Steam Deck SSD set up: Methods to improve your storage drive

Be sure to energy down the Steam Deck utterly. We’re going to be disconnecting the battery and touching its insides. The very last thing you should do is fry your Steam Deck, or your self, due to harmful acts of stupidity.

Additionally, take away the SD card if in case you have one. We don’t wish to quick it in a freak accident.

Valve recommends you depower it to 25% or under, however until you’re going to be stabbing the battery with the screwdriver, try to be high-quality.

If you wish to clone your SSD, you must cease now and observe these directions beforehand. Then you may come right here and proceed the method.

Take away the again of the Steam Deck

On the again of the Steam Deck is eight screws. Utilizing your Phillips head screwdriver, rigorously unscrew and set them apart. The quick screws align with the 4 within the heart of the system, whereas the 4 longer ones facet on the outer edges.

In case your screws are ‘stripped’, in that whereas being produced they misplaced their grip and the screwdriver isn’t sticking, cease screwing. You’ll make issues worse. We wound up utilizing a flathead bit to forcefully start the method.

Unclip the again of the Steam Deck’s case

Utilizing a spudger, or one other software (don’t use a screwdriver, you can injury the case), transfer alongside the proper facet of the case from the highest to the underside. The case will ultimately come undone and you may take it off with a mild tug from the hole you’ve made.

Set it apart and stare deep into the vortex of the assorted ins and outs.

Eradicating the Steam Deck storage drive

You’ll be instantly greeted with a metallic plate. It’s really useful you utilize tweezers, however so long as you’re cautious, you may peel again the metallic sticker to disclose the hidden screw.

Once more, utilizing the PH0 or 00 bit, take away the hidden screw and two others to loosen the metallic plate. You’ll be able to then place it to the facet for reassembly.

Disconnect the battery

Some guides advocate tugging on the cable’s free materials. We determined to disconnect the plastic connector from its sheath first. As soon as disconnected, you may push again the connector till we have to reinsert it.

Changing the NVMe drive

In a wrapper, you’ll see the 2230 drive. Take away the screw and set it apart, rigorously pulling out the drive by lifting gently and pulling it out from its socket.

Take away the wrapper from across the 2230 SSD and place it onto your new drive. Slot the brand new drive in and screw it all the way down to hold it in place. That is important to maintaining your drive cool whereas in use.

Reassemble the Steam Deck

Now reverse every part you’ve finished. It’s been tremendous annoying, however you’ve made it. Don’t overlook to reconnect the battery. Place the metallic plate and snap the again of the Steam Deck into place. We will now transfer on to the software program facet of issues.

Flash a USB stick to SteamOS

This may be finished on both Linux, macOS, or Home windows. We advocate utilizing Etcher for this, because it’s tremendous easy. When you’ve downloaded Etcher, obtain the appropriate SteamOS file.

Comply with the directions on Etcher, selecting the file and the proper drive. Should you’ve formatted the drive beforehand, and given it a reputation, Etcher bypasses this. Simply know which model of USB stick you’ve gotten and try to be high-quality.

As soon as Etcher is completed, pull the USB stick and slot it into your Steam Deck’s USB-C hub. You probably have the official Dock or the JSAUX one, these will probably be high-quality. If not, be certain to seize one with energy passthrough, as you don’t need the Deck to expire of battery midway by.

Methods to load the Steam Deck bootloader

With the system utterly off, press and maintain the amount down button after which press energy. When you hear the chime, let go of the amount down button and wait a number of seconds. In your first try, it might take a short while longer than regular.

Reinstalling SteamOS on the brand new Steam Deck SSD drive

With the USB-C hub related, it ought to now present you the USB drive we’ve simply flashed. Use the d-pad and face buttons to navigate the menu and you must then be booted into the LiveUSB model of SteamOS.

There are going to be a number of choices on the prime. We have to select Reimage SteamOS. The others are what you’d select for those who wished to promote the Deck, or recuperate information.

When you click on that, it’ll start the reinstallation course of. Comply with any directions that pop up and also you’ll be prepared to maneuver on.

This will take as much as about an hour, so put aside a while. As soon as the Deck has totally put in SteamOS and all of the updates are finished, you’ll be capable of log again in and reap the rewards.

Methods to clone the Steam Deck SSD: Various methodology

Cloning your SSD is a straightforward process, but it surely’s additionally a convoluted methodology for those who don’t have already got the mandatory gear. For this methodology, slightly than flashing the SteamOS picture through USB, and dropping every part, you merely transplant the info from one SSD to a different.

Cloning a drive might be the best choice for these with out respectable web, who don’t wish to undergo the trouble of downloading video games another time, or going by the setup course of.

Relying on how a lot you’ve gotten put in in your Steam Deck, this might take the identical period of time as a recent set up.

There are a number of methods to do that, however we are able to really do it through the Steam Deck itself. We advocate grabbing a USB-C dock or hub and connecting a keyboard and mouse for the next. You don’t want it hooked as much as a TV or monitor.

We want the hub in case the ability out of the blue goes out in your Steam Deck and the assorted points that may observe from a foul clone.

You’ll additionally want an NVMe enclosure that helps 2230 drives. We’ll be plugging within the recent drive into this, after which changing the SSD as detailed above.

Cloning your SSD on SteamOS

Head into your Steam Deck’s desktop mode by hitting Steam, taking place to Energy, and deciding on Desktop mode.

As soon as there, load up Konsole, the terminal for SteamOS. Should you haven’t already arrange a Sudo password on your Steam Deck, observe this information.

After establishing your password, or if you have already got one set, kind in:

sudo lsblk

This command lists all your drives at present related to Linux. We’re going to wish to pay attention to the NVMe drive at present related internally. As soon as you understand the identify, plug in your NVMe enclosure to the Dock.

Head again to Konsole and sort the next in, placing the famous NVMe identify the place relevant:

sudo dd if=/dev/[drive name here] of=/dev/sda oflag=sync bs=128M standing=progress

Don’t shut Konsole till the switch has completed. After this, head again up and examine learn how to change the SSD in your Steam Deck.

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What’s the largest SSD you may put in a Steam Deck?

You’ll be able to set up as much as 2TB inside a Steam Deck. That is because of the limitations of the 2230 NVMe that the Steam Deck requires. Framework and Western Digital at present promote the 2TB model within the Framework retailer.

What SSD is appropriate with the Steam Deck?

Solely the 2230 NVMe is appropriate with the Steam Deck internally. Externally, you may add no matter type of storage or SSD you want, so long as it’s formatted correctly.

If you wish to set up Home windows on this system, or dual-boot, you may completely accomplish that, and right here’s learn how to partition your drive.

Additionally, be certain to take a look at our different guides

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