cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Help Installing ssd to G73SW-3D

LoopInEXUS
Level 7
I just bought an OCZ Vertex III 120GB SSD, how can I replace my current 500gb hdd sitting inside my laptop? It's my first time cracking open my laptop, I don't wish to spoil any component inside.. Thanks.
5,006 Views
7 REPLIES 7

BrodyBoy
Level 10
Physically swapping the drives is very easy. There's a little drive caddy that's currently holding the HDD in the drive bay. You remove the 4 little screws that hold the caddy in place, then slide the caddy/drive assembly away from the SATA connector. Once removed from the machine, you replace the HDD with your new SSD in the caddy (four more little screws). All of this will be pretty self-explanatory once you open the back panel and look in there. You won;t break or spoil anything. 🙂

More importantly, you should research a little bit about your Windows installation options on the new drive. You can transfer your existing set-up to the new drive, or you can do a completely clean Windows installation on it. Decide which way you want to go, then read up on the procedure you'll be using.

I would like to maintain my existing set-up..I doubt it will be enough since its only 120gb. Clean Installation will do ..one more question how much space does Windows 7 Home Premium occupied on SSD/HDD? I afraid it doesn't seems enough, cause I will do heavy gaming now and then..

Do I need to change anything in the system, when replacing my HDD with SSD?

LoopInEXUS wrote:
I would like to maintain my existing set-up..I doubt it will be enough since its only 120gb. Clean Installation will do ..one more question how much space does Windows 7 Home Premium occupied on SSD/HDD? I afraid it doesn't seems enough, cause I will do heavy gaming now and then..

Windows Home Premium only takes about 25Gb. Even with a lot of programs installed, your 120Gb SSD should be more than adequate so long as you set up your libraries and programs to save data on the 😧 drive.

So if you want to use your existing set-up, the general approach is this:



  • "Shrink" your current C: volume down to 120Gb or less
  • Save a system image of the C: drive (onto the 😧 drive or onto an external HDD), and burn a Windows Recovery Disk
  • Physically install the SSD (and perform any firmware updates it might need)
  • Using the Recovery Disk, restore your system image to the new drive


I'll reboot to exactly the same installation you have now....just a lot faster! 😉

JRd1st
Level 12
I switched on UEFI in the BIOS, installed Intel RSO and reinstalled the core drivers. See my New Drivers sticky for those last 2

Other than that, I installes Intel SSDToolbox because I have an Intel @@D. Depends on what software comes with your SSD.

Most people put games on their other HDD and leave the SSD open for system and some programs. Also, put your page file on your other HDD to save some space on your SSD.
Read the User's Manual for more info. 😄



G74SX-A1 BIOS 203
Intel 6230 WiFi/BT
LG E2350 LED LCD Monitor
Intel Series 510 120 GB SSD

Drivers, Apps and How To's
Latest nVidia Drivers

JRd1st on DeviantArt.com

How do I move my page file from C Drive to D?

JRd1st
Level 12
You do into Control Panel >> System >> Advanced System Settings >> Performance Settings >> Advanced >> Change
Read the User's Manual for more info. 😄



G74SX-A1 BIOS 203
Intel 6230 WiFi/BT
LG E2350 LED LCD Monitor
Intel Series 510 120 GB SSD

Drivers, Apps and How To's
Latest nVidia Drivers

JRd1st on DeviantArt.com