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Just bought a new 64GB SSD.

I have a Windows 8.1 PC with an 8GB of RAM that I mainly use it for programming (Visual Studio 2012).

I experienced poor performance when opening a couple of instances of Visual Studio, building projects, and doing other intensive VS work.

What should I put on my new SSD so my computer will run faster?

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  • You shouldn't have to do anything extra. Is Visual Studio AND your projects on the SSD?
    – GeekyDewd
    Jan 12, 2014 at 9:25
  • It's still empty, I just got it.
    – the-lights
    Jan 12, 2014 at 10:34

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Did you add this SSD as a second drive? I mean, if you already have HDD and your Windows is installed on it, you can't really see benefits of using SSD then. Best practice, when deciding to add SSD to your PC, is to have Windows (or any other OS) and all applications installed on SSD, and all your other data to have/keep on HDD (of course, if SSD is not your only drive). So, if you have Windows and Visual Studio installed on SSD, it should run smoothly.

And, to optimize your Windows 8.1 with SSD, read following articles: MS Windows 8.1 optimize your drive and B2G

EDIT: And to point out: For SSD to work properly it is best if SSD has some 10-15% empty space on it. So, if you gonna install Windows 8.1 and other applications on SSD make sure you don't fill more than ~50GB of your SSD. If you have many applications you want to have installed, when you reach 50GB on your SSD, install the rest apps on HDD. Basicaly, install Windows and apps you use most frequently on SSD.

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  • As long as visual studio and his projects are on the SSD it should be running at SSD speeds EVEN if he has windows installed on a hard drive.
    – GeekyDewd
    Jan 12, 2014 at 10:13
  • NEVER DEFRAG AN SSD OR FLASH DRIVE: computerhope.com/issues/ch001064.htm
    – GeekyDewd
    Jan 12, 2014 at 10:16
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    @GeekyDewd SSD shouldn't be defragmented same way as HDD. But, to improve SSD's performance they need to be optmized, which is not same as defragmentation. It is explained in the links in my answer.
    – Vladimir
    Jan 12, 2014 at 10:22
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As long as Visual Studio AND your projects are on the SSD (Solid-State Drive) you shouldn't have to do anything else.

Edit: I see you just stated that you haven't used it yet. Just plug it in, I would suggest installing VS onto the SSD and moving your projects to the SSD. And that should be all you need to do.

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  • What about the page file?
    – the-lights
    Jan 12, 2014 at 9:34
  • With 8Gb ram I wouldn't think you would need to change the amount of page file. I am a basic programmer (still learning) I am not sure how intense your work is, but my visual studio opens quickly and doesn't hang while working or loading projects. Is it slow just to open VS without loading a project?
    – GeekyDewd
    Jan 12, 2014 at 9:46
  • It's not as slow as opening a project, but it's definitely not fast.
    – the-lights
    Jan 12, 2014 at 10:34

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