[SOLVED] First time builder friend is scared he damaged an M.2 SSD ?

[jeremy0118]

Dear all

An M.2 SSD has this gold edge around it where you screw it on to motherboard.

My friend is scared because that area is scratched up and he's a first time builder who panics at everything he does.

I told him that there is a reason this is a diffrent color, and that there's probably no traces or anything at all of importance in this edge because it's meant to be used for holding a screw.

Can anyone confirm this to calm him down?

Thanks

 

[geofelt]

Not to worry.
The copper you see is there to allow the hold down screw to turn and not get bound by the plastic.
I took a close look an a m.2 I had removed, and I can indeed see some scraping on the copper.
It is very thin and does not connect to the copper on the bottom.

If anything, the critical connection is at the other end.
When inserted properly, it should angle up to perhaps 20 degrees before the hold down screw is tightened.