Hello,

I bought a brand new 2 TB M.2 Sata SSD and an M.2. Sata to USB 3 adapter. To check that everything was working I plugged in the SSD via USB and ran lsblk while my "normal" Slackware operating system was running. Nothing found so I run dmesg and the results were:

[5.987776] sd 2: 0: 0: 0: [sdb] 0 logical 512-byte blocks: (0 B / 0 B)
[5.987778] SD 2: 0: 0: 0: [SDB] physical 0-byte blocks
[5.988138] sd 2: 0: 0: 0: [sdb] Test WP failed, assuming Write Enabled
[5.988252] sd 2: 0: 0: 0: [sdb] Querying cache data failed
[5.988253] sd 2: 0: 0: 0: [sdb] Assuming drive cache: write through
[5.988456] sd 2: 0: 0: 0: [sdb] Optimal transfer size 33553920 bytes, not a multiple of the physical block size (0 bytes)

So I thought it could be a problem with Slackware and booted into Clonezilla - same result. Then I tried gparted and it didn't recognize the drive either.

The next step was not to use the m.2 to USB converter at all and plug the drive directly into my m.2 Sata port and then boot into multiple live distros and again none of them could recognize the drive.

So I think there are two possibilities:

1. The Linux kernel does not support the drive
2. The drive is dead

Can someone who can understand the dmesg messages check this?

Name of the SSD is:
Samsung V-NAND SSD 860 EVO SATA M.2

that can be a problem with that M.2. Sata to USB 3 adapter too.

Check your bios settings and see if there is something there that needs to be enabled. Also check your motherboard documentation. You may have to switch something in the bios to get your m.2 slot to work in sata mode as compared to pcie mode. In addition, in the motherboards I've seen, if you configure the m.2 slot for sata mode you have to have some sata lanes available and enabling sata mode will disable one or more of the sata ports on the motherboard.

First thing I would do is check your bios setup and see how the drive is being detected there. Also, if you have access to windows, you may want to see if the drive is detected there with your usb adapter.

Newer devices may not be supported in the bios. You are using a 2 TB M.2 device so it might be that you should check and see if the motherboard supports that size device. It also could be that a bios update will enable it.

Just another place to look since it seems dmesg only showed partial recognition.

UPDATE
I forgot that you had said it did the same in multiple distros. That means something in common, and the motherboard and bios are certainly common to all and closest to the device as well.

On windows it is also not recognized. So its not a Linux problem! What was said about the motherboard/bios makes sense. How do I check that? When I enter my UEFI Bios I can't find a list of detected hardware or something like that...

Next problem: I searched for a BIOS update and there is only a .exe file... So I called the manufacture and they told me that there is no other option and that I need Windows and run the .exe file.

So do I really need to install Windows just to update my BIOS? Is it maybe possible to use a live environment of Windows (does something like that exist?) or FreeDos instead?

If you have a link to your motherboard manual, please post it. Minimally, post the make and model of your motherboard.

I've never seen uefi or bios that didn't list the attached hard drives so you're probably not looking in the right place. Motherboard manuals typically have pretty detailed descriptions of the various options in the uefi/bios. Also, I haven't run into a motherboard that didn't have a way to update the uefi/bios without an OS installed, typically off a bootable usb flash drive. The motherboard manual will lay that process out for you.

Edit:I am assuming you have a desktop, not a laptop. The bios/uefi on laptops tend to be pure crap with limited options.

Most motherboards I have worked with have a utility in the bios to actually do the update and do not depend on the OS for that purpose, although there are outliers. Usually the update is put on a USB and then boot to BIOS and update from there. It is quite possible that the .exe file is to put it on the USB for you. What did the online install instructions tell you about the procedure for updating the BIOS?

You said the board is not seen by windows as well. Does that mean you tried it in the same machine or a different one? Is windows in a vm? If windows is in a vm I would not try doing a bios update because that process requires native bare metal access to the motherboard.

If the install must be done from within windows and if windows is already installed (as in you are dual booting) then you are good to go. If in a different machine but with the same motherboard then possibly you can simply move the drive, do the update, then move it back. I have no idea how that would affect the windows install though, especially if connected to the internet.

You have not told us what motherboard you have so we cannot assist in research.

EDIT
I just looked at the specs for that drive at samsung and they have several links for compatibility. You might need to check those out if not already done.

We are talking about this laptop:

https://emea.dynabook.com/laptops/sa...pro-a30-d-10e/

I haven't found any documentation about the motherboard in the internet and I actually think that there isn't one.

The windows computer was the PC of a friend of mine, I don't have access to a windows machine at home.

The link to the bios update instructions is dead, that was the reason I called dynabook and there they said that it is very easy just double click the .exe file and reboot... Than I told them that I am on Linux and they said that I need to reinstall Windows to perform the update.
There is possible a alternative way but for now I decided to send back the drive and ordered a new one just to make sure that you and I are not wasting time debugging a dead drive.

I will continue this thread when the new drive is arrived.

Thanks a lot for your suggestions

Confirmed

I found the manual for that Toshiba Satellite Pro (rebranded as a dynabook) on the dynabook web site. Have not read it yet but suspect it does not say anything about the motherboard. I also see that the latest BIOS update, which is probably the one you have, is dated 20200826 so that is recent.

The M.2 2TB drive is the latest and greatest from samsung so it certainly will require the bios update before it can be used. Kind of a catch 22. You can't update the bios until you have windows available but you don't have windows && you cant use the drive until the bios has been updated.

BTW, your friends windows machine that could not see the drive.......
It probably is in the same boat. Needs the BIOS updated to support the drive.

Agreed that you probably need a bios update for your new 2TB Samsung drive. That doesn't mean that Toshiba has seen fit to provide the needed update, however. In fact, some laptop manufacturers use the bios to make upgrades of certain components impossible. Even though the motherboard may be capable of accommodating upgraded hardware, the bios will lock you out from doing so. They want you to buy a new laptop or they want to have the ability to overcharge you for their laptop with the upgraded components.

Bottom line, I'm not sure updating your bios will correct the issues with your m.2 drive but it may be worth a shot. Just backup your Slackware installation, reinstall windows 10, run the bios update and see if the problem is corrected. If not, return the m.2 drive and try an older 1TB or 500GB Samsung m.2 drive.

From the other hand (because updating bios is probably not a solution) you might want to check other ideas - especially when this update is that difficult.

As nobody appears to have mentioned it, I will.

I seem to recall that with the latest set of lies being told to to disk controllers in order to overcome pc design limitations, fdisk ran out of road at 2TB. So you NEED GPT. If the thing has UEFI, I think you need GPT too. If you're using gpt, this is moot.

That is not fdisk, but MBR which cannot handle more than 2TB. fdisk can handle both MBR and GPT.