c drive is too small can I change that

[Couchie]

Hi,

I recently purchased my HP Gaming Pavilion.   I chose it over other laptops because I thought it had a greater memory capacity and graphics.  I am mainly using the laptop to record and produce music.

However, I have been disappointed to find out how small the C Drive is.  The D Drive will be good but certain products that I have purchased (apps and plug ins I guess) do not seem to work effectively outside the C Drive.  For reasons to great to go into now.

I think I can expand the C Drive by using SSD and I have a highly qualified expert to help me do this relatively simple process.

My concern is; will this cause my warranty to be voided? 

[Echo_Lake]

@Couchie
Thank you for posting on the HP Support Community.

To get the answer to this question, HP does not recommend upgrading or downgrading hardware parts or software that is bundled with the product as It may affect the manufacturer's warranty and performance, however, you could change the configuration at your own discretion.

Hope this helps! Keep me posted for further assistance.
Please click “Accept as Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.

[Couchie]

thank you for replying. 

I understand that it is not recommended.  Can you please explain how more about how 'it may'   affect the manufacturer's warranty ?  Is that based on who does the job, the parts that are altered and others such factors?  Is there somewhere I can read more about what that may entail with the warranty?

[Huffer · Accepted solution]

You are allowed to remove the rear cover to upgrade memory storage or the wireless card as long as no damage is done. 

Here is the Service Manual:

Service Manual

Start following on p. 36 to remove the rear cover and inside you see this:

M.2 slot in red

Your laptop came with a 1 TB mechanical hard drive (D:\) and a 128 gb M.2 SSD (C:\). As you have noted Windows 10 requires that most applications load to the C:\ drive so it is pretty hard not to fill it up and 128 gigs is small by today's standards. 

The Manual list a 256 gig PCIe/NVME M.2 as an option but that does not define what you can actually do. You can replace the small 128 gig M.2 SSD with any capacity you can find and I have seen them up to 2 TB at least. The kind you want to get is PCIe/NVME which is the fastest storage available on the market right now and only slightly more expensive than SATA M.2. 

https://www.amazon.com.au/Samsung-970-EVO-NVMe-500GB/dp/B07CGGP7SV/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=970+Evo+M.2&q...

Post back if you have any further questions. We can help with transferring/reloading your OS and apps onto the new M.2 SSD if you need that. If this is the info you needed please accept as solution. 

[Couchie]

Thank you Huffer.  That was an excellent response and will be very helpful.