Posted on 12/15/2022 5:40:45 AM PST by Paul R.
Longshot question of the day: Will a Dell Latitude 5490 laptop with the JXFX4 M'board support / recognize a M.2 SATA 2242 SSD in the WWAN M.2 slot? There is some discussion of this topic, specific to OTHER motherboards in this model on the Dell forum, and an unanswered question about this same M'board on the Dell forum. It appears that at least one M'board, the LA-F401P, does offer the use of a 2nd drive, specifically a M.2 SATA 2242 256 GB SSD, in the M.2 WWAN slot. But, I have the JXFX4 M'board, which also has a M.2 WWAN slot in addition to the NVMe M.2 slot currently housing / running a 256GB M.2 NVMe drive.
The basic idea would be to use the (slower, but still quick!) SATA SSD in the WWAN slot as the data and backup drive, leaving the existing (dang fast by my standards!) NVMe drive in place as the OS, swap file, and programs drive.
A secondary question would be whether the WWAN slot will support only a 256 GB M.2 SATA 2242 256 GB SSD, or can one go with larger (say, 512 GB) drives there. Note that space requires the 2242 form factor for the 2nd drive.
If all else fails, I suppose I can just purchase a M.2 SATA 2242 SSD, and give it a whirl. But, I hate to burn that money if the experiment is likely to not work!
I hope I’ve stated all this with proper and succinct jargon!!
And... thanks in advance, if anyone knows...
!!!
:-)
Seems to be the quickest way.
I have a Dell Latitude 3300 and in that slot you would have to use a smaller M.2 a 2 inch or less one and I have one from an upgrade maybe I should try it out ,LOL
Why not just go with an external USB SSD?
What does Dell Customer Support say?
Because a USB device is not near as fast as a M2 device.
Answer is no as the PCI slot the WWAN uses is only for a wireless controller card. If the board doesn’t have a dedicated M.2 storage slot, then the board has no storage controller on PCIe bus and thus wont recognize an M.2 SSD.
Well, an internal SATA M.2 drive would be faster. Possibly an external drive tying up the laptop’s USB-C port would be plenty fast, but then that port is tied up. A bigger factor is that it’s just one more external accessory (I also got a dock for this puppy) to haul around, keep secure, and keep track of, esp. if travelling.
Yeah, with tax, about a $50 experiment, as I have no SATA M.2 drives laying around. Will go that route if absolutely necessary...
How old is that 3300?
Yes, the “2242” describes the dimension (22 mm x 42 mm) of the M.2 drive needed to fit.
Yes, that’s the thread I was looking at. The guy for who it worked has a different (but apparently near same born date) motherboard as mne. Earlier MB’s in 5490’s appear to not work, per that thread.
This guy (poster “Ydnaroo” ) got it to work easily (WWAN slot for a SATA M.2 drive), but it’s not the same motherboard (tho’ very similar in age and, visually, in apparent design.)
That’s what gave me the idea...
I’ve not had time to inquire when actual human agents are available to ask. The Dell “Virtual Assistant” is of course virtually useless, although I do have a Resume Chat link with them now (functionally a start at a support ticket, I suppose.) Theoretically with a few twists and turns that can lead to a live agent.
“as me”
Well, the M’board has a PCIe storage controller running the existing NVMe drive... But, this may be a question of the BIOS telling the controller that WWAN slot (physically a M.2 SATA style slot can actually function as a M.2 SATA slot? Again, it worked for one poster with a same (or very close) vintage motherboard that (visually) appears to have the exact same slots....
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