How to remove the hard drive from a laptop: GUIDE 2022

If you want to install a hard drive or SSD in your laptopyou should know how to take out the hdd laptop before buying anything. We are going to look at possible mistakes and the steps you need to take before starting the process.

This installation is becoming more and more common among many users, because having a 500 GB HDD is no longer worth even 1 TB! In laptops, all HDDs are 2.5 inches, the same format as an SSD, but others offer the possibility of having a M.2 SSD. This tutorial explains how to remove the hard drive, so you can do whatever you want later.

How to remove the hard drive from a laptop

There are many possible mistakes that can be made during the process of removing and installing a new one, so let’s try to cover them all, hope we don’t miss any!

prior warning: opening the laptop can lead to loss of warranty, check it before you start!

Check the hard drive or SSD you have and compatibility

how to remove laptop hard drive

We understand that many of you are wondering how to remove laptop hard drive for 2 reasons:

  • Reuse it on another device.
  • Install a new one that is better.

Before you buy anything and open the laptop, check what Hard drive or SSD you installed and if your laptop is “exquisite” with compatibilities. For example, in Mac we can find some incompatibilities in very specific models, so study your laptop model carefully.

How to check which hard drive or SSD you have? The most direct tool is CrystalDiskInfoalthough you can check it without installing any programs by doing the following:

  • Open “This team» and right click on a unit to select «Properties“.
  • Open the new window, go to tongueMaterialto see the names of all units.
  • However, you will see that there are incomplete names, as is the case with my M.2 Sabrent SSD.

how to remove laptop hard drive

Laptop with cover for removal?

remove laptop hard drive
Source: coolblue.nl

Before starting to unscrew, it is necessary to check if there is a hole under the laptop. exclusive cover to remove discs. There are models that offer this possibility and simplify the whole process to remove 2 to 4 screws and remove the hard drive.

If you don’t see that cover and you only see screws…that suggests to me that you’ll need to open the entire bottom of the laptop, although I’ll point out again that depending on the model, it can be opened by keyboard. So it’s time to study your model and search YouTube for a tutorial to see how they open it. If your laptop is ASUS, HP or Lenovo, you will definitely be in luck.

Necessary tools

tools remove laptop hard drive

More than a step, it is a prerequisite for opening the laptop, but we always recommend the purchase of a iFixit kit because it is super complete and we have enough to open a laptop. Concretely, we will need 2 things:

  • Small Phillips screwdriver.
  • A jimmy, which is always a thin metal point that serves to insert it into the joint of the laptop and to finish detaching it.

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Try the screwdrivers you have around the house to see if they match any of the laptop screws; If so, the money you save. Otherwise, I recommend that you buy a universal screwdriver which comes with replaceable heads, like this:

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Likewise, I once again highlight the iFixit kits (they don’t pay us) because they are kits prepared for small devices such as smartphones, tablets and laptops.

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Before unscrewing, read this!

how to remove laptop hard drive

Read carefully what I am going to tell you because there is thousand mistakes in this step. First, I recommend taking a sheet of paper and drawing the locations of each screw to remove each screw and check the control.

NOT ALL SCREWS ARE THE SAME! This means that since you can’t remember where each one went, you’ll see that some don’t match or the thread isn’t the same. Many of you will give up and leave the laptop screwed down with fewer screws because there will be many who won’t know where they are going. Manufacturers like ASUS greatly differentiate between screws, both in thickness and length.

It is very easy to avoid this error: we take a sheet of paper, we draw the locations simulating the laptop and we place the extracted screw in each circle. This way we will know where each is going when we need to close it.

The second mistake I see is that many users think they are done unscrewing all the screws, but they forget to check the non-slip rubber pads. Many manufacturers put a screw under some (ASUS, for example), so check them all before you start pulling the case.

As a last tip, work on a table because otherwise it will be chaos.

We pass the jimmy or lime before pulling the carcass

how to remove laptop hard drive

Another very common mistake is don’t pass the jimmy or the lime before starting to detach the tabs from the case one by one. You have to pass the jimmy through the seam of the laptop (the line that separates the keyboard part and the bottom part) to gently detach the bottom or top part, depending on the method of opening.

This will help detach the upper part from the lower part, and we will be able to manually detach each tab from the case more easily and more securely.

Before seeing how to remove the hard drive from a laptop, disconnect the battery

To have to leave all components without power, and it is possible that the battery has been supplying electricity through the circuit for the past few hours. To make sure we don’t cause any damage, we’ll disconnect the battery before extracting any components (you’ll probably have to unscrew more).

With the battery disconnected, we can safely remove the hard drive.

Removing the hard drive from a laptop: quick and easy

how to remove laptop hard drive

We need to locate the hard disk on the motherboard, and it will be very easy for you to do so since it is clearly visible (like the image above). It is very important that you do not force anything: no screws, no stickers, no disassembly of the port SATA.

If you’re not careful, you can damage part of the motherboard and render it unusable. You will see that it is very simple and many come with a kind of golden film like the one you see in the photo, something fragile. Being careful is enough.

close everything

I’m guessing you changed the hard drive, and if you didn’t already have another unit in the laptop, then it’s time to put everything back together. The steps to follow are simple:

  • We reconnect the battery correctly.
  • We put the box and we fix it well: that all the legs are mounted.
  • We begin to screw in an orderly fashion, as we said earlier.
  • With everything properly assembled, we will have completed the process.

have you seen? It’s not complicated at all and can be done by anyone without much knowledge: here skill is worth more than knowledge.

We recommend the High laptop there SSD Of the market.

We hope that this information has been useful to you and that you will be able to do it without errors and problems. If you have any questions, comment below so we can help you.

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