Adding an an SSD drive to a HP d7800 SFF

[CCor1]

I copied my ide Windows 10 boot drive to a Samsung 850 SDD using Samsung Magician . No errors. If I remove the IDE drive and try to boot the SDD, it appears to try and boot Windows  but I just get a black screen and a mouse pointer.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

If you plugged the SATA SSD data cable into SATA port 0 and the PC isn't booting, I wouldn't know what the problem could be.

I have a dc7800 CMT with only one SATA SSD and it has always worked since day one from SATA port 0.

I did not clone the drive.

I clean installed W10 on the drive when it was in the SATA 0 port.

[SDH]

That is a really old computer... sure you don't want to invest in something modern, fast, and inexpensive? Like a Z440?

However, here goes... What you boot into can be set for a "one time use" via F9 and a "full time use" via navigating via F10 to boot order and set that to target your intended boot drive. Most HP workstations and business class computers I've worked with like to boot to a SATA drive attached to SATA port 0 but that is not written in stone. The actual boot device is set by the F10/boot order setting in BIOS and then saving as you exit from BIOS.

These are very different boot triggers.  So, with a new cloned SATA SSD boot drive in place plus your old IDE bootable drive in place you need to go into BIOS and set the SSD specifically over to be the top preference in your full time use boot order. F9 only sets that for one boot. F10/boot order sets that for the future. The problem is that if you have cloned your IDE HDD drive over to a SATA SSD your old BIOS settings will see that SSD as an IDE device. The speed and functionality for these new type of drives comes from not running them in IDE mode. It comes from running them with BIOS set to AHCI (or RAID which equals RAID plus AHCI). You're wanting to bring a primate into our modern age... significant change.

Clean install, as Paul indicates, can get you there but I'd rather go for a modern age computer such as a Z440.

P.S. To add to the confusion.... if you do a clean install onto your new SSD set your BIOS to factory defaults. Make sure that results in your device settings being set to AHCI (or RAID which means RAID plus AHCI) because if you don't do that before running the clean install the drivers you get in the install will be for IDE and not include the AHCI drivers. It is a PITA to retrofit the correct drivers. This is a case where the BIOS settings really impact the drivers actually installed. Intel and HP both recommend choosing "RAID" (or "RAID+ AHCI") and not "IDE" for modern SATA HDDs or SSDs.  HP BIOS can present you either choice 1 or 2 (same drivers will result) and thus be confusing. If only "AHCI" was provided, then choose that. Don't choose "IDE". Took a while to figure this all out.

[CCor1]

Thanks. I would love to upgrade the PC but I have a ton of programs that I need on the Windows 10 hard drive, which also rules out a fresh install of Windows.

I don’t mind trying an install of the AHCI/RAID drivers if you have the procedure. I presume it involves using safe mode? 

I guess the bios settings for storage result in the equivalent drivers being created in windows during a new Windows install, that’s what I understand.

Thanks again