December 26, 201213 yr Hello, and Merry Christmas. I've researched the forums and the Internet and it seems like there's a lot of posts that contradict each other on this subject. I just bought a 240Gb SSD, and I have a LOT of programs besides FSX to run. Here's what I've done: Installed Win7 64 on the SSD. Moved all of my user profiles and program data to a fresh spinning 1Tb HDD at 6Gb/ sec. I've also created the Program Files and Program Files ( x86) folders on the HDD, but haven't installed anything yet. These original OS-installed folders still exist on the SSD. I'm not moving those original folders because you can break things like UAC, registry, etc. I plan on purchasing a lot of scenery and aircraft platforms in addition to the core Fsx programs. What is the best method for installing FSX on a system like this? Thanks.
December 26, 201213 yr Here is what I did. I have one 240gb ssd for my OS. Another for fsx and all relate sim. Then a 300 gb hdd velosoraptor for programs and a 1T for files (family pictures, that kind of stuff) 240gb is plenty of space for the OS and a ssd speeds up boot times. 240gb is a lot of space for just fsx and add ons and a ssd cuts load times, but won't improve fps. All my other programs are loaded on the velosoraptor so as not to load down the ssd. Don't install the OS and fsx on the same drive though. You will get better performance separating them.
December 26, 201213 yr 240 gig is a good size for win7, i use a 120gig and its a bit to small - some programs (ut2, itunes) like filling up your appdata folder on c drive. I use a second 120 gig ssd for fsx. I'd go 240 gig if i was building now as many programs (like orbx) have to be in the fsx folder. Finally, i've got a 2tb WD black for photoscenery and other fsx programs. - typed this before the reply above, would just make the point that if you have a lot of addons that need to go on the fsx drive, 120 gig is not quite enough. Oz Sim Rig: MSI RTX3090 Suprim, an old, partly-melted Intel 9900K @ 5GHz+, Honeycomb Alpha, Thrustmaster TPR Rudder, Warthog HOTAS, Reverb G2, Prosim 737 cockpit. Currently flying: MSFS: PMDG 737-700, Fenix A320, Leonardo MD-82, MIlviz C310, Flysimware C414AW, DC Concorde, Carenado C337. Prepar3d v5: PMDG 737/747/777. "There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are."
December 26, 201213 yr Don't install the OS and fsx on the same drive though. You will get better performance separating them. Therein lies the big contradiction with what some others have attested to here. From Dazz last week: There's no performance penalty out of running OS + FSX off the same SSD so long as AHCI is enabled for the SATA controller. With AHCI the drive can run more than one task at a time so there's no need to keep the OS and other programs isolated. Though I'm not an I/O expert, certainly it makes theoretical sense that Dazz's take is likely the case. We know for sure there is no mechanical limitation in running more than one task simultaneously, and it's not much of a stretch to consider the solid state controller can be designed to do this simultaneously. For the sake of simplified backup/cloning, my strategy for my next build is to pick up one very high end SATA 3 drive around 480-512Gb and keep OS & FSX on one drive. Then, it's a simple task to use Acronis or whatever to make a clone periodically onto an internal HDD (of which I have collected plenty of good ones!) and make restoration a snap should the SSD fail. Noel Noel System: 9900X3D Noctua NH-D15 G2, MSI Pro 650-P WiFi, G.SKILL 64GB (2 x 32GB) 288-Pin PC RAM DDR5 6000, WD NVMe 2Tb x 1, Sabrent NVMe 2Tb x 1, RTX 4090 FE, Corsair RM1000W PSU, Win11 Home, LG Ultra Curved Gsync Ultimate 3440x1440, Phanteks Enthoo Pro Case, TCA Boeing Edition Yoke & TQ, Cessna Trim Wheel, RTSS Framerate Limiter w/ Front Edge Sync. Aircraft used in MSFS 2024: Fenix A320, Aerosoft CRJ, FBW, WT 787X, I-Fly 737 MAX 8, Citation Longitude.
December 27, 201213 yr There's no performance penalty out of running OS + FSX off the same SSD so long as AHCI is enabled for the SATA controller. With AHCI the drive can run more than one task at a time so there's no need to keep the OS and other programs isolated. Noel Thank you for the info. I will have to look into that subject a little further.
December 27, 201213 yr Author Well, I went with my gut and put the OS on the SSD and FSX on the HDD. Initial feel is that it's no different, but the initial FSX startup is slower.
December 28, 201213 yr Author Was NOT happy. Because they were $200 off, I went back and bought a second 240G SSD for $169 and moved all of my FSX items to it. This rig is flat smokin' fast now, especially since I also cranked up the rigs CPU core to 5.2GHz. There is no delay in any screen that is really noticable, and the flight load time went from around 20 secs to about 2 sec. So, OS on SSD C:\, data on 1Tb HDD D:\, and FSX on SSD F:\. BTW, for you BA fans, the FSX SSD's drive name is "Speedbird01".
December 30, 201213 yr I would not go back to the long load times of fsx plus addons on a hdd. Oz Sim Rig: MSI RTX3090 Suprim, an old, partly-melted Intel 9900K @ 5GHz+, Honeycomb Alpha, Thrustmaster TPR Rudder, Warthog HOTAS, Reverb G2, Prosim 737 cockpit. Currently flying: MSFS: PMDG 737-700, Fenix A320, Leonardo MD-82, MIlviz C310, Flysimware C414AW, DC Concorde, Carenado C337. Prepar3d v5: PMDG 737/747/777. "There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are."
December 30, 201213 yr I have a 256GB SSD, I had FSX & Windows on it. Soon ran out of space on the FSX partition. Ended up buying a 128GB for Windows and using 256GB for FSX. Should tie me over. It'll just make me be careful when it comes to installing stuff. Cheers,John TavendaleTextures by Tavers - https://www.facebook.com/texturesbytavers
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