Mainboard Slot M2

ASRock updated its Fatal1ty branded socket AM3+ motherboard. The new ASRock 990FX Fatal1ty Killer gives AMD platform gamers most advancements in onboard connectivity. To begin with, the board is based on the AMD 990FX chipset, with SB950 southbridge. It draws power from a combination of 24-pin ATX a.

M.2 is a slot that can interface with SATA 3.0 (the cable that’s probably connected to your desktop PC’s storage drive right now), PCI Express 3.0 (the default interface for graphics cards and other major expansion devices), and even USB 3.0. In order to use an M.2 SSD in your desktop PC or laptop, you’ll need a motherboard with M.2 slots. Some motherboards have two or more M.2 slots, allows you to run your SSDs in RAID. M.2 slots tend to end up in the expansion slot area which allows them to get roasted by GPUs. This can cause controller throttling and a loss of drive performance. The AIC versions of the Intel SSD 750 are supposedly cooler running than the 2.5' form factor drives so long as there is adequate airflow in the system. M.2 shares bandwidth with the PCI-E lanes. Frequently there's a toggle in the BIOS that lets you pick one or the other and for whatever reason it's off by default. Check your motherboard manual carefully, I bet it's a toggle in there that lets you pick to use the M.2 slot or the PCI-E lane.

• May 7th 2020AMD B550 Chipset Detailed, It's Ready for Zen 3, Older AM4 Motherboards not Compatible (434)
• Oct 14th 2020ASUS Seemingly Drops Support for AMD Ryzen 5000 Series CPUs on X470 Motherboards, the Company Responds (158)
• Apr 16th 2020AMD Ryzen 4000 Series 'Vermeer' CPUs to be Compatible with B450 Motherboards (58)
• May 28th 2020GIGABYTE AMD B550 Motherboard Pricing Revealed (78)
• Apr 30th 2020Intel 10th Generation Comet Lake Desktop Processors and 400-Series Chipsets Announced, Here's what's New (203)
• Oct 23rd 2018ASUS Z390 Motherboards Automatically Push Software into Your Windows Installation (75)
• Mar 18th 2020Sony Reveals PS5 Hardware: RDNA2 Raytracing, 16 GB GDDR6, 6 GB/s SSD, 2304 GPU Cores (178)
• Dec 8th 2020ASRock Rack Unveils M.2 Slot Graphics Card (46)
• Dec 4th 2020AMD Ryzen 3000 and Older Zen Chips Don't Support SAM Due to Hardware Limitation, Intel Chips Since Haswell Support it (77)
• May 7th 2020Assortment of Five AMD B550 Premium Motherboards Pictured (57)

10 Commentson ASRock Launches First Socket AM3+ Motherboard with M.2 Slot

Summary :

There are different slots that you can choose, such as SATA, but the most popular slot now is the M.2 slot. Then what is an M.2 slot and what can it do? In this post, MiniTool provides you with detailed information about the M.2 slot.

What Is an M.2 Slot?

To begin with, what is an M.2 slot? The M.2 format, formerly known as Next Generation Form Factor (NGFF), is technically a replacement for the mSATA standard, which was very popular among manufacturers of ultra-compact laptops and other small accessories. The M.2 format is specially designed for manufacturers to replace various specific devices.

What Can M.2 Slot Do?

M.2 may completely replace all aging Serial ATA formats. The M.2 slot can interface with SATA 3.0 (the cable that may be connected to the storage drive of the desktop), PCI Express 3.0 (the default interface for graphics cards and other major expansion devices), and even USB 3.0.

This means that maybe any storage or disk drive, GPU or port extension, or low-power gadget using USB connection can be installed on the card that plugs into the M.2 slot at the same time. But the actual situation is much more complicated.

When you are using the PCI bus instead of the SATA bus, depending on the function of the motherboard and the M.2 card itself, M.2 devices can transfer data 50% to about 650% faster than standard SATA.

If you have the opportunity to use an M.2 SSD on a motherboard that supports PCI third generation, its speed may be much faster than conventional SATA drives.

Motherboard M2 Slot Screw

What Devices Use the M.2 Slot?

Currently, M.2 is mainly used as an interface for ultra-high-speed SSDs on laptops and desktops. Some laptop designs also adopt the M.2 port as a wireless connection. This is not very common for desktop computers, which generally prefer to use a USB dongle or PCIe 1x card (although there is no reason why you cannot do this on a compatible motherboard).

And some companies have begun to expand the use of M.2 slots to categories that are not suitable for storage or expansion. Although no one has yet manufactured an M.2 graphics card, Intel is selling its Optane, a speed-up cache storage device in M.2 format, to consumers.

Does Your Computer Have an M.2 Slot?

If your PC was manufactured or assembled in recent years, it may have an M.2 slot. Unlucky, the flexibility of the format means that using it is not as easy as inserting a card.

The M.2 card has two main compatibility variables: length and key. The first one is obvious - your computer needs to have enough physical space to support the length of the card you want to use. The second is variable - the card’s connector must match the slot you want to insert.

Can You Add an M.2 Card If Your Computer Doesn’t Have an M.2 Slot?

Motherboard Slot M2

If you are using a laptop, then you can't. The design of modern laptops is so compact that there is no room for unplanned expansion. If you use a desktop computer, then it’s OK for you. Adapters sold in large quantities already use the PCIe x4 slot on your motherboard.

However, if your motherboard cannot boot from PCIe, then you cannot set the M.2 drive as the boot drive, which means you will not benefit from a lot of speed. So you should know that if you want the full advantages of the M.2 hard drive, you may need a motherboard that supports this motherboard.

If you don’t know how to boot from M.2 SSD, this post is what you need. This post demonstrates how to install Windows 10 on M. 2 SSD and how to boot from M.2.

Bottom Line

This post has given you most information about the M.2 slot, such as what it is and what it can do. If your laptops don’t have an M.2 slot, then you cannot add an M.2 card. But you can do that if you are using desktops.