How can I check whether SSD is 4 K aligned?

What is "4 K alignment"

It is associated with a partition technology called "advanced formatting". First, let's take a look at what is "4 K alignment ". In fact, "4 K alignment" is associated with a partition technology called "advanced formatting. "Advanced formatting" is the name used by the International Association of hard drive devices and materials for the new data structure format. This is mainly because the current hard disk capacity is constantly expanding, so that the previously defined 512 bytes per sector is no longer so reasonable, so 512 bytes per sector is changed to 4096 bytes per sector, that is to say, "4 K slice ". In fact, the definition of 512 bytes per sector originated from the early stages of computer development. Therefore, splitting the hard disk capacity into 512 bytes per disk is a balance between file management and storage. The current mainstream hard disk capacity has climbed to 1 TB or even higher, and managing ultra-large-capacity hard disks with old standards is not only cumbersome, but also reduces efficiency, so it is imperative to increase the capacity of a single sector. 4 K not aligned

What is SSD?

Solid State Storage Technology, referred to as SSD. there are two types: SSD based on flash memory: flash memory is used as the storage medium, which is also a common SSD, such as the usb flash disk that we often use, digital cameras and other electronic memory and Flash disks with ATA, SCSI, and FC interfaces are collectively referred to as Flash disks.

How to check whether SSD is 4 K aligned

Method 1:

1. Use the shortcut key Win + R to open the running Window, enter "msinfo32" in the window, and click OK;

 

2. On the open system information page, click "components"> "storage"> "disk" on the left ". Then, find the value "start offset of the Shard" corresponding to the solid state disk on the right side, divide the value by 4096, and the result is an integer that is 4 K aligned.

Method 2: Download the as ssd Benchmark software from the attachment and run it after installation. There is a FW5 on the left side of the window. If the Green OK text is displayed, it indicates that it is aligned. If "BAD" is displayed, it indicates that there is no 4 K alignment. The following figure shows two screenshots of alignment and non-alignment:

If your SSD is not 4 K aligned, we recommend that you back up your data and use the original system installation disc to delete all partitions of the SSD, create a new partition to install it. In this way, the 4 K alignment can be automatically created.