Upgrade 1: The Clean Install
REQUIRED TOOLS
USB stick (8GB minimum) Screwdriver
Small towel
Credit card or guitar pick (you’ll see why)
Let’s get our hands dirty. The simplest upgrade is a clean install. We’re going to remove the old drive, install the SSD and bung the latest version of Windows on it. What’s more, we’re going to do it in 15 minutes. But first, some prep.
Whilst the machine is still operational, visit the Windows Media Creation Toolkit page to create a bootable USB of Windows ( pcpro.
link/324win10). Under “Create Windows 10 installation media” click “Download tool now” and run the file, which will pull the latest version from Microsoft’s servers.
Select “Create installation media”, insert a USB stick and select Next. Click Next again (unless you require a different language) then select “USB flash drive” then Next (again). On the following screen, ensure that the USB drive is selected and, once again, click Next. The tool will now grab the software, and squash it onto the stick. Depending on the speed of your laptop, this can take a little while.
When it’s done, remove the USB stick, shut down the machine, pull the power and grab a screwdriver. We’re ready to start the stopwatch.
Opening your laptop
Most machines from the last four or five years are reasonably accessible. If your machine has “Scrabble-tile” keys that stick up through holes in the top cover, the bottom cover will probably come off in one piece. If your laptop has a keyboard that’s inset into the top cover, there may be c cables and traps to look out for.
You can watch a video I made for PC Pro a while back about getting into laptops by visiting
pcpro.link/324lap. I apologise for the lighting in advance! If you have never tackled this before, please watch it. Another useful resource is the laptop’s product page on the manufacturer’s website as it will probably have a basic service guide that should cover how to get inside the machine.
Time to use the tools. The towel is simply to cover your work area so that the laptop doesn’t get scratched. A small Phillips screwdriver doesn’t require explanation but as you remove the screws, place them onto a sheet of paper in the layout of how they were extracted – a screw map. The length of the screws can vary and a misplaced one could damage the components. Once the screws are out, use a guitar pick or credit card to find the gap in the chassis and gently work along the seam, prising apart the plastic lugs. It will make an awful noise but take your time. In the unlikely event that it all goes wrong, the card can be used to buy a new laptop and the towel to dry your tears.
After you’ve fitted the new drive, just sit the covers back together, without pressure or screws, and power up the machine to test. If you need to re-seat a cable or check a connection, this saves having to wrench the unit apart again. I’ve allocated five minutes for this, but appreciate ate that you might take longer er if it’s your first time wrenching apart a laptop.
The clean upgrade
For the GPL upgrade, I’ve selected a 250GB Samsung Evo 870 Pro SATA SSD, which is perfectly adequate for or everyday use.
We now have ten minutes left if we’re going to fulfil the promise of this article. Insert the Windows USB stick and turn on the machine. As we’re using a new SSD containing no boot information, the laptop will boot straight from the stick. After some screen flickering and a few spinning circles, the Windows language selection screen will appear. Make your choices and click Next then Install Now. Thankfully, the time-consuming stage of inputting a 25-digit licence key is omitted as Microsoft’s digital licensing has spoken to the BIOS, got the code and worked out which version of Windows to install. Put a tick into the box to accept the EULA and select “Custom: Install Windows only (advanced)”.
The next screen gives choices about where you want Windows to be installed, but there’s likely only one choice so click Next and the machine will get started. Get prepared for the next steps by digging out your Wi-Fi code and Microsoft details.
The machine wants to restart (press Enter to speed this up) then display Getting Ready whilst the clock ticks away. Cortana is next up so answer her questions about region, keyboard layouts and Wi-Fi networks. Input your Microsoft account details, set up a PIN. Next is a barrage of options including speech recognition, device tracking, diagnostic data and advertisement tracking. Make your selections and select Accept. Fight your way through a few more options and then Cortana will wrap things up. Within seconds, a desktop will appear so slap yourself on the back as you have successfully upgraded your laptop with an SSD.
The installation process took ten minutes and five seconds on the GPL. Can you go sub-ten?