Dell M6500 not seeing SSD

[individual101]

• 
  I really hope someone else has come across this kind of issue.
  
  We have a Dell M6500 made back in 2011. It has a 500G sata drive in it now and it is messing up. I have been trying to replace the drive with a 240G SSD for weeks now but when I take the old drive out and put the new one in, the computer does not see the drive at all. Since it has 2 drive bays in it I put them both in and still does not see the SSD.
  
  I know its not the SSD because I put it in a desktop PC and shows up just fine in the BIOS. When I have just the SSD in the M6500 I cant even get to the BIOS. I have found other forums about this issue but they all talk about the mSata which I am not using.
  
  When the old HDD is in the PC I can get to the BIOS fine and in the BIOS I have changed the Sata Operation to all options and still no luck with the SSD in there. Anyone have any ideas?

 

[Craglett]

Is there a BIOS update available for your motherboard? This might add functionality for it to talk to the drive.

 

[Craglett]

Oh and another, perhaps too obvious one, have you tried another SATA cable and/or SATA port?

 

[individual101]

Oh and another, perhaps too obvious one, have you tried another SATA cable and/or SATA port?

There is an update to the BIOS which was released last year. I downloaded it and tried it and still nothing.

This is a laptop so no SATA cables. 2 HDD drives slots in it and tried them both. Original works just fine but SSD will not be found by the BIOS or windows when trying to install it.

 

[Craglett]

Apologies as I didn't realise it was a laptop. I can't say I know the fix for this as the only time I've had something similar is with a faulty DVD drive and with a BIOS update.

Clutching at straws here but is there an update for the SSD drive itself?

 

[individual101]

Apologies as I didn't realise it was a laptop. I can't say I know the fix for this as the only time I've had something similar is with a faulty DVD drive and with a BIOS update.

Clutching at straws here but is there an update for the SSD drive itself?

Nothing that I can tell from Intels site. One thing I did do that I forgot (but didn't work) was I attached the plastic plate so that it would be a 9mm instead of the 7.5 to make sure it fit snug into the slot. I'm pretty lost on what to follow next so it looks like we may just be purchasing him a new laptop anyways.

 

[Craglett]

The hard drive operating modes are listed as Disabled, ATA, AHCI , and RAID. The default setting: RAID. Which have you tried?

The manual also mentions hard drive password. Is anything set or does it need setting or removing?

Have you looked at the diagnostics menu to see if you get any light combinations giving you any clues?

 

[individual101]

I have tried all Hard Drive modes with no success. When it is just the SSD in the computer I cannot access the BIOS at all and when the SSD and old drive are both in I can get to the BIOS but only see the old drive.

I confirmed with the drive installed in another PC that was able to read it fine that there is no HDD password

There are no light combinations when only the SSD is installed so nothing in the way of diagnostics.

The only relatable thing I can think of is when I worked for Staples about 4 years ago I got this Sony Vaio computer in for repair and I was replacing the HDD in it but it would not read any drive that was lower than the original drive size. I think it had a 320G and we were trying a 250G since the customer didn't care and it was cheaper but would not read drive unless a 320 or higher was installed. The only thing that's different here though is that I has replaced dozens of Dell HDD's and have never come across this before

 

[CivilNJ]

I see this is an old thread but I just encountered the same issue and resolved it by raising the new disk up (with a piece of temporary scotch tape) so it lined up with the slot correctly. I placed the disk in the area where it gets installed and raised it up as I popped it into the connector. It originally felt like it was popping in properly but the disk is slightly thinner than the original and it made a difference.

 

[NCTbot]

Figured it out. I'm having to install a Samsung 256GB SSD into a Precision M6500 for work. After hours of trying to get it to detect in BIOS, I had to place the a metal piece underneath the SSD for it to sit properly. Once I did that it promptly showed up in BIOS and I could install Windows to the disk. Long story short, make sure that it is seated properly. It may click into the port but it might not be in "just right".