Enclosed USB mSATA SSD doesn't get recognized on ultrabook

Syrah

New Member
Messages
9
Hello. My problem is rather complicated, and both the tech support of the SSD I have, as well as support of the USB mSATA enclosure device, could not help me. If anyone here could help me out, I would be very grateful!

Here's what I have:
- Samsung ATIV Book 9 PLUS NP940X3G-K01NL
- Samsung mSATA SSD 850 EVO 500GB
- myDigitalSSD Bullet Proof mSATA SSD USB Enclosure Device

Here's what I want to do:
I want to clone my current OS (which is on the internal 128GB SSD) to the new 850 EVO 500GB SSD, and then replace one with the other (basically, I want to upgrade my ultrabook's SSD).

Now the problem is:
My Samsung ultrabook doesn't recognize the Samsung mSATA SSD when I connect it through one of the two USB ports (both USB3.0) while enclosing the mSATA SSD in the myDigitalSSD enclosure device. Literally nothing happens when I connect it. The weird thing is: with my Desktop PC (also Windows 8.1, also with a USB 3 port), the mSATA SSD got instantly recognized, drivers installed automatically and the drive initialized, and I could assign a drive letter to it, and so on). So the drive is properly initialized and formatted, it even has a name ("Samsung SSD").

Additional data:

When I first plugged in the mSATA SSD into my ultrabook, I got an error saying "The USB device you connected to this computer malfunctioned, and Windows does not recognize it". So I did all the steps of all possible solutions in this guide (remove all USB drivers, restart without the device plugged in, then plug it in), and indeed, the error no longer popped up, but now nothing happens at all. No error, and the device doesn't show up anywhere. All USB drivers are automatically reinstalled when I reboot Windows, wether I have the device plugged in or not.

What I have already tried:
I already Googled everything I could, and the only close thing I could find was this post on Sevenforums, but for me the device doesn't get recognized at all. It's not in Disk Management, it's not in Explorer, it's not in Device Management.

Tech support from the myDigitalSSD guys suggested that the ultrabook USB3 ports may not provide enough power, so I bought a net-powered USB3 hub (TP-link UH700), yet still the device doesn't get recognized (nothing happens at all). Interestingly enough, when I plug the hub into my Desktop PC, and the SSD into the hub, the SSD also gets recognized instantly, and a light turns on on the Hub as well, indicating that the device is connected. When the Hub is on the ultrabook however, this light does not turn on when I connect the mSATA SSD. The light indicates that a data connection is present (not just a power connection), so even the Hub is telling me that it's not working...

Here's a full overview of my ultrabook:
Model/type: Samsung ATIV Book 9 PLUS NP940X3G-K01NL
Processor: Intel i5-4200U @1.60Ghz
SMBIOS: 2.8
RAM: 4GB DDR3
Current SSD: 128GB
Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 4400
USB: 2x USB 3.0
- Intel 8 Series USB Enhanced Host Controller #1 - 9C26
- Intel USB 3.0 eXtensible Host Controller - 0100 (Microsoft)

Images:

3okAKqu.png 5YR9s4q.png

Note: if anyone knows another way in which I can clone my current mSATA SSD to my new mSATA SSD, without having to connect the new one through USB to my ultrabook, that would also be acceptable and appreciated!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
Dear KYHI, thank you for your swift response.

I don't completely understand your answer yet. Could you maybe elaborate (stepwise)?
To which kind of medium would I save the image, and how would I then boot my ultrabook after swapping the SSD's (there is no OS on the new SSD)? Or should I put the image on the new SSD first (using my Desktop PC) and then put it in the ultrabook?

Thank you very much,

Laurens
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
normally you would install the backup software and create a bootable recovery disk..
boot from the recovery disk and then make a disk backup image of your current ssd, the image is saved to an external device
swap out the ssd's
boot from the recovery disk and apply the backup image to the new ssd

most people use a usb stick to create the recovery disk - then save the backup image to the usb (although this all depends on the size of the image and usb stick)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
My full windows installation, with all the software, is about 80GB, so a USB stick is not an option. The ultrabook also doesn't have a disk drive. I'm not sure if I can make a regular external USB HDD bootable (never tried this)...

So there's no reason you can think of as to why my ultrabook doesn't recognize the (already initialized and formatted) SSD, while my Desktop PC does so without problems (both Windows 8.1)?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
if you have a spare USB stick or CD drive - download win81se - from my sig below..
boot from that recovery media with the external drive already plugged in..

not sure if it will see all the drives - but if it does there is backup and cloning programs included in my iso
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
Hi KYHI, thanks again for your help.

What makes you think a lighter version of Windows, with less drivers and utilities, will see the USB mSATA SSD while my regular Windows 8.1 won't? I mean I'm desperate enough to be willing to try, but it doesn't make much sense to me. I have a bootable USB stick with a regular Windows 8.1 RTM and when I boot from this one, it doesn't recognize the mSATA SSD connected through the other remaining USB port.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
Don't know what to tell you - as it is winPE

swap out the ssd's and boot from your setup media - does it find it now??

continue with the setup - then just clone the old to new C partitions.. Have you tried that
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
Tech support from the myDigitalSSD guys suggested that the ultrabook USB3 ports may not provide enough power, so I bought a net-powered USB3 hub (TP-link UH700), yet still the device doesn't get recognized (nothing happens at all). Interestingly enough, when I plug the hub into my Desktop PC, and the SSD into the hub, the SSD also gets recognized instantly, and a light turns on on the Hub as well, indicating that the device is connected. When the Hub is on the ultrabook however, this light does not turn on when I connect the mSATA SSD. The light indicates that a data connection is present (not just a power connection), so even the Hub is telling me that it's not working...

From what you are saying here I have to agree with tech support your USB 3.0 ports are not putting out enough power. Even with a powered Hub you still need a full 500ma from your USB port on the notebook. Not sure why but the hub manufactures state this in there paperwork that the hub needs to have the full 500ma. At least this true for Anker hubs 4 port and 7 port powered
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro MC
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus G75VW / Z97 Pro
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-3610QM / I7-4790K
    Motherboard
    Z97 Pro
    Memory
    16 GB Hyundai HTM315156CFR8C-PB PC3-12800
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVIDIA GeForce GTX 670M (GF114M)
    Sound Card
    VIA 6.0.10.1600
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 Pro 256, Samsung 850 Pro 1TB
    Internet Speed
    30 down 3 up
    Browser
    Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    NIS and Malwarebytes
This is indeed a puzzling problem. The suggested power problem is unlikely. A USB3 port should provide plenty of power for a SSD which consumes very little power. I run SSDs in enclosures from USB2 ports that provide a lot less power than USB3. It is more likely that there is a driver problem. The driver for your enclosure may not be properly installed.

The suggestion that KYHI makes to work with an image is a good option. You will, however, need 2 USB3 sticks. A 64GB stick will be plenty to store an image of your 80GBs (the compression will downsize it to a bit over 50GB). The size of the second stick will depend on the imaging approach. That stick you will need for the recovery program with which you boot the PC to transfer the image to your new SSD. If you use a program like Macrium Reflect, a recovery stick of 1 or 2GB will suffice. If you use Windows imaging, you will need a stick that can hold a system recovery file which you can create from your recovery partition. That can require up to 32GBs.

If you need further details on either approach, post back.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Vista and Win7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2xHP, 2xGateway, 1xDell, 1xSony
    Hard Drives
    5 SSDs and 12 HDs
Clintlgm, thank you for your help.
Why would the hub require power from the ultrabook if the hub is itself powered by the net/wall outlet (~220V)?
I'm asking Samsung support what the power output of the 2 USB 3.0 ports on the Samsung ATIV Book 9 Plus is right now, and when I know I'll get back to you.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
whs, thank you for your reply as well.
I am glad that you agree that a power shortage is very unlikely, especially since its USB3 and since the hub has its own power supply, which sole purpose is to overcome power shortage.

While I don't have a 64GB USB stick, I do have a 500GB external USB HDD and an 8GB USB stick.
So (please correct me if I'm wrong), if I understand you correctly, I could do the following:


  1. Clone my current OS image to an external USB HDD (which tool should I use for that?)
  2. Replace the old SSD with the new one.
  3. Boot from my 8GB USB stick that has a tiny version of windows on it installed (windows PE?) and that has the same cloning tool.
  4. Run the tool again (on this Windows PE USB stick) to clone the image back from the external USB HDD to the new mSATA SSD.

If you could confirm that this can/will work, I will proceed. Please let me know which cloning tool would be best for this procedure.

This is of course assuming that the Windows PE will recognize both the new mSATA SSD (which is now inside the ultrabook) and the 500GB USB HDD.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
  1. Boot from my 8GB USB stick that has a tiny version of windows on it installed (windows PE?) and that has the cloning tool.
  2. Clone my current OS image to an external USB HDD
  3. Replace the old SSD with the new one.
  4. Boot from my 8GB USB stick that has a tiny version of windows on it installed (windows PE?) and that has the same cloning tool.
  5. Run the tool again (on this Windows PE USB stick) to clone the image back from the external USB HDD to the new mSATA SSD.

I also believe he too mentioned macrium - which is included in my pe

hell, may not even need to make a backup image - you may be able to clone old SSD in external enclouser to the new internal ssd. But you need bootable media with cloning/backup software
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
Dear KYHI, thank you for confirming this. Alright, I will first try to boot from the USB drive, and see if the enclosed new 500GB mSATA SSD gets recognized, if not, I will do it in the way we described above.

I have one final question though. Since I already hooked up the new mSATA SSD to my desktop PC once, and it got initialized on that PC (formatted, and then I assigned a drive letter and a name "Samsung SSD"), will it still be suitable for primary boot drive (i.e. will it still be able to hold an OS image and will it be seen as a bootable disk?). I don't know much about bootable and non-bootable drives, but I do know there's a difference, and I hope that I didn't make my new mSATA SSD non-bootable by plugging it in as an external drive and formatting it for first time use. Do you think Macrium will check wether the SSD is bootable, when I put the image on there?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
Although I usually recommend to use free Macrium Reflect for imaging tasks, you may have an easier option since you have a WinPE stick. Check whether that allows you to initiate a Windows 8.1 recovery when booted from that stick (see picture below). If yes, you can make an easy image via an elevated command prompt. The command is:

wbadmin start backup -backupTarget:X: -include:C: -AllCritical -quiet

Where you have to replace 'X' with the drive letter of your external disk where you want to place the image. That image will include C and the system partition (triggered via the AllCritical parameter). The recovery to your new SSD would then work via the Advanced Options of the WinPE stick.


2015-06-04_1145.png
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Vista and Win7
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2xHP, 2xGateway, 1xDell, 1xSony
    Hard Drives
    5 SSDs and 12 HDs
The fact the new ssd was installed, formatted, is or is not bootable > does not matter..
doing a system clone will overwrite any boot record or partition table on the ssd
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
@KYHI: OK thanks for letting me know.

I already have a USB stick (8GB) which is bootable because I have a Windows 8.1 iso on it. Can I just use Rufus to format the USB stick and put your Win81SEx64 on it?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 x64
no need for rufus - windows format will work just fine - Fat32 or Ntfs
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 3.1 > Windows 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 8700
    CPU
    I7
    Memory
    24 GB
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