Question Installing old ssd with drivers on it

[RobK92]

I’m about to install a m.2 as a 2nd storage drive.
My question is, the drive was an old boot drive which contains old gpu drives and windows, do I have to worry about the old drives getting installed?
Or is it as simple as installing it to my mobo, boot the pc and wipe it in disk management?

 

[Colif]

NO, drivers won't install as you need to run the installer package before they run. As drive isn't boot now, they are just files as far as windows is concerned.

Or is it as simple as installing it to my mobo, boot the pc and wipe it in disk management?

that should work. I would check in bios to make sure its not added to boot list.

Windows might baulk at deleting an old install in disk management

Is this win 10 or 11?

Boot into advanced startup

Pick troubleshoot

Pick advanced

Pick Command Prompt

Type diskpart and press enter

Type list disk and press enter

This will show the list of drives currently attached to PC, make note of the drive number of the drive you want to wipe

If Disk 1 is the drive you want to clear, type select 1) and press enter. A message will confirm it is selected

Warning: Diskpart Erase/Clean will permanently erase/destroy all data on the selected drive. Please be certain that you are erasing the correct disk.

Once you sure its right disk, type Clean and press enter

The Command Prompt window will display the message "DiskPart succeeded in cleaning the disk". Close out of the Command Prompt window by clicking the red X in the upper right hand corner.

restart PC.

 

[RobK92]

NO, drivers won't install as you need to run the installer package before they run. As drive isn't boot now, they are just files as far as windows is concerned.


that should work. I would check in bios to make sure its not added to boot list.

Windows might baulk at deleting an old install in disk management

Is this win 10 or 11?

Boot into advanced startup

Pick troubleshoot

Pick advanced

Pick Command Prompt

Type diskpart and press enter

Type list disk and press enter

This will show the list of drives currently attached to PC, make note of the drive number of the drive you want to wipe

If Disk 1 is the drive you want to clear, type select 1) and press enter. A message will confirm it is selected

Warning: Diskpart Erase/Clean will permanently erase/destroy all data on the selected drive. Please be certain that you are erasing the correct disk.

Once you sure its right disk, type Clean and press enter

The Command Prompt window will display the message "DiskPart succeeded in cleaning the disk". Close out of the Command Prompt window by clicking the red X in the upper right hand corner.

restart PC.

It’s win 11.
Thanks for explaining the whole process

 

[Colif]

only asked about OS as the way to get into advanced startup is different on both. On 11 its Settings/system/recovery whereas on 10 its hiding elsewhere.