[SOLVED] Is it ok to use m.2 in the third slot

[rim1971]

Im using msi z390 ace and i found that it has 3 m.2 slots and the third one has shield frozr
Is there any difference between slots ?

 

[jay32267]

There are differences.

The main difference is the first two slots will take a SATA SSD and the third one won't.

M2_1 supports up to PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6Gb/s, 2242/ 2260/ 2280/ 22110 storage devices
M2_2 supports up to PCIe 3.0 x4 and SATA 6Gb/s, 2242/ 2260/ 2280 storage devices
M2_3 supports up to PCIe 3.0 x4, 2242/ 2260/ 2280 storage devices

 

[The Original Ralph]

another difference, the 2nd slot (middle one) will dis-able two SATA ports with a PCIe M.2 SSD installed in it

plus, that heavy metal cover on the 3rd slot (i have the same motherboard) - it's supposed to be a heat sink, but i'm not sure how as it's made of stainless steel which is an insulator, and then that metal cover has about 50% of it covered in about a 1.16th" thick plastic. Remove that and let your M.2 run a little cooler