As for "a spare SATA socket", I vaguely remember using that ages ago, with a lot of fuss about "master and slave" – that was in an era when "PC" was short for "personal computer". I think I had to replug my boot disk to the other socket of a flimsy "bus", and make sure all the 100 needles or so were pushed tightly and none was bent. Best ask an expert in case you consider it.