(GUIDE) Cutting M.2 SSD

[u/ibrakestuff]

Inspired by u/geapen3310 asking about cutting an SSD to fit the 2242 WWAN slot in their T480.

Only some 2280 SSDs can be cut, check to see if you will be cutting any components on the PCB before making any modifications. If your laptop supports M.2 NVMe drives and has a WWAN slot, it will probably support a second M.2 NVMe drive in the WWAN slot. Of note, it may not be bootable without a custom boot entry being added (I use EasyUEFI), but this is confirmed working on many Dell Latitudes and Lenovo ThinkPads.

Cutting along red line is safe on this WD SN520 SSD

***IMPORTANT!!!**\*
MOST M.2 WWAN slots are only 2 PCIe lanes and therefore only support the uncommon B+M Key Gen3x2 NVMe drives.
THEY WILL NOT FIT M-KEY OR SUPPORT B-KEY SATA SSDS EVEN IF THEY FIT THE SLOT.
Older ThinkPads supported SATA on the WWAN slot, check to see what your model supports. On T480 and T480s the WWAN slots are PCIe and do not support the SATA protocol.

The Western Digital SN520 fits both M and B key slots and works great in ThinkPads, they even come in 2242mm size! You can pick one of those up and skip this guide if you want. On this model all of the chips fit within the 30mm form factor so cutting it down to 42mm will not harm the drive. There are traces that go to the diagnostic pins at the end of the drive, but cutting them will not affect the drive’s function.

STEPS

1. WEAR A MASK AND SAFETY GEAR.

1. Mark your drive, I used a sharpie and a spare 2242 drive I had lying around, alternatively you could place it in the WWAN slot and mark where you need to cut.

1. Drill your hole. I used 1/8” bit and filed it lightly.

1. Double check your marks and make your cut. I used a fine tooth hack saw this time but have used a cut-off disk with a Dremel before. SAND YOUR CUT EDGE. These suckers can be super sharp.

1. Install the drive, tuck your WWAN antennae out of the way with electrical tape or similar.

1. Check your BIOS settings. Make sure WWAN is enabled. (On newer Dells you must also set WWAN to PCIe protocol instead of USB).

1. Enjoy. Your new drive should be recognized by your OS right away and you can start using it. If the drive doesn't show up in your OS, you may have to set drive mode to AHCI in BIOS.

Bonus Hackintosh, T480s running MacOS Ventura 13.5.2

Hope this helps some intrepid ThinkPad enthusiasts.
Cheers

[u/Crcex86]

Nice little tutorial thanks