Instructions
The original SATA protocol was designed to maximize the performance of platter (physical spinning) hard drives. With the proliferation of SSD drives, the SATA storage management protocol has become a limiting factor. The NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory) protocol has been designed for solid state drives and uses the PCIe bus for optimal performance. An M.2 drive may support SATA or PCIe/NVMe but not both. Depending on the drive, and what the computer can support, not all M.2 drives work in all computers.
M.2 storage devices are classified numerically based on performance. The higher the Class, the faster the overall performance:
Precision Systems
System | Maximum internal drives supported | Drive configurations supported (max) | PCIe lanes | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a M.2 slot | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a 2.5-inch bay | Additional information |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7710 7720 | 3 | 3x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 2 x M.2 + 1 x 2.5-inch | M.2 slots support 4X. 2.5-inch supports 2 x. | 1 x HR8P8 - Thermal cover (includes cover and thermal pad) 1 x 4270E - Screw (secures cover on top of the M.2 drive). | 1 x 745TM - 2.5-inch metal bracket (most units already include this part). 1 x Y1WJX - M.2 bracket (mounts to 745TM). 4x 2864D - M3X3 screw(most computers include these. These secure the Y1WJX M.2 drive carrier, or a 2.5-inch drive into 745TM) 1 x WPTND - M.2 Interposer Board(installs into Y1WJX) 5x 4270E - M2.0*3 L screws 1 x HR8P8 - M.2 thermal cover | Find instructions on the Dell Community Forum page. |
7510 7520 | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 2 x M.2 1 x M.2 + 1 x 2.5-inch | M.2 slot supports 4X. 2.5-inch supports 2 x. | 1 x 745TM - 2.5-inch metal bracket (most computers include this part). 1 x Y1WJX - M.2 bracket (mounts to 745TM). 4x 2864D - M3X3 screw(most computers include these. These secure the Y1WJX M.2 drive carrier, or a 2.5-inch drive into 745TM) 1 x WPTND - M.2 Interposer Board(installs into Y1WJX) 5x 4270E - M2.0*3 L screws 1 x HR8P8 - M.2 thermal cover | Find instructions here on the Dell Community Forum. | |
5510 5520 | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 1 x M.2 + 1 x 2.5-inch | M.2 slot supports 4X. 2.5-inch bay is wired as SATA. | 1 x 88DJK - Thermal pad (no plate required) 1 x 4270E - M2 x3 screw | 1 x XDYGX - Cable 2 x 3XYT5 - Rubber side isolator 1 x 3FDY3 - Metal hard drive bracket (some units may already have this installed even if a 2.5-inch drive was not ordered from Dell originally). | Discussed on the Dell Community Forum page. |
3510 | 1 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch | M.2 slot supports 4X. 2.5-inch bay is wired as SATA. | 1 x X3YR8 - M.2 end bracket 1 x 1 x2MT - Thermal cover 2 x 4270E - M2 x3 screws | Discussed here on SpiceWorks | |
3520 | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 1 x M.2 cache drive + 1 x 2.5-inch | M.2 slot supports 4X. 2.5-inch bay is wired as SATA. | 1 x 2FFR0 - End bracket 1 x X3DN4 -Thermal plate 1 x 4270E - End screw |
Latitude Systems
System | Maximum internal drives supported | Drive configurations supported (max) | PCIe lanes | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a M.2 slot | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a 2.5-inch bay | Additional information |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
E5270 E5470 E5570 | 1 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch | E5270 supports 2 x. E5570 supports 4X (w/ H processor). E5570 supports 2 x (w/ U processor). E5470 supports 2 x (w/ H or U processor). 2.5-inch bay is wired as SATA. | 1 x X3YR8 - M.2 end bracket 1 x 1 x2MT - Thermal cover 2 x 4270E - M2 x3 screws | ||
5280 5480 5580 | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 1 x M.2 cache drive + 1 x 2.5-inch | 5280 supports 2 x. 5580 supports 4X (w/ H processor). 5580 supports 2 x (w/ U processor). 5480 supports 4X (w/ H processor). 5480 supports 2 x (w/ U processor). 2.5-inch bay is wired as SATA. | 1 x X3YR8 - M.2 end bracket 1 x 1 x2MT - Thermal cover 2 x 4270E - M2 x3 screws | ||
E7270 E7470 | 1 | 1 x M.2 | M.2 slot supports 2 x. | 1 x DJ69P - Thermal cover 2 x 4270E - Screw M2 x3 (most computers include one of these). | Discussed here on SpiceWorks. | |
7280 7480 | 1 | 1 x M.2 | M.2 slot supports 2 x. | 1 x R6TGF - Thermal cover 2 x VJYP9 - Screw M2 x3 (most computers include one of these). |
XPS Systems
System | Maximum internal drives supported | Drive configurations supported (max) | PCIe lanes | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a M.2 slot | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a 2.5-inch bay | Additional information |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
9350 9360 | 1 | 1 x M.2 | M.2 slot supports 4X. | 1 x 4270E - Screw M2 x3 | ||
9365 | 1 | 1 x M.2 | M.2 slot supports 4X. | 1 x 4HP13 - Thermal plate 2 x JPRFM - M1.6x2.5 screws | ||
9550 9560 | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 1 x M.2 + 1 x 2.5-inch | M.2 slot supports 4X. 2.5-inch bay is wired as SATA. | 1 x 88DJK - Thermal pad (no plate required) 1 x 4270E - M2 x3 screw | 1 x XDYGX - Cable 2 x 3XYT5 - Rubber side isolator 1 x 3FDY3 - Metal hard drive bracket (some units may include this part even if a 2.5-inch drive was not ordered from Dell originally). | Discussed here on Dell Community Forums |
OptiPlex Systems
System | Maximum internal drives supported | Drive configurations supported (max) | PCIe lanes | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a M.2 slot | Parts needed to install a M.2 device into a 2.5-inch bay | Additional information |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
5040 7040 (MT) | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x M.2 1 x M.2 + 1 x 2.5-inch 2 x 2.5-inch 1 x 3.5" | M.2 slot supports 4X. | 1 x R7HGK - Thermal pad(installs onto the motherboard under the M.2 drive) 1 x YYJF8 - Screw M2 x3.5 | 1 x 6J3FV - SATA cable 1 x X9FV3 - M.2/2.5-inch bay adapter/caddy | Motherboard M.2 installation instructions are found here. |
3050 5050 7050 (MT) | 2 | 1 x M.2 1 x 2.5-inch 1 x 3.5" 2 x 2.5-inch 1 x M.2 + 1 x 2.5-inch 1 x M.2 + 1 x 3.5" | M.2 slot supports 4X. Installing a M.2 device into the 2.5/3.5" bay is not supported. | 1 x DHR6X - Spacer (between the motherboard and M.2 drive) | Motherboard M.2 installation instructions are found here. |
Note: For computers not referenced above, see your computers manual available for download from https://www.dell.com/support/home.
Other M.2 Resources
Operating computer Install Notes:
There is an updated storage driver (IRST F6) to include PCIE support. (to enable Windows to recognize the drive during installation):
- Intel 14.8
- Dell 14.5
Obtaining an ISO Image from theWindows Operating Systems Support Site.
NOTE: Not all computers and service tags have an image available for download.
NOTE: Even though Dell Hosted Images have USB3 drivers slip streamed in, they may not include the IRST driver (also known as the F6 driver). As a result, the IRST driver must be applied manually during the Windows install process.
M.2 Knowledgebase Articles:
- Imaging M.2 solid state drives in Intel Skylake Chipset Systems
- Interposer Card Only Detects One solid state drive (SSD)
- NVM Express SSD drive not detected on startup or reboot on Precision 15 5000 (5510) or XPS 15 9550
- PXE Booting with M.2 solid state drives
- How To Distinguish the Differences Between M.2 Cards
- BIOS Option to Set a Hard Drive Password on M.2 SSD
Additional Information
Recommended Articles
Here are some recommended articles related to this topic that might be of interest to you.
- How to Install an Intel Optane M.2 NVMe Accelerator into your Existing Dell OptiPlex, Inspiron, Precision, and Alienware Computers
- OptiPlex 3050 support for PCIe M.2 SSD hard drives
- Frequently Asked Questions Regarding NVMe Solid-State Drives (SSDs)
- Imaging M.2 Solid-State Drives in Intel Skylake Chipset Systems
- PCIe SSD M.2 Interposer Card FAQ
Affected Products
Latitude 5280/5288, Latitude 7280, Latitude 5480/5488, Latitude 7480, Latitude 5580, Latitude E5270, Latitude E5470, Latitude E5570, Latitude E7270, Latitude E7470, OptiPlex 3050 All-In-One, OptiPlex 3050 Tower, OptiPlex 3050 Micro , OptiPlex 3050 Small Form Factor, OptiPlex 5040 Tower, OptiPlex 5040 Small Form Factor, OptiPlex 5050 Tower, OptiPlex 5050 Micro, OptiPlex 5050 Small Form Factor, OptiPlex 7040 Tower, OptiPlex 7040 Micro, OptiPlex 7040 Small Form Factor, OptiPlex 7050 Tower, OptiPlex 7050 Micro, OptiPlex 7050 Small Form Factor, Precision 5520, Precision 7520, Precision 7720, Precision 5510, Precision 7510, Precision 7710, XPS 13 9350 (End of Life), XPS 13 9360, XPS 13 9365 2-in-1, XPS 15 9550, XPS 15 9560 ...