Can I have a fresh start by simply swapping the HDD?

[shen.matt92]

So this was my first build 3 months ago and I bought top notch parts 8700k and gtx 1080 ti but I skimped on the HDD with a $30 3.5 7200 rpm one. At the time I thought it would be the same as ssd except just take a little longer to load my games. Boy was I wrong. Every time I try moving a tab, even just one click will make it say "not responding" on the top. Once, Steam took five minutes to load. Sometimes it doesn't load at all.

SO sorry for the rant but now my question is can I simply remove the HDD and install SSD m.2 sata iii and install windows as usual like when I first got the parts brand new? Or do I have to clear some settings before that in the bios or do something else first?

 

[Barty1884]

You can install a new drive & install Windows to it without issue, yes (and assuming W10 is activated, just skip when it prompts you for a key).

If you're going the M.2 route, look to an NVMe drive, otherwise look to a traditional 2.5" SSD.
You pay a little bit of a premium for a SATAIII M.2 drive vs the 2.5" counterpart, for no real speed improvements.

 

[mgallo848]

Every time I try moving a tab, even just one click will make it say "not responding" on the top. Once, Steam took five minutes to load. Sometimes it doesn't load at all.

SSD drives can make old machines feel new again but the part of your post that I quoted shouldn't be happening even with a regular HDD.

 

[Barty1884]

SSD drives can make old machines feel new again but the part of your post that I quoted shouldn't be happening even with a regular HDD.

Agreed it shouldn't be happening (at least not to that degree), but 3.5" 7200rpm drives have been around for years. No mention of capacity/model/age, or even whether it's new or used.

$30 sounds like a solid enough deal for a modern 1TB+ drive (WD Blue, Seagate Barracude or similar), but could easily be a 500GB whatever drive from 10 years ago. Totally different animals.

 

[shen.matt92]

Its toshiba p300 1TB. I agree it shouldnt be happening but im not sure whats wrong. I installed everything correctly, including Windows. I did use a USB from Microsoft instead of a dvd though and wasnt connected to the internet while installing W10. But I did update Windows once I connected to ethernet. So maybe its a bad hdd?

But in my post i didnt specify that i wont be keeping my files. Just fresh start.