What about the solid state drive down speed?

What about a solid state hard drive? The solid-state drive has been in use for a long time, especially when there is little storage capacity, which will occur more or less quickly. Behind this is the memory data write/Erase mode restrictions, as well as the hardware and firmware based on SSD layer, including Trim, garbage collection (garbage Collection) and other mechanisms of operational effectiveness. Therefore, discretion to implement secure erase completely erase, so that the solid-state drive back to the factory initial state, can significantly improve the write down speed problem.

Small note: The use of secure Erase full erase method will add a hard disk wipe, and must be in use before the proper backup data! Secure Erase Complete Erasure will remove all information from your hard drive!

　　A case study of solid state hard disk dropping speed phenomenon

A few years ago, many people are quite concerned about flash memory process progress, the derivation of theoretical read-write times (program/erase Cycles) to reduce the problem. Frankly speaking, a few years have passed, it seems that no one really met, solid state hard disk failure is the result of the demise of particles. The reality in front of us, instead, is the question of a drop in the speed of writing, more confusing for the user who pursues speed.

At present, the most often complained of the early solid-state hard disk products, more for the use of LSI SandForce Controller design, other brand controllers are also difficult to avoid such problems, but the speed of the difference between the severity of the situation. In any case, when the manufacturer's optimization tool has a limited effect, the most simply way is to fix the secure Erase at regular intervals.

Secure Erase erases all available space, and the cost of saving the speed is an increase of 1 write losses, usually only the obscured op (over-provisioning, reserved space) areas will be excluded. Therefore, depending on the personal use of load, spin down, like six months, 1 years, such as time interval, the discretion to perform a complete erasure action.

Here's a sample of Kingston HyperX 3K 240GB, which has completed a round of full performance testing earlier, including iometer that fills all the space. First you delete the test files generated by Iometer in Windows, and then write the various size files to about 8 full, and then perform several key performance test projects again.

The current condition of the hard disk is used to simulate the situation that the usable capacity is near saturation, to observe the phenomenon of the speed drop and the performance of secure Erase. Look at the following test results should be no more to say what, it is simple to see that the speed of writing is indeed affected, and even read the part of some adverse changes.

　　Secure Erase prepare for work

Intel, Plextor and other vendors to provide the exclusive tool software, more in Windows and other systems under the implementation, means you can not take to erase the solid state drive, installed operating system boot to start the secure erase operation. Standard practice is to disassemble the computer to pull the solid state drive, to the other computer to carry out, or to use the computer's other hard disk staging operating system and boot. If the project is too vast, or the solid-state hard disk manufacturers do not provide tool software, you can switch to parted Magic.

Parted Magic Built-in features quite a lot, this side will not be introduced, the following would only focus on the secure Erase part. The operation is fairly simple, but there are a few simple steps to pay attention to before the secure erase is performed through its erase Disk, lest it fall into the loop of repeated action.

　　before performing Parted Magic, it is not necessary to empty the partition area and data of SSD. After the boot into the desktop, first in the blank desktop press the right mouse button, according to the "Devices", pointing to the device to erase, "unmount" order of the selected operation .

After completing the preparation work, return to the desktop to select "Erase Disk", according to the prompts to complete the operation. Here to remind you that the Erasure method is based on the ATA Command control operation, you must first select "Sleep" into the sleeping mode, to unlock the solid State drive protection mode (secure Freeze Lock). When the parameter value is set, "maintain" can be.

It should be noted that when the available space is near saturation (about 80%, the drop rate depends on the controller and firmware alignment), Secure Erase is not a panacea. The ideal solution is nothing more than to redeem the larger capacity of the hard drive, so that the slow down problem is always in a short time and float on the stage.