Hey everyone! I'm trying to upgrade my Lenovo LOQ Tower by adding a Samsung 870EVO SSD. When I opened it up, I found two different cables: one is a standard L-shaped SATA cable and the other is a unique square 4-pin cable. The SATA cable fits into the SSD, but whenever I plug the other end into the motherboard, the entire PC shuts off instantly. No fans or anything—I mean, even in power-off mode, they usually run with a bit of passive power from the PSU. Does anyone know why this happens or what I should do?
4 Answers
It sounds like your setup might have some proprietary features that are common with prebuilt systems, like Lenovo. Without seeing a picture of that 4-pin cable, it’s tough to diagnose it properly. Normally, a SATA SSD just needs a SATA power connection and a SATA data cable directly to the motherboard. Make sure you’re not connecting anything while the PC is powered on, because that could cause issues!
Can you share a pic of that 4-pin cable? Normally, SATA data cables shouldn’t create any issues, and it sounds like you might be using the wrong cable. The SSD only needs both a data and a power connection, so if the power side isn't fitting with the PSU, let’s troubleshoot that!
I’ve shared the images of the cable. It seems like when both the SATA and the 4-pin are connected, the PC won’t boot at all. I want to avoid any damage, but I can't seem to find free ports on the PSU!
You definitely shouldn’t be connecting the SSD while your PC is on! It sounds like you plugged that 4-pin cable into the wrong port. Also, if your PSU doesn’t have any spare SATA power connectors, that’s a problem. Make sure you look around for any unused ports or consider getting a SATA power splitter!
I checked again but can't find any spare connections. Doing my best to navigate this confusing setup!
Just a heads-up, don’t plug anything in while the PC is running unless you’ve activated hot-plugging in the BIOS. Generally, SATA drives have just two L-shaped connections. If you’re plugging a 4-pin connector into the motherboard, it might be the wrong move and could risk frying your components. Double-check that the cable isn’t going in upside down!
Good point! I guess Lenovo’s design isn’t the most straightforward, definitely learned my lesson there. Thanks for the reminder!
Thanks for the heads up! I'll look for a more fitting community to ask this and try to figure it out.