Need help configuring Gigabyte BIOS for new SSD

[FlyingHamster]

Hey guys,

I'm trying to setup Windows 7 on my hard drives so that my new SSD is the primary with games and I can still use my (old) 1TB HDD as a backup for music or whatever else.

Setup:
Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R rev 2.0
Intel Core i7 950 Geforce GTX 680 4GB FTW
Corsair 6GB (3x2gb) DDR3 1600mhz C7
Silverstone ST75F-P 750w psu
Samsung F3 1TB HDD
Samsung 840 EVO 128GB SSD

Question: How do I configure the BIOS settings below to enable AHCI for my new SSD? I'm not sure which settings to change to ACHI and which ones to keep as IDE. I installed my current (old) HDD using optimized defaults where IDE was selected in BIOS instead of AHCI. I plan on unplugging my old HDD, plug in my SSD, setup BIOS for SSD, install windows on SSD, then finally plug my old HDD back in after everything is setup on my SSD. My old HDD will be plugged into SATA2_0 port and my new SSD will be plugged into GSATA3_6 port, unless you'd recommend they're connected differently. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

BIOS Settings (2nd pic is scrolled down):

Mobo layout for context:

 

[ob1]

Is there any reason you need anything for IDE? Just change them all to AHCI and see how that works. And yes, install the SSD and load windows, then connect the HDD. I would use the Intel SATA2 ports for all drives, (not sure which ones on your board). The x58 chipset doesn't have native Intel SATA3 to my knowledge, and it typically has like a Marvel version, which generally isn't recommended.

 

[Old Hippie]

Enable SATA control mode to AHCI
Disable Onboard H/W 1394 (that's Firewire)
Disable Onboard H/W LAN (unless you have a LAN connection to another computer)
Disable Green and Smart LAN
Disable Onboard LAN boot ROM
Disable anything that's marked GSATA3

If your 1TB HDD isn't detected just hook it up to the GSATA 8/9 ports enabled in IDE mode.

Unless you have a need for eSATA you can disable them also.

The idea here is to disable everything that you're not using for a faster boot time.

 

[Stanza33]

Do you have a DVD/CDROM?


if so connect that on port 0 of the 6 Blue SATA Ports
Connect SSD to port 1 of the 6 Blue SATA Ports
Connect HDD to Port 2 of the 6 Blue SATA Ports

In BIOS

Change 2nd line (ICH Controller Mode) from IDE to AHCI

Go into the next tab (Advance Menu??)
and change the boot order

1st = CDROM
2nd = SSD

save and reboot

.

Disable G-SATA 6-7 (The 2 x White ports)
Disable G-SATA 8-9 (The 2 x other White ports)

 

[xX_Jack_Carver_Xx]

You want the SSD on port 6 or 7, the Sata III aka 6.0 Gbps port to get the max out of the SSD's advantages.

Put the DVD and 1TB on ports 0 and 1.

 

[FlyingHamster]

Thanks guys. At this point I've successfully installed Windows on the new SSD and I'm updating my OS. SSD is plugged into SATA2_0 and my dvd drive is plugged into SATA2_3.
I ran into Windows install issues when I plugged my SSD into the Marvell 6GB SATA ports earlier, so I'm leaning towards sticking with the native Intel SATA ports (0-5). I googled around and it looks like many others have SSD issues with the Marvell SATA ports also.

Question: Will I notice any performance issues if I plug all three of my devices into the native Intel SATA ports? Or is it best practice to separate my SSD from other devices by plugging the SSD into the Intel SATA (SATA2_0) and old HDD and dvd drive in the Gigabyte SATA ports?

 

[ob1]

You want the SSD on port 6 or 7, the Sata III aka 6.0 Gbps port to get the max out of the SSD's advantages.

Put the DVD and 1TB on ports 0 and 1.

No he should probably keep the SSD on the native Intel ports even if the speed is only 3Gbps. The Marvel ports, while they state they are 6Gbps, are hampered by many things, including the data path and latency. The only difference having a 6Gbps and 3Gbps on this board would be a small increase in benchmark numbers, not real world performance.

Also, to the OP, there shouldn't be any performance issue with putting them all on the Intel controller, just plug them into 1, 2 and 3 and be done with it.

 

[FlyingHamster]

thanks!

when I plug my old HDD back in, if I want to format it and start fresh, should I just go to Disk Management in Windows, right-click on the HDD, and select Format?

 

[ob1]

Yep yep, that is how I typically do it.