Question gigabyte g31m-es2l doesnt detect ssd

dj tlh

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Dec 22, 2019
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hi!

so i have an old system that runs windows xp and id like to upgrade it to windows 10 with an ssd and a few other things, here are its specs:

mobo: gigabyte ga-g31m-es2l (bios ver. f9, rev. 1.1)
cpu: core 2 quad q8400 (2.66 ghz)
ram: 4 gb ddr2
hdd: seagate 80gb
psu: 350w

windows xp on the hdd got an error so i cant boot it up, but it could still work as a storage drive if i can remove xp, so i pull that hdd out and plug a WD Green 120gb ssd to the board, but the board doesnt pick it up (the hdd can still be decteted and boot from)
i tried using different sata cables, different sata ports, updating the bios on the mobo, change some of the settings in the bios, set the bios settings to optimized defaults, but it still doesnt pick the ssd up
does anyone knows this problem and knows how to fix it? i hope you can help me with this, thank you!
 
old SATA ports may be configured for IDE and not AHCI you may have to check the BIOS setting.
also is the SSD initialized?

hi!

so i have an old system that runs windows xp and id like to upgrade it to windows 10 with an ssd and a few other things, here are its specs:

mobo: gigabyte ga-g31m-es2l (bios ver. f9, rev. 1.1)
cpu: core 2 quad q8400 (2.66 ghz)
ram: 4 gb ddr2
hdd: seagate 80gb
psu: 350w

windows xp on the hdd got an error so i cant boot it up, but it could still work as a storage drive if i can remove xp, so i pull that hdd out and plug a WD Green 120gb ssd to the board, but the board doesnt pick it up (the hdd can still be decteted and boot from)
i tried using different sata cables, different sata ports, updating the bios on the mobo, change some of the settings in the bios, set the bios settings to optimized defaults, but it still doesnt pick the ssd up
does anyone knows this problem and knows how to fix it? i hope you can help me with this, thank you!
 
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dj tlh

Prominent
Dec 22, 2019
13
0
510
old SATA ports may be configured for IDE and not AHCI you may have to check the BIOS setting.
also is the SSD initialized?

thanks for replying!
1st, i dont think the ssd is initialized, i bought it brand new
2nd, i dont think this board have AHCI, the board is fairly old, and like i said i tried tweaking the settings, and load optimised default settings but it doesnt work
 
ok, not being initialized explains why it's not showing up, once it's initialized XP might detect it.
I'd cycle through the SATA port settings to see if AHCI is available as well. good luck

P.S. being SATA II and if AHCI is not available - likely other features like TRIM are unavailable for your SSD so its performance will be greatly limited on that board.

thanks for replying!
1st, i dont think the ssd is initialized, i bought it brand new
2nd, i dont think this board have AHCI, the board is fairly old, and like i said i tried tweaking the settings, and load optimised default settings but it doesnt work
 
Last edited:

dj tlh

Prominent
Dec 22, 2019
13
0
510
ok, not being initialized explains why it's not showing up, once it's initialized XP might detect it.
I'd cycle through the SATA port settings to see if AHCI is available as well. good luck

P.S. being SATA II and if AHCI is not available - likely other features like TRIM are unavailable for your SSD so its performance will be greatly limited on that board.

how do i initialize it without it being detected by the board? do i have to like do it in another computer and then plug it in mine?
also i searched it up and they said that its not necessary to initialize the drive if you're gonna fresh install an os
and yes, AHCI and TRIM are both not available, but it would still be faster than my hdd
 
no, won't help if the board/bios doesn't recognize it

how do i initialize it without it being detected by the board? do i have to like do it in another computer and then plug it in mine?
also i searched it up and they said that its not necessary to initialize the drive if you're gonna fresh install an os
and yes, AHCI and TRIM are both not available, but it would still be faster than my hdd
 
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dj tlh

Prominent
Dec 22, 2019
13
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510
no, won't help if the board/bios doesn't recognize it

well do you know what are the ways i can get the board to recognize it?

also i've tried updating the bios to the latest version (f10), its still doesnt work, but i do now notice that the board takes a little longer to boot when the ssd was plugged in than not plugged in (on the post screen btw), maybe the board was trying to pick it up but it didnt?
 
Last edited:
Aug 7, 2018
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I'm just puttering around on your behalf and found this:

https://forums.tomshardware.com/threads/ssd-support-question-old-motherboard.2582969/

It offers some hope. You can do the same. Just Google the motherboard name and "SSD". You might find a "magic bullet" post somewhere that gives you a definitive answer, one way or another.

I don't have time to do it, but make certain you have the latest BIOS. Another search might be m/b + BIOS version. There's some crazy stuff on BIOS sometimes; customized versions written by autists to do exactly what you are trying to do (get old system to use new tech).