Older laptops typically feature a DVD drive, whereas newer laptops don't. DVD drives have disappeared from notebook computers in the by few years, as manufacturers find ways to maximise infinite, battery life, and cooling.

If you've noticed that you hardly ever use DVDs, why not supervene upon the DVD drive with an SSD or difficult deejay drive?

Below is a step-past-footstep guide explaining how to replace your laptop'due south DVD drive with a ii.5-inch SSD (solid-land drive) or HDD. Nosotros've too provided information technology for you in video grade.

What You Need for Replacing a DVD Drive With an SSD or HDD

Swapping a barely used laptop DVD drive with extra storage is surprisingly easy. All you need is:

  • A drive caddy
  • A screwdriver
  • Plastic lever tool
  • Hot gum gun (optional)

The procedure is straightforward likewise:

  1. Gild the drive caddy
  2. Select a new drive: HDD or SSD?
  3. Remove the DVD bulldoze
  4. Insert the drive in the caddy
  5. Fit the caddy in the PC

Ready to swap your notebook's optical drive with a new HDD or SSD for boosted storage? Let'south start.

Pace ane: Order the Caddy

The bulldoze caddy slides into the CD or DVD bulldoze slot. In this, you identify your HDD or SSD.

At this stage, yous might be thinking: "Hang on, there's no standardized design for laptops. How can this piece of work?" And you lot would be right... to a signal.

While in that location remains a lack of standardization for laptop computers, the same isn't true of the upgradeable parts. Additional RAM, hd drives, and DVD drives almost always accept the aforementioned connectors from device to device. This means that they can be swapped.

DVD drives are mostly a certain shape and size. This means that a caddy can be hands slipped into the space that the DVD drive occupied.

Where can yous find a HDD caddy? The best places are Amazon or eBay. A caddy will ready y'all back less than $10.

Annotation that ii variations of drive caddy are available, to fit nine.5mm and 12.7mm high drives. The difference is noticeable---y'all might be able make up the difference with some padding, but this isn't recommended.

Caddies are equipped with a SATA connector for the new bulldoze, and ane to connect the caddy to the laptop. Once slotted in and secured, the replacement drive can then be used for additional storage or dual booting.

Pace ii: Cull an SSD or HDD to Supplant the Optical Bulldoze

As the idea is to expand the corporeality of storage available to you, you'll need a new drive to sit in the caddy. This might be a HDD or a faster SSD.

Obviously, the capacity of the drive volition depend upon your requirements. However, we would recommend installing equally large a drive every bit possible. A high-capacity bulldoze has superior backup possibilities. It's also a good choice for saving personal data to, thereby avoiding data loss should the chief HDD fail.

Step 3: How to Remove the DVD Bulldoze From Your Laptop

With your new secondary disk drive ready to install, information technology's time to remove the DVD bulldoze.

Removing a DVD bulldoze is usually straightforward, although this will depend on the laptop manufacturer.

The standard method is:

  1. Place a towel on your table
  2. Sit down the laptop on it with the lid face up downwards
  3. Find the DVD locking screw (usually near the eye of the laptop, typically indicated by a pocket-sized DVD icon)
  4. Remove the screw
  5. Pull out the optical drive
Remove the DVD drive from a laptop

Some laptops have a push-button removal system; alternatively, there might be a catch to depress while the drive is removed. This is similar to how you might remove a laptop battery.

In other cases, you might demand to use a plectrum, credit bill of fare, or plastic knife to dislodge the drive. There should exist no resistance, yet.

Remove the DVD drive from your laptop

Once fully removed, use a screwdriver or plastic knife to gently remove the DVD bulldoze fascia. Unless your laptop shipped with a spare, blank fascia for the DVD drive bay, you lot'll need this subsequently.

Remove the fascia or bezel from a DVD drive

You may also need to remove the locking spiral pigsty from the DVD drive. This is attached with two small screws and can exist easily attached to the caddy for locking in identify.

Footstep iv: Insert the HDD or SSD Into the Caddy

This should be the like shooting fish in a barrel bit! With your HDD or SSD unpackaged, it should be simple to sideslip the bulldoze into the caddy.

Install an SSD in a CD drive slot

Depending on the retailer, you lot may accept received a screwdriver with the caddy. Either fashion, check to see if whatsoever screws are included. These will need to be tightened to secure the HDD or SSD in the caddy. Make sure these screws are flush with the caddy when tightened, otherwise it won't slide into your laptop.

Step 5: Insert the Caddy Into Your Laptop

Next, find the fascia you removed earlier. Another standardized aspect of laptops is the fascia attachment on DVD drives.

Considering the eject button must be in a certain position for universal accessibility, the fascia attachments have the clips in the same identify. Simply adhere the fascia, pushing the catches into the slots. Hot glue may exist required here, especially if a catch breaks.

replace dvd drive with ssd

With the laptop again upturned on the towel, slide the HDD or SSD into the CD drive slot, and use the securing screw to fix the caddy in place. Your laptop has a new storage device, prepare to utilize with any operating system that you have installed.

Reuse Your Onetime DVD Bulldoze

So, you've replaced your laptop'due south DVD bulldoze with an SSD or HDD. But what about the discarded DVD drive? Well, you can still employ it.

It's possible to install a laptop drive into an external housing that you tin can easily connect and disconnect from your laptop. All you lot demand is a laptop DVD enclosure and a pair of USB connectors for data and power. A DIY portable DVD drive can be used with a tablet, ultrabook, or any other device without an optical drive.

Can You Supercede the Laptop DVD Drive With USB Ports (or Anything Else)?

The swappable DVD/CD drive on your laptop can in theory be replaced with other things, such every bit additional USB ports.

However, few manufacturers have followed up on this. While you lot might find a DVD drive-shaped USB 3.0 hub for some Dell laptops from around 2015, such devices are rare and difficult to observe, even on eBay.

This is a shame, as such a hub could include things like a card reader, new audio hardware, or even a HDMI port.

Supplant a Laptop CD or DVD Drive With an SSD or HDD: Information technology's That Piece of cake!

If your laptop has a largely redundant DVD or CD drive, using that space for extra storage is a practiced thought. With the vast file sizes that Hard disk photography and videos require---non to mention games---having that extra capacity could prove extremely valuable.

Nosotros hope you like the items we recommend and discuss! MUO has affiliate and sponsored partnerships, so we receive a share of the revenue from some of your purchases. This won't bear on the price you pay and helps us offering the all-time product recommendations.

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