Linux laptop - how to check/add SSD & RAM?

[mintd]

Hi everyone,

I have a laptop (Asus Zenbook UX510UXK) running Linux Mint (Cinnamon) and would like to add extra storage (SSD 500GB or 1TB) and 8GB RAM.

How can I best check (in Linux?) which SSD and RAM is compatible with the laptop? And also how to check (within Linux) what is the maximum capacity (and slots) to upgrade the SSD and RAM?

Thank you very much!

[MiZoG]

Memory n storage unit compatibility in Linux is more or less the same with Windows. What the manufacturer lists as compatible to their model should be OK for Linux. With all that said, I've seen cases where memory dimms detected on Windows were not recognized on Linux. But these were very very rare. There have also been certain SSD (I recall some Samsung models) which were problematic on Linux but these generally were problematic with most systems and not a specific one.

sudo dmidecode -t memory will list available memory and capabilities for your system under Linux

The same info provided by dmidecode can be used by inxi if you run inxi with elevated privileges and the argument -m.

[mintd]

Thank you Mizog.
I will check within Terminal and post the results asap.

[mintd]

Hi everyone,

What is the best way to check component compatibility (e.g. drives, memory etc) for laptops (Asus specifically) within Linux when wanting to upgrade components? Is it best to do this within Linux or somewhere online (is there somewhere you can look this up easily)?

Thank you!

[Midnight True]

This might be helpful:
https://community.linuxmint.com/hardware/search
https://ubuntu.com/certified

by the way i use asus laptop too

Code: Select all

System:
  Kernel: 5.15.0-60-generic x86_64 bits: 64 Desktop: Xfce 4.16.0
    Distro: Linux Mint 21.1 Vera
Machine:
  Type: Laptop System: ASUSTeK product: VivoBook_ASUSLaptop X415JA_X415JA
    v: 1.0 serial: <superuser required>
  Mobo: ASUSTeK model: X415JA v: 1.0 serial: <superuser required>
    UEFI: American Megatrends v: X415JA.303 date: 06/03/2021
Battery:
  ID-1: BAT0 charge: 28.4 Wh (79.3%) condition: 35.8/37.1 Wh (96.3%)
    volts: 7.8 min: 7.8
CPU:
  Info: dual core model: Intel Core i3-1005G1 bits: 64 type: MT MCP cache:
    L2: 1024 KiB
  Speed (MHz): avg: 1195 min/max: 400/3400 cores: 1: 1200 2: 1200 3: 1188
    4: 1192
Graphics:
  Device-1: Intel Iris Plus Graphics G1 driver: i915 v: kernel
  Device-2: IMC Networks USB2.0 VGA UVC WebCam type: USB driver: uvcvideo
  Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 1.21.1.3 driver: X: loaded: modesetting
    unloaded: fbdev,vesa gpu: i915 resolution: 1366x768~60Hz
  OpenGL: renderer: Mesa Intel UHD Graphics (ICL GT1) v: 4.6 Mesa 22.2.5
Audio:
  Device-1: Intel Ice Lake-LP Smart Sound Audio driver: snd_hda_intel
  Sound Server-1: ALSA v: k5.15.0-60-generic running: yes
  Sound Server-2: PulseAudio v: 15.99.1 running: yes
  Sound Server-3: PipeWire v: 0.3.48 running: yes
Network:
  Device-1: Realtek RTL8821CE 802.11ac PCIe Wireless Network Adapter
    driver: rtl8821ce
  IF: wlo1 state: up mac: <filter>
Bluetooth:
  Device-1: IMC Networks Bluetooth Radio type: USB driver: btusb
  Report: hciconfig ID: hci0 rfk-id: 2 state: down
    bt-service: enabled,running rfk-block: hardware: no software: yes
    address: <filter>
RAID:
  Hardware-1: Intel 82801 Mobile SATA Controller [RAID mode] driver: ahci
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 465.76 GiB used: 82.58 GiB (17.7%)
  ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Seagate model: ST9500325AS size: 465.76 GiB
Partition:
  ID-1: / size: 456.89 GiB used: 82.58 GiB (18.1%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda2
  ID-2: /boot/efi size: 511 MiB used: 5.2 MiB (1.0%) fs: vfat
    dev: /dev/sda1
Swap:
  ID-1: swap-1 type: file size: 2 GiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) file: /swapfile
Sensors:
  System Temperatures: cpu: 50.0 C mobo: N/A
  Fan Speeds (RPM): cpu: 1900
Info:
  Processes: 249 Uptime: 7d 10h 50m Memory: 7.51 GiB used: 2.65 GiB (35.2%)
  Shell: Bash inxi: 3.3.13

[mintd]

This might be helpful:
https://community.linuxmint.com/hardware/search
https://ubuntu.com/certified

by the way i use asus laptop too

Code: Select all

System:
  Kernel: 5.15.0-60-generic x86_64 bits: 64 Desktop: Xfce 4.16.0
    Distro: Linux Mint 21.1 Vera
Machine:
  Type: Laptop System: ASUSTeK product: VivoBook_ASUSLaptop X415JA_X415JA
    v: 1.0 serial: <superuser required>
  Mobo: ASUSTeK model: X415JA v: 1.0 serial: <superuser required>
    UEFI: American Megatrends v: X415JA.303 date: 06/03/2021
Battery:
  ID-1: BAT0 charge: 28.4 Wh (79.3%) condition: 35.8/37.1 Wh (96.3%)
    volts: 7.8 min: 7.8
CPU:
  Info: dual core model: Intel Core i3-1005G1 bits: 64 type: MT MCP cache:
    L2: 1024 KiB
  Speed (MHz): avg: 1195 min/max: 400/3400 cores: 1: 1200 2: 1200 3: 1188
    4: 1192
Graphics:
  Device-1: Intel Iris Plus Graphics G1 driver: i915 v: kernel
  Device-2: IMC Networks USB2.0 VGA UVC WebCam type: USB driver: uvcvideo
  Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 1.21.1.3 driver: X: loaded: modesetting
    unloaded: fbdev,vesa gpu: i915 resolution: 1366x768~60Hz
  OpenGL: renderer: Mesa Intel UHD Graphics (ICL GT1) v: 4.6 Mesa 22.2.5
Audio:
  Device-1: Intel Ice Lake-LP Smart Sound Audio driver: snd_hda_intel
  Sound Server-1: ALSA v: k5.15.0-60-generic running: yes
  Sound Server-2: PulseAudio v: 15.99.1 running: yes
  Sound Server-3: PipeWire v: 0.3.48 running: yes
Network:
  Device-1: Realtek RTL8821CE 802.11ac PCIe Wireless Network Adapter
    driver: rtl8821ce
  IF: wlo1 state: up mac: <filter>
Bluetooth:
  Device-1: IMC Networks Bluetooth Radio type: USB driver: btusb
  Report: hciconfig ID: hci0 rfk-id: 2 state: down
    bt-service: enabled,running rfk-block: hardware: no software: yes
    address: <filter>
RAID:
  Hardware-1: Intel 82801 Mobile SATA Controller [RAID mode] driver: ahci
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 465.76 GiB used: 82.58 GiB (17.7%)
  ID-1: /dev/sda vendor: Seagate model: ST9500325AS size: 465.76 GiB
Partition:
  ID-1: / size: 456.89 GiB used: 82.58 GiB (18.1%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda2
  ID-2: /boot/efi size: 511 MiB used: 5.2 MiB (1.0%) fs: vfat
    dev: /dev/sda1
Swap:
  ID-1: swap-1 type: file size: 2 GiB used: 0 KiB (0.0%) file: /swapfile
Sensors:
  System Temperatures: cpu: 50.0 C mobo: N/A
  Fan Speeds (RPM): cpu: 1900
Info:
  Processes: 249 Uptime: 7d 10h 50m Memory: 7.51 GiB used: 2.65 GiB (35.2%)
  Shell: Bash inxi: 3.3.13

Thank you Midnight True. Unfortunately I could not find any useful information via those links, but thanks anyway.

[SMG]

Moderator note: Two topics on the same issue merged. Please do not create multiple topics on the same issue.

[MiZoG]

Your inxi report says that you don't have any zenbook but a VivoBook 14 X415JA. Something like that.
Is this your model? There must be a sticker at the back cover. If so, there is an empty slot for an nvme disk (precisely M.2 NVMe PCI Express 3.0 - plenty of those in the market) and you really you want to get one to boot from instead of the mechanical disk (ouch!) this model ships with.
You could also replace this hdd with any sata ssd you like.
Inxi report shows that you have 8 gigs of ram and if the link corresponds to your model probably in dual mode 4+4 which is optimal.
8 gigs is enough in my books but you know better. Memory is expandable up to 12gigs by adding another dimm.
You'd want to get an identical in specs. If you ran dmidecode you should know by now what type of memory you already have.

[Moem]

Your inxi report says that you don't have any zenbook but a VivoBook 14 X415JA.

That's not the OP's inxi report.

[mintd]

Your inxi report says that you don't have any zenbook but a VivoBook 14 X415JA. Something like that.
Is this your model? There must be a sticker at the back cover. If so, there is an empty slot for an nvme disk (precisely M.2 NVMe PCI Express 3.0 - plenty of those in the market) and you really you want to get one to boot from instead of the mechanical disk (ouch!) this model ships with.
You could also replace this hdd with any sata ssd you like.
Inxi report shows that you have 8 gigs of ram and if the link corresponds to your model probably in dual mode 4+4 which is optimal.
8 gigs is enough in my books but you know better. Memory is expandable up to 12gigs by adding another dimm.
You'd want to get an identical in specs. If you ran dmidecode you should know by now what type of memory you already have.

Thanks Mizog, as Moem said that was Midnight Trues inxi report. I will post mine hopefully later today.

[MiZoG]

That's not the OP's inxi report.

[mintd]

Thanks everyone and no worries Mizog

Here's the inxi:

Code: Select all

System:    Kernel: 5.4.0-58-generic x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 9.3.0 Desktop: Cinnamon 4.8.5 
           wm: muffin dm: LightDM Distro: Linux Mint 20.1 Ulyssa base: Ubuntu 20.04 focal 
Machine:   Type: Laptop System: ASUSTeK product: UX510UXK v: 1.0 serial: <filter> 
           Mobo: ASUSTeK model: UX510UXK v: 1.0 serial: <filter> 
           UEFI [Legacy]: American Megatrends v: UX510UXK.300 date: 09/19/2016 
Battery:   ID-1: BAT0 charge: 0 Wh condition: 41.6/48.3 Wh (86%) volts: 11.4/11.4 
           model: ASUSTeK ASUS Battery serial: <filter> status: Charging 
CPU:       Topology: Dual Core model: Intel Core i5-7200U bits: 64 type: MT MCP arch: Amber Lake 
           rev: 9 L2 cache: 3072 KiB 
           flags: avx avx2 lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 ssse3 vmx bogomips: 21599 
           Speed: 3100 MHz min/max: 400/3100 MHz Core speeds (MHz): 1: 2011 2: 1890 3: 1310 
           4: 1102 
Graphics:  Device-1: Intel HD Graphics 620 vendor: ASUSTeK driver: i915 v: kernel bus ID: 00:02.0 
           chip ID: 8086:5916 
           Device-2: NVIDIA GM107M [GeForce GTX 950M] vendor: ASUSTeK driver: nouveau v: kernel 
           bus ID: 01:00.0 chip ID: 10de:139a 
           Display: x11 server: X.Org 1.20.8 driver: modesetting unloaded: fbdev,vesa 
           resolution: 1920x1080~60Hz 
           OpenGL: renderer: Mesa Intel HD Graphics 620 (KBL GT2) v: 4.6 Mesa 20.0.8 
           direct render: Yes 
Audio:     Device-1: Intel Sunrise Point-LP HD Audio vendor: ASUSTeK driver: snd_hda_intel 
           v: kernel bus ID: 00:1f.3 chip ID: 8086:9d71 
           Device-2: NVIDIA GM107 High Definition Audio [GeForce 940MX] driver: snd_hda_intel 
           v: kernel bus ID: 01:00.1 chip ID: 10de:0fbc 
           Sound Server: ALSA v: k5.4.0-58-generic 
Network:   Device-1: Intel Wireless 8260 driver: iwlwifi v: kernel port: e000 bus ID: 02:00.0 
           chip ID: 8086:24f3 
           IF: wlp2s0 state: down mac: <filter> 
Drives:    Local Storage: total: 1.20 TiB used: 84.7 MiB (0.0%) 
           ID-1: /dev/nvme0n1 vendor: Western Digital model: PC SN530 SDBPNPZ-256G-1002 
           size: 238.47 GiB speed: 31.6 Gb/s lanes: 4 serial: <filter> 
           ID-2: /dev/sda vendor: HGST (Hitachi) model: HTS541010A7E630 size: 931.51 GiB 
           speed: 6.0 Gb/s serial: <filter> temp: 24 C 
           ID-3: /dev/sdb type: USB vendor: Samsung model: Flash Drive size: 59.75 GiB 
           serial: <filter> 
Partition: ID-1: / size: 5.79 GiB used: 18.9 MiB (0.3%) fs: overlay source: ERR-102 
           ID-2: /var/log size: 56.70 GiB used: 65.9 MiB (0.1%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sdb3 
USB:       Hub: 1-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 12 rev: 2.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0002 
           Device-1: 1-2:2 info: Silicon Motion - Taiwan (formerly Feiya ) Flash Drive 
           type: Mass Storage driver: usb-storage rev: 2.1 chip ID: 090c:1000 
           Device-2: 1-5:3 info: Realtek RTS5129 Card Reader Controller type: <vendor specific> 
           driver: rtsx_usb,rtsx_usb_ms,rtsx_usb_sdmmc rev: 2.0 chip ID: 0bda:0129 
           Device-3: 1-6:4 info: Realtek USB2.0 HD UVC WebCam type: Video driver: uvcvideo 
           rev: 2.0 chip ID: 0bda:58d2 
           Device-4: 1-8:5 info: Intel type: Bluetooth driver: btusb rev: 2.0 chip ID: 8087:0a2b 
           Hub: 2-0:1 info: Full speed (or root) Hub ports: 6 rev: 3.0 chip ID: 1d6b:0003 
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 32.5 C mobo: N/A gpu: nouveau temp: 40 C 
           Fan Speeds (RPM): cpu: 3400 
Repos:     Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list 
           1: deb cdrom:[Linux Mint 20.1 _Ulyssa_ - Release amd64 20210103]/ focal contrib main
           Active apt repos in: /etc/apt/sources.list.d/official-package-repositories.list 
           1: deb http: //packages.linuxmint.com ulyssa main upstream import backport #id:linuxmint_main
           2: deb http: //archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal main restricted universe multiverse
           3: deb http: //archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal-updates main restricted universe multiverse
           4: deb http: //archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu focal-backports main restricted universe multiverse
           5: deb http: //security.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ focal-security main restricted universe multiverse
           6: deb http: //archive.canonical.com/ubuntu/ focal partner
Info:      Processes: 211 Uptime: 1m Memory: 11.59 GiB used: 844.2 MiB (7.1%) Init: systemd v: 245 
           runlevel: 5 Compilers: gcc: 9.3.0 alt: 9 Client: Unknown python3.8 client inxi: 3.0.38 

I would be grateful to find out:

- What is the maximum capacity (and slots) to upgrade the SSD and RAM?
- If an additional SSD can be added, what form factor can be used?
- How much RAM is onboard/built into the laptop already? And what RAM is compatible?
- Also curious, where do I find out how many GB of memory the Nvidia Geforce GTX 950m has? Not sure whether it's 2GB or 4GB?

Thank you

[The Muffin Man]

I usually check here:
Crucial.com
You don't have to buy from Crucial, but they'll tell you what RAM and HD is available as an upgrade.

As always, check multiple sites to make sure the suggested upgrades are correct.

[rickNS]

I would be grateful to find out:

- How much RAM is onboard/built into the laptop already? And what RAM is compatible?

How much RAM;

Memory: 11.59 GiB

12 GB.

if you want some more detailed info on about your memory try this command;
sudo lshw -html > lshw.html

The lshw.html file will be in your /home folder

sample output from my daily driver

Code: Select all

id:	
memory
description: 	System Memory
physical id: 	
5
slot: 	System board or motherboard
size: 	8GiB
id:	
bank:0
description: 	SODIMM DDR3 Synchronous 1333 MHz (0.8 ns)
product: 	EBJ41UF8BCS0-DJ-F
vendor: 	Elpida
physical id: 	
0
serial: 	5A27F0C7
slot: 	ChannelA-DIMM0
size: 	4GiB
width: 	64 bits
clock: 	1333MHz (0.8ns)
id:	
bank:1
description: 	SODIMM DDR3 Synchronous 1333 MHz (0.8 ns)
product: 	HMT351S6BFR8C-H9
vendor: 	Hynix/Hyundai
physical id: 	
1
serial: 	32807345
slot: 	ChannelB-DIMM0
size: 	4GiB
width: 	64 bits
clock: 	1333MHz (0.8ns)

You at 12GB RAM and two disks already don't need anything more, but it is "your" machine.

[mintd]

I usually check here:
Crucial.com
You don't have to buy from Crucial, but they'll tell you what RAM and HD is available as an upgrade.

As always, check multiple sites to make sure the suggested upgrades are correct.

Thank you Muffin Man.

The Crucial website was great for seeing upgrades, thanks. So for example, with the RAM it says:

Crucial 16GB DDR4-2400 SODIMM
DDR4-2400 • CL=17 • NON-ECC • SODIMM • 260-pin • 1.2V • 2Rx8 • PC4-19200

If I were to look at RAM from other manufacturers, what are the key product specifications I would need to match from above? Is it the DDR4-2400 SODIMM part? (I see there are a bunch of other specs, such as: 260-pin, 1.2V, 2Rx8, PC4-19200, and was not sure if I would need to match those also).

And with the HD/SSD, the Crucial website says for example:

Crucial MX500 1TB 3D NAND SATA 2.5-inch 7mm (with 9.5mm adapter) Internal SSD
1TB 2.5-inch internal SSD • SATA 6.0Gb/s • 560 MB/s Read 510 MB/s Write

What would be the key product specifications to take from the above and match with other manufacturer products? Is my understanding correct that this laptop (Asus Zenbook UX510UXK) cannot use NVMe SSD?

Also, you suggested to check multiple sites to make sure the upgrades are correct - what would be your top 3 sites for doing so? Thank you!

[The Muffin Man]

Crucial says you have 2 RAM slots (with a maximum of 32GB)
They list a 2.5" SSD SATA.

For RAM, you can google the specs and they'll show up at various places. I'd buy 2 the same size. Say 2 8 GB RAM chips for a total of 16 GB, but you can purchase the size you want. Most PCs won't balk at running different speeds and different sizes anymore. Different speeds mean that they will run at the lowest speed. Different sizes (or just one slot) shouldn't matter. If you have 8 GB now, when you open the case, you'll see if that's 2 4GB RAM chips or just 1 8GB RAM chip. (the BIOS would tell you, too) If you have 1 RAM chip, you could just get an additional, if you have 2, then you could just replace one of them. My personal preference is to buy 2 identical, especially when opening a laptop case.

For SATA, that's a standard SATA connection. You should be able to choose the capacity you want.

For sites I generally use Crucial, NewEgg, TigerDirect and of course Amazon.

[mintd]

Crucial says you have 2 RAM slots (with a maximum of 32GB)
They list a 2.5" SSD SATA.

For RAM, you can google the specs and they'll show up at various places. I'd buy 2 the same size. Say 2 8 GB RAM chips for a total of 16 GB, but you can purchase the size you want. Most PCs won't balk at running different speeds and different sizes anymore. Different speeds mean that they will run at the lowest speed. Different sizes (or just one slot) shouldn't matter. If you have 8 GB now, when you open the case, you'll see if that's 2 4GB RAM chips or just 1 8GB RAM chip. (the BIOS would tell you, too) If you have 1 RAM chip, you could just get an additional, if you have 2, then you could just replace one of them. My personal preference is to buy 2 identical, especially when opening a laptop case.

For SATA, that's a standard SATA connection. You should be able to choose the capacity you want.

For sites I generally use Crucial, NewEgg, TigerDirect and of course Amazon.

Thank you so much Muffin Man.

Would older laptops (e.g. manufactured around 2015/2016) have more of an issue with RAM chips running at different speeds and sizes?

In terms of buying RAM, do you have any favoured brands/manufacturers? For example, Crucial, Corsair, Kingston?

And with SSD drives, is there any particular features to look out for in those when choosing between brands/manufacturers? I've seen some say about '3D NAND' for example. And do you have any preferred brands/manufacturers? For example, Crucial, Samsung, Western Digital, Sandisk, Kingston?

Thanks again and hope you have a great weekend.

[AndyMH]

I bought crucial RAM recently, it was price competitive. I've bought brand name SSDs in the past and "no-name" brands. I have had no issues with known brands, e.g. kingston, crucial. I have had one issue with a less known brand (dogfish) and that got sent back. I've bought a fair number of SSDs over the years. Currently have a 512GB Patriot NVME drive, never heard of them before, it's fine and was cheap.

[Reddog1]

From personal experience, both Atech and Timetec make good ram. I've never had a problem with either. I've also used Timetec ssd's in apples, and never had a problem. I just replaced a 500GB spinner in a Dell with a 1TB Timetec and it was $40. Haven't seen any problems so far, and don't expect to, either.

[mintd]

I bought crucial RAM recently, it was price competitive. I've bought brand name SSDs in the past and "no-name" brands. I have had no issues with known brands, e.g. kingston, crucial. I have had one issue with a less known brand (dogfish) and that got sent back. I've bought a fair number of SSDs over the years. Currently have a 512GB Patriot NVME drive, never heard of them before, it's fine and was cheap.

Thanks AndyMH.

Good to know you've had positive experiences with both known and lesser-known brands for RAM and SSDs.

What's the difference with the NVMe drives? How do they compare to SSDs? Are they interchangeable (as in if you have an SSD you could replace it with an NVMe)?

Cheers and hope you had a good weekend.