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Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement

Introduction

Use this guide to replace or upgrade the SSD in your Steam Deck OLED. The Steam Deck OLED's SSD is a single-sided M.2 2230.

Remember to follow general electrostatic discharge (ESD) safety procedures while repairing your device.

These steps only describe how to physically remove and replace your SSD. You will need additional software tools and procedures to install an OS and get the replacement SSD to function as intended.

Follow Valve's Steam Deck recovery instructions to recover, repair, or re-image your Steam Deck's SSD with SteamOS. For installing Windows, official resources can be found here.

What you need

  1. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Prepare your Steam Deck for disassembly: step 1, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Prepare your Steam Deck for disassembly: step 1, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Prepare your Steam Deck for disassembly: step 1, image 3 of 3

    • Turn on your Steam Deck and allow the battery to discharge below 25% before starting your repairs, as a charged lithium-ion polymer battery can be dangerous if accidentally punctured.

    • As an extra precaution, Valve recommends putting your Steam Deck into battery storage mode within the BIOS before starting any internal repairs. Read how to do that here.

    • Power down your Steam Deck and unplug any cables.

    • If you have a microSD card installed, make sure to remove it before opening the Steam Deck. If you attempt to remove the back cover with it still installed, it could snap right in half.

    • During your repair, it can be helpful at times to lay the Steam Deck face-down in its case to protect the thumbsticks and prevent wobble.

    Edit

  2. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the back cover screws: step 2, image 1 of 2 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the back cover screws: step 2, image 2 of 2
    Tool used on this step:
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    • Use a T6 Torx driver to remove the eight 5.8 mm‑long screws securing the back cover.

    • Throughout this repair, keep track of each screw and make sure it goes back exactly where it came from.

    Edit

  3. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Unclip a handle: step 3, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Unclip a handle: step 3, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Unclip a handle: step 3, image 3 of 3

    • Insert an opening pick at an upward angle between the back cover and the front shell near one of the triggers.

    • If you can't insert your pick here, try along the top or bottom edges of the Steam Deck OLED before sliding it toward the handle.

    • Slide your pick along the edge of the handle to release the clips securing it to the front shell.

    Edit

  4. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Unclip the top and bottom edges: step 4, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Unclip the top and bottom edges: step 4, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Unclip the top and bottom edges: step 4, image 3 of 3

    • Reinsert your pick and slide it along the top and bottom edges until the back cover feels loose.

    Edit

  5. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the back cover: step 5, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the back cover: step 5, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the back cover: step 5, image 3 of 3

    • Grip the unclipped handle and pull it away from the front shell to release the remaining clips.

    • Remove the back cover.

    Edit

  7. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Disconnect the battery: step 6, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Disconnect the battery: step 6, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Disconnect the battery: step 6, image 3 of 3

    • Grip the battery cable pull tab, located to the left of the battery.

    • Firmly pull the battery cable straight away from the motherboard shield (toward the battery) to disconnect it.

    • This bundled cable is fairly stiff. If you're having trouble, re-grip the pull tab close to the head of the connector and gently walk it side-to-side as you pull.

    • If the cable pull-tab feels fragile or rips during this process, remove the motherboard shield and disconnect the cable using a spudger.

    • When the battery cable comes free, it might push up on the motherboard shield. Don't worry, as this won't damage anything.

    Edit

  8. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Disconnect the right button board: step 7, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Disconnect the right button board: step 7, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Disconnect the right button board: step 7, image 3 of 3

    • Use a spudger to flip up the small white locking flap on the right button board interconnect cable ZIF connector.

    • Use tweezers or your fingers to grip the cable's pull tab and slide it straight out of its socket to disconnect it.

    • The pull tab may be labelled C‑R.

    Edit

  9. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Separate the cable adhesive: step 8, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Separate the cable adhesive: step 8, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Separate the cable adhesive: step 8, image 3 of 3

    • The interconnect cable is adhered to the motherboard shield.

    • Insert an opening pick between the interconnect cable and the motherboard shield.

    • Be careful not to crease or tear the cable.

    • If you're having trouble inserting a pick, lightly heat the cable using an iOpener or a hair dryer.

    • Slide your pick along the shield to separate the cable.

    Edit

  10. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Move the interconnect cable: step 9, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Move the interconnect cable: step 9, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Move the interconnect cable: step 9, image 3 of 3

    • During the rest of the repair, it may be helpful to move the interconnect cable over the battery and out of the way of the motherboard shield.

    • Be careful not to crease or strain the cable, as it's still adhered to the battery.

    • Tape the cable in place away from the motherboard shield.

    Edit

  11. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the motherboard shield screws: step 10, image 1 of 2 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the motherboard shield screws: step 10, image 2 of 2

    • Use your T6 Torx driver to remove the two 3.8 mm‑long screws securing the top left and bottom left corners of the motherboard shield.

    Edit

  12. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the motherboard shield: step 11, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the motherboard shield: step 11, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the motherboard shield: step 11, image 3 of 3

    • If the speaker cable is taped to the bottom edge of the motherboard shield, gently peel it off.

    • Remove the motherboard shield.

    Edit

  13. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Reassembly instructions: step 12, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Reassembly instructions: step 12, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Reassembly instructions: step 12, image 3 of 3

    • During reassembly, use the flat end of a spudger to slide the battery connector into its socket on the motherboard.

    Edit

  14. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD screw: step 13, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD screw: step 13, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD screw: step 13, image 3 of 3

    • Use your T6 Torx driver to remove the 3.3 mm‑long screw securing the SSD.

    • The SSD will pop up to a slight angle as you remove the screw.

    Edit

  15. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD: step 14, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD: step 14, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD: step 14, image 3 of 3

    • Grip the end of the SSD and pull it away from its M.2 board connector to remove it.

    • Remove the SSD.

    • During reassembly, insert the SSD at a slight angle into its socket and hold it against its screw post as you install its screw.

    Edit

  16. Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD shielding: step 15, image 1 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD shielding: step 15, image 2 of 3 Steam Deck OLED SSD Replacement, Remove the SSD shielding: step 15, image 3 of 3

    • The SSD is wrapped in ESD shielding. Take care to keep the shielding in good condition, as you'll need to transfer it to your replacement SSD.

    • Slide the shielding off the SSD.

    • If the shielding feels stuck, peel the shielding off and remove it. Take care to keep it in the best condition possible if you want to reuse it.

    • Only the SSD remains.

    • The Steam Deck OLED uses a single-sided M.2 2230.

    • To recover, repair, or re-image your SSD, follow Valve's Steam Deck recovery instructions.

    Edit
Conclusion

To reassemble your device, follow these instructions in reverse order.

To recover, repair, or re-image your Steam Deck OLED's SSD with SteamOS, follow Valve's Steam Deck recovery instructions.

Take your e-waste to an R2 or e-Stewards certified recycler.

Repair didn’t go as planned? Try some basic troubleshooting, or ask our Steam Deck OLED answers community for help.

5 other people completed this guide.

Author

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Clay Eickemeyer

Member since: 09/19/22

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2 Comments

Hardest part is unclipping the clips XD

landstrokethegamer 711 - Reply

I have completed this but there are ways this could be done better and safely. I have left comments under each step. Step 6 to disconnect the battery should be after Step 10. In my case, the connector did not come out and the pull tab nearly separated creating a risk for damage if I had proceeded further. Removing the shield gives much better access so you can wiggle the connector out using your nail..

Step 8 is to separate the cable adhesive. Every build may have different amount of adhesive applied making this a risky venture. In trying to separate the cable, a lot of force was needed in my deck which could have damaged the cable. A guide on YouTube was to simply work around this. I wish I had seen it prior to have completely avoided this risk.

All in all, I will say a version 2 of this guide is needed.

Khurram Tariq - Reply

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