JattaGin Posted July 7, 2018 Share Posted July 7, 2018 (edited) Hello, I have a gaming laptop and my SSD is running out of space and Windows is complaining now on a daily basis that it cannot prepare the next update, because there is not enough space left on the harddisk. I cannot replace the harddisk without losing the warranty. There is a security sticker on it and I don't want to risk anything before the warranty runs out. I have another SSD harddisk which I put into a USB3 case. It's currently unused. I read tests about speed with USB3 and SSD harddisks which sound quite alright. However, I didn't find anything specific about this game (or similar games). Does anyone have experience playing Swtor on a SSD connected externally via USB3? Would I have to expect a lot of speed loss compared to an almost completely full internal SSD? Any knowledge or opinions? Edited July 7, 2018 by JattaGin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JediQuaker Posted July 7, 2018 Share Posted July 7, 2018 (edited) The only thing about SWTOR affected by SSD/HDD/USB3 speeds is load times. An (internal) SSD will cut load times in half compared to an HDD. I haven't tried it myself, but I would suspect that running off an external USB3 SSD would be only slightly slower than an internal SSD (much of the load time involves network access anyway), but still much faster than HDD. The game itself will play the same. Another thing to consider might be to off-load some data and less used programs to the external SSD and leave SWTOR on the internal. Edited July 7, 2018 by JediQuaker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaerethDL Posted July 7, 2018 Share Posted July 7, 2018 an SSD is not a harddisk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JattaGin Posted July 7, 2018 Author Share Posted July 7, 2018 I haven't tried it myself, but I would suspect that running off an external USB3 SSD would be only slightly slower than an internal SSD (much of the load time involves network access anyway), but still much faster than HDD. The game itself will play the same. Another thing to consider might be to off-load some data and less used programs to the external SSD and leave SWTOR on the internal. Load times are important to me. But as long as it would be faster than my HDD on my previous laptop, it suffices. After all, my gaming laptop is also my work laptop. Your last advise was my preferred option. But there is not much I would gain. There is Windows and Swtor and that's about 90% of the SSD size. Windows takes a lot of space. an SSD is not a harddisk. No? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tahana Posted July 7, 2018 Share Posted July 7, 2018 Does your laptop not have a second slot for another HD or SSD? Take a look at your manufacturer specs and see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShieldProtection Posted July 8, 2018 Share Posted July 8, 2018 Hello, I have a gaming laptop and my SSD is running out of space and Windows is complaining now on a daily basis that it cannot prepare the next update, because there is not enough space left on the harddisk. I cannot replace the harddisk without losing the warranty. There is a security sticker on it and I don't want to risk anything before the warranty runs out. I have another SSD harddisk which I put into a USB3 case. It's currently unused. I read tests about speed with USB3 and SSD harddisks which sound quite alright. However, I didn't find anything specific about this game (or similar games). Does anyone have experience playing Swtor on a SSD connected externally via USB3? Would I have to expect a lot of speed loss compared to an almost completely full internal SSD? Any knowledge or opinions? Search box/cortana > type "Services" > hit enter > a new window will open > scroll down very below > Windows Update > right click > properties > startup type: stop, > disabled > Recovery tab > 3 drop down menus > all of them "Take no action" apply and ok (type S service with caps lock on) This will permanently end Windows Update that bothers you, get a 1TB hard disk into your laptop and then re-enable Windows Update so you can get security patches. Gpedit.msc in to search box, Local computer > administrator templates > Windows components > Windows Update > configure windows update > a new window will open > set to "Disabled" apply and ok, reboot your PC (This method will only work if you have Professional/Ultimate version of the Windows) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akevv Posted July 8, 2018 Share Posted July 8, 2018 USB 3 is very fast. If you get an external SSD, it would run SWTOR just fine. I have a Mac Pro and I've put Windows on an external Thunderbolt 2 drive. It runs fine. USB 3 isn't quite as fast as Thunderbolt 2, but it would be adequate. You'd want to make sure that the SSD you're purchasing is capable of saturating the bus speed as some of the drives have cheap components made for backups and not constant access. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JediQuaker Posted July 8, 2018 Share Posted July 8, 2018 (edited) Your last advise was my preferred option. But there is not much I would gain. There is Windows and Swtor and that's about 90% of the SSD size. Windows takes a lot of space. ? Check if there's a folder called "Windows.old" on your drive. If you are happy with your current Windows install and don't plan to go back to an earlier version, you can safely delete this folder to save space. Personally, I'd say "Warranty Smarranty" - tear off that sticker and put in a larger SSD. Technically, an SSD is "hard", but it's not a "disk" and has no moving parts. Edited July 8, 2018 by JediQuaker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JattaGin Posted July 8, 2018 Author Share Posted July 8, 2018 Thanks for all the replies and ideas! I decided to make a test by counting the loading times on a) my current SSD b) the external SSD via USB3 c) my internal second HDD I will do so during the next days and then post the results here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JattaGin Posted July 9, 2018 Author Share Posted July 9, 2018 (edited) Here are the results: Internal SSD: Clicking "Play" to Character Selection Screen: 37,94 seconds Selecting Character to fully decorated Tatooine Stronghold: 20,37 seconds Fleet Pass to Republic Fleet at 16:40 CET+2 (I think): 22,37 seconds Back to Stronghold via Stronghold Window: 16,40 seconds External SSD via USB3: Clicking "Play" to Character Selection Screen: 40,33 seconds Selecting Character to fully decorated Tatooine Stronghold: 21,83 seconds Fleet Pass to Republic Fleet at 16:50 CET+2 (I think): 21,63 seconds Back to Stronghold via Stronghold Window: 19,82 seconds Internal HDD: Clicking "Play" to Character Selection Screen: 1:08,74 minutes Selecting Character to fully decorated Tatooine Stronghold: 49,04 seconds Fleet Pass to Republic Fleet at 17:15 CET+2 (I think): 32,29 seconds Back to Stronghold via Stronghold Window: 20,80 seconds Conclusion: The external SSD via USB3 has slightly longer loading times than the internal SSD. The normal HDD is no match at all. This confirms JediQuaker's prediction. Just from these results, I could live with moving the game to the external drive. Now I will test the performances in the game, just to be sure. Well, the SSD. The HDD copy has been deleted already. Edited July 9, 2018 by JattaGin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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