External SSD

[gizmo]

Hi,

Apologies if this post is placed in the wrong forum. Please feel free to move it out to the correct one. I was wondering can DCS be installed in an external SSD, and will it affect gameplay?

Thank you

Regards

 

[Ironious]

Connected how? If via USB then any disk access from loading the game to loading terrain throughout will be relatively slow. Esata would be faster than USB but still slower than an internally connected drive.

Edited December 11, 2023 by Ironious

[gizmo]

Alrite, understood. Thank you Sir, for your reply. Was curious.

Regards

 

[toan]

Hi All, I have a small internal SSD drive which is over 80% full. I'd like to buy new maps, but these require much more free space than I currently have. So, I'm ready to buy a new large SSD external drive. But can I install these new map on that new external drive ? Thanks for your help.

[silverdevil]

11 hours ago, toan said:

Hi All, I have a small internal SSD drive which is over 80% full. I'd like to buy new maps, but these require much more free space than I currently have. So, I'm ready to buy a new large SSD external drive. But can I install these new map on that new external drive ? Thanks for your help.

it is not recommended to use external USB for DCS. however you can get through it possibly by using sim links. 

https://www.howtogeek.com/16226/complete-guide-to-symbolic-links-symlinks-on-windows-or-linux/

[MAXsenna]

Hi All, I have a small internal SSD drive which is over 80% full. I'd like to buy new maps, but these require much more free space than I currently have. So, I'm ready to buy a new large SSD external drive. But can I install these new map on that new external drive ? Thanks for your help.

Any reason you don't want it as an internal drive?

Sent from my SM-A536B using Tapatalk

[toan]

On 4/9/2024 at 8:58 PM, MAXsenna said:

Any reason you don't want it as an internal drive?
 

Hi, the only reason is that my SSD drive doesn't have enough free space to accomodate a new terrain, and my PC has only one internal SSD drive slot. Sigh.

[Raisuli]

6 minutes ago, toan said:

Hi, the only reason is that my SSD drive doesn't have enough free space to accomodate a new terrain, and my PC has only one internal SSD drive slot. Sigh.

SSD drive slot?  Any drive slot is SSD if you put an SSD rather than a spinny disk in it.  The bus really doesn't care if the data comes from a chip or off a flying head.  The choke point with an external drive is the data path, which is why it's not recommended.

I have to ask if there's a reason not to mirror your existing drive onto a larger SSD and replace it wholesale if space is really a concern?  Yes, you need to grow the volume once it's replaced, but the system will never know you changed the hardware (and I did exactly this a few months ago).

[MAXsenna]

Hi, the only reason is that my SSD drive doesn't have enough free space to accomodate a new terrain, and my PC has only one internal SSD drive slot. Sigh.

I see. Bummer.

Sent from my SM-A536B using Tapatalk

SSD drive slot?  Any drive slot is SSD if you put an SSD rather than a spinny disk in it.  The bus really doesn't care if the data comes from a chip or off a flying head.  The choke point with an external drive is the data path, which is why it's not recommended.
I have to ask if there's a reason not to mirror your existing drive onto a larger SSD and replace it wholesale if space is really a concern?  Yes, you need to grow the volume once it's replaced, but the system will never know you changed the hardware (and I did exactly this a few months ago).

Excellent idea! A few years ago I swapped all spindles for SSDs. New life for all of the computers.

Sent from my SM-A536B using Tapatalk

[toan]

2 hours ago, Raisuli said:

SSD drive slot?  Any drive slot is SSD if you put an SSD rather than a spinny disk in it.  The bus really doesn't care if the data comes from a chip or off a flying head.  The choke point with an external drive is the data path, which is why it's not recommended.

I have to ask if there's a reason not to mirror your existing drive onto a larger SSD and replace it wholesale if space is really a concern?  Yes, you need to grow the volume once it's replaced, but the system will never know you changed the hardware (and I did exactly this a few months ago).

Ok, thanks, I'm not a hardware expert at all. And thanks for the idea of mirroring the existing SSD onto a larger one. I didn't even think about that. I don't know how to do that, in fact, any help is appreciated.

[Raisuli]

14 minutes ago, toan said:

Ok, thanks, I'm not a hardware expert at all. And thanks for the idea of mirroring the existing SSD onto a larger one. I didn't even think about that. I don't know how to do that, in fact, any help is appreciated.

There's a (free for your purpose) tool called Macrium Reflect that will handle the mirroring, and even has instructions to get that done.  If you can hook the new drive up via USB that will work, I think.  Once that's done it's time to get out the number two Phillips and crack open cases.

But it might be worth cracking the case early in the process.  You might have more drive bays than you realize in there, and with a little wire and a few screws may be able to just add another drive.  Depending on the computer the wires might already be there.  Then again if you're using one of the mini desktops...maybe not.  Not enough data to get specific here.  For all I know you're using a laptop and all of this changes.

[toan]

55 minutes ago, Raisuli said:

There's a (free for your purpose) tool called Macrium Reflect that will handle the mirroring, and even has instructions to get that done.  If you can hook the new drive up via USB that will work, I think.  Once that's done it's time to get out the number two Phillips and crack open cases.

But it might be worth cracking the case early in the process.  You might have more drive bays than you realize in there, and with a little wire and a few screws may be able to just add another drive.  Depending on the computer the wires might already be there.  Then again if you're using one of the mini desktops...maybe not.  Not enough data to get specific here.  For all I know you're using a laptop and all of this changes.

Hi, thanks for your help. I use a low-end tower PC, and unfortunately it has only 2 internal drive slots. one for the SSD and one for a 'standard' drive. Your mirroring option seems very good, and I'll work on this. Many thanks again !

[Raisuli]

17 minutes ago, toan said:

Hi, thanks for your help. I use a low-end tower PC, and unfortunately it has only 2 internal drive slots. one for the SSD and one for a 'standard' drive. Your mirroring option seems very good, and I'll work on this. Many thanks again !

Don't believe it.  You could replace the 'standard' drive with an SSD.  I've done that (or had it done by the guys) a few hundred times.  I still have a drive cloner for things like that, and we have three more at work.

[Rudel_chw]

19 minutes ago, toan said:

I use a low-end tower PC, and unfortunately it has only 2 internal drive slots. one for the SSD and one for a 'standard' drive.

 

SSDs are very light, you can easily attach them on any free space within the tower using velcro strips and a bit of superglue, the result is like this but without the fancy plate and screws:

 

 

[toan]

1 hour ago, Raisuli said:

Don't believe it.  You could replace the 'standard' drive with an SSD.  I've done that (or had it done by the guys) a few hundred times.  I still have a drive cloner for things like that, and we have three more at work.

Great ! Thanks !

1 hour ago, Rudel_chw said:

 

SSDs are very light, you can easily attach them on any free space within the tower using velcro strips and a bit of superglue, the result is like this but without the fancy plate and screws:

OK, that seems perfect ! Thanks.