A Step-by-Step Guide on Xiaomi Laptop SSD Upgrade

About Xiaomi Laptop

Since 2018, Xiaomi has gradually entered the computer market and launched a number of laptops, among which the most representative products include Xiaomi Notebook Air and Xiaomi Notebook Pro. Xiaomi computers are popular among the public for their high cost-effectiveness, simple and stylish design, and good performance.

Xiaomi computers are pre-installed with the Windows operating system and support Xiaomi’s own MIUI for PC system interface. In addition, Xiaomi computers have excellent battery life and are suitable for long-term use outside. Now more and more people choose Xiaomi brand computers.

When Do You Need to Upgrade Your Xiaomi SSD?

Sometimes, you may need to upgrade SSD on Xiaomi laptop for some reason. Here are some common reasons:

• Old Xiaomi computers with HDD: Some low-end Xiaomi computers bought in the early days usually come with HDDs. Now they are experiencing problems such as boot lag and want to replace them with faster SSDs.
• Insufficient storage space: If your computer often prompts that there is insufficient storage space, upgrading to a larger capacity SSD is a good choice.
• SSD performance degradation: Over time, the write and read speeds of your SSD may gradually decrease, especially after a long period of large-scale data writing. At this time, you may need to consider replacing it with a new, faster SSD.
• Upgrading to a faster SSD: If your existing SSD is slow, especially if it is an older SATA interface SSD, upgrading to a faster NVMe interface SSD can significantly improve system performance.
• SSD failure or damage: If your hard drive fails, such as frequent crashes, inability to recognize data, etc. At this time, you need to replace it with a new SSD.

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How to Check SSD Compatibility on Xiaomi Laptop?

To do the Xiaomi laptop SSD replacement, you need to choose the right SSD for the computer. To do this, you need to check the SSD compatibility on your Xiaomi laptop. You can follow the steps below:

1. Check the official specifications: The most direct way is to check the product specifications or user manual of your Xiaomi PC. You can usually find information about the hard drive interface type on Xiaomi’s official website or the product packaging.
2. Open the device manager: Press Win + X, select Device Manager to open, and under Disk Drives you can see the specific model of the current hard drive.
3. Consult Xiaomi customer service or community: If you are not sure about the hardware compatibility, the safest way is to contact Xiaomi’s customer service to ask what the interface of the computer model is.

Preparations before Upgrading SSD on Xiaomi Laptop

Before upgrading the SSD on Xiaomi laptop, you should make some preparations. Below I will list them.

1. Back up your data

You may lose data during the SSD upgrade process, so we recommend backing up your data before you start.

2. Prepare some tools

• Screwdriver: Used to remove the back cover of the laptop.
• Anti-static gloves or wristband: Protect electronic components from static electricity.
• USB to M.2 or SATA adapter: Used to connect the prepared SSD to the computer as an external drive.
• Tweezers: You need to use tweezers to remove the rubber cover on the screw.

3. Test the hard drive

Before starting the upgrade, you can test the original hard drive to make sure there are no bad sectors or other hard drive failures. Well, you can use MiniTool Partition Wizard to do so.

MiniTool Partition Wizard FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Step 1: Install the software and open it to access the main interface. Next, select the disk you want to check and choose the Surface Test option from the context menu to proceed.

Step 2: In the pop-up window, click the Start Now button to check the hard drive for errors.

Step 3: When the operation is complete, the disk will be marked green if there were no read errors, otherwise it will be marked red.

Clone Xiaomi Laptop SSD to New SSD

When you want to do the Xiaomi laptop SSD upgrade, there will be some data on the original hard drive. Then, you can use the disk cloning method to copy the entire content on the hard drive to the new SSD exactly. Then, replace the hard drive with the new SSD.

How to clone the hard drive to a new SSD? Below we provide you with two methods by using the third-party software MiniTool Partition Wizard. It is a professional disk and partition management tool.

This software not only can help you partition hard drives, and format FAT32 on USB drives or SD cards, but also can help you convert MBR to GPT without data loss, change cluster size, recover hard drive data, etc.

Here is the guide to clone a hard drive to a new SSD.

MiniTool Partition Wizard DemoClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Method 1: Use the Migrate OS to SSD/HD Feature

Step 1: Connect the new SSD to your Xiaomi laptop via a USB to M.2 or SATA adapter, then launch MiniTool Partition Wizard to its main interface. Click on the Migrate OS to SSD/HD Wizard feature from the left action panel.

Step 2: In the pop-up window, select the option that suits your needs for migrating the OS, then click Next.

Step 3: Choose the new SSD as the destination disk, then click Next. A warning message will appear, read it and click Yes to proceed.

Step 4: Modify the disk layout in the Review the Changes window and then click Next.

• Fit partitions to entire disk: The partitions on the source disk will be extended by an equal proportion to fill the entire new SSD.
• Copy partitions without resizing: All the partitions on the source disk are copied into the new SSD without changes in size or location.
• Align partitions to 1 MB: The Align partitions to 1 MB option will apply 4K alignment on the SSD.
• Use GUID partition table for the target disk: The Use GUID partition table for the target disk option will apply GPT on the SSD, but it only appears when the source disk is an MBR disk.
• Change Selected Partition: You can resize or move the partition according to your needs.

Step 5: Read the NOTE information and then click Finish.

Step 6: Next, click the Apply button to carry out the pending operation.

Method 2: Use the Copy Disk Feature

Step 1: Connect the new SSD to your Xiaomi laptop via a USB to M.2 or SATA adapter.

Step 2: Launch MiniTool Partition Wizard to its interface. Right-click the disk and then select Copy from the menu. Also, you can click the Copy Disk feature from the left action panel.

Step 3: In the pop-up window, choose the new SSD as the target disk, then click Next. When prompted to confirm, click OK to proceed.

Step 4: Review the chosen Copy Options and Target Disk Layout. If everything looks correct, click Next.

Step 5: Carefully review the note for instructions on how to boot from the target disk, then click Finish to go back to the main interface.

Step 6: Click the Apply button to initiate the pending operation and wait for the cloning process to finish.

How to Install Cloned SSD on Xiaomi Laptop

How to install cloned SSD on Xiaomi laptop? Well, in this section, I will show you how to install a cloned SSD on Xiaomi laptop.

Step 1: Turn off the Xiaomi computer and unplug all external power devices.

Step 2: Turn off the display and place the computer bottom up on the table.

Step 3: Use a screwdriver to remove the screws and put them in a safe place. Then use a crowbar to remove the bottom cover. If possible, wear an anti-static wristband when removing the bottom cover to ensure the safety of the device.

Step 4: Use a screwdriver to remove the screws that secure the SSD.

Step 5: Put the new SSD into the slot, paying attention to the interface alignment.

Step 6: Finally you need to put the cover of the SSD back in place, reconnect the battery cable, and cover the back cover with screws.

If you need to set up your new SSD as a boot drive, here’s a guide.

1. Turn off your computer before proceeding if it is currently powered on.
2. Click the Power button and then immediately press the BIOS key (F1 or F12) to enter the firmware.
3. Press the left or right arrows to go to the Boot menu.
4. Use the up or down arrows to select the new SSD.
5. Press the “+” or “–” key to move the SSD to the top of the boot list.
6. Press the F10 key to save the boot order and exit the BIOS setup.

Bonus Tip: What to Do with a Replaced Xiaomi SSD

If you want to sell or transfer your old Xiaomi SSD to someone else and don’t want the data on the disk to be leaked, you need a tool to erase data on the disk. Here I recommend MiniTool Partition Wizard.

This tool can help you completely erase the data on the disk and the data on it cannot be recovered by data recovery software.

Here is the guide:

Step 1: Right-click the disk you want to wipe then select Wipe Disk. Or you can highlight the target disk and select Wipe Disk from the left action panel.

Step 2: You will see a pop-up window as shown below. Choose the one way to wipe. Then click the OK button below to proceed to the next step.

Step 3: Once the process ends you will return to its main interface, and you can preview that the target Disk 2 is marked as “Unallocated” without a partition letter. Then, you still need to click the Apply button to execute all changes.

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Bottom Line

In this post, I have introduced you to a full guide on how to upgrade SSD on Xiaomi laptop. If you have any questions or suggestions while using MiniTool Partition Wizard, you can contact us via [email protected] to get a quick reply.