Need advice on replacement SSD

[AlexbJohnson]

Hi,

This morning when booting up my laptop I received an imminent SSD failure warning from HP SMART. I ran the diagnostics checks which confirmed the issue was my SSD. It is still functioning as normal for the moment but I would like the get it replaced as soon as possible. 

The device manager lists the one I have as a WD PC SN810 SDCPNRY-1T00-1006. It's 1 TB.

I am out of warranty, so I am just looking to replace this myself, preferably with a 1-2 TB SSD that could be found at Best Buy. I am experienced enough to install it myself. I was hoping you could recommend some that are compatible, as I know laptops can be a little finicky about what will work with them.

What I am iffy on however, is how to get my windows 11 license transferred and set up on the new drive, since this is my primary and sole drive on this laptop. So if you could provide advice on that as well, I would appreciate it greatly.

I don't need to transfer any data to the new drive, the only thing I have stored on the SSD are video games.

So yeah, I would greatly appreciate any advice you could provide on SSD replacements, as well as how to get Windows up and running on a fresh SSD.

Thank you and have a great day!

[Paul_Tikkanen · Accepted solution]

Hi:

I would go with either the Samsung 980 Pro 1-2 TB or the newer Samsung 990 Pro 1-2 TB.

If BBY doesn't have them, you can order one on Amazon.

Amazon.com: Samsung 980 PRO 1TB PCIe 4.0 NVME M.2 SSD (MZ-V8P1T0BW) : Electronics

Amazon.com: Samsung 990 PRO Series - 1TB PCIe Gen4. X4 NVMe 2.0c - M.2 Internal SSD (MZ-V9P1T0B/AM) ...

The Windows product key is encrypted in your PC's BIOS.

You should be able to use the HP cloud recovery tool to create a bootable USB recovery drive that will reinstall Windows, the drivers and the software that originally came with your PC.

Make the recovery media on your PC now while it is still working if you can.

Here is an info link for how to use the utility.  You will need a 32 GB USB flash drive to create the recovery media with.

HP Consumer PCs - Using the HP Cloud Recovery Tool in Windows 11 and 10 | HP® Customer Support

You can download the software from the Microsoft Store.

HP Cloud Recovery Tool - Microsoft Store Apps

Below is the link to the service manual:

Maintenance and Service Guide (hp.com)

Below is the link to the service teardown video:

Removing & Replacing Parts | OMEN by HP 16.1-inch Gaming 16-n0000 | HP Computer Service | HP Support...

[AlexbJohnson]

This is excellent advice, thank you very much for taking the time to write this!

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.