make it work as-is:

Steam Support :: Moving a Steam Installation and Games

help.steampowered.com

Failing that, I'd use just the 1TB drive and remove the 256GB. I like Macrium Reflect Free 8.0.7279 for cloning.

I could make this work on my personal PC because I know what I'm doing but the big kid, not so much.

We did exactly your idea for the younger kid who is still in the house and it mostly worked but some parts of BeamNG Drive ended up back on the small drive and I had to redo it and point it all back to the bigger drive. IDK if it was the kid or modifications or Steam that goofed up. It wasn't a big deal because I could fix it but the big kid is out of the house and only comes around a few times a year.

 

[lakedude]

That said, if there is anything that really needs to be saved from the old install, Macrium Reflect free or Aomei free are both pretty good.

Somewhere I've got a code that came with some hardware for a free copy of Acronis. I've used Macrium (as well as Drive Image and Ghost back in the day).