How to properly erase/restore performance in my sdd's

Hi all

Currently have 2 ssds in raid 0 in my alienware m17x R2 but since TRIM dosent work in raid 0 my performance has lost that snap it use to have. Now im just gonna break the raid and use them as 2 separate drive

Can someone guild me on how to break my raid 0 + restore my performace in my sdds?

 

Back up your data to an external device (backup to two external devices highly recommended for important data).

In the BIOS or at/during boot up - go into the RAID setup screen and remove the drives from the array.

In the BIOS - change the SATA operation to AHCI instead of RAID.

Now, do a clean install with only ONE SSD installed in the system (this ensures that all boot information is not put onto the secondary drive... making it almost impossible to boot into the system if/when the secondary SSD is removed or dies).


Before you go ahead with the actual install - if you can't SE (secure erase) the SSD, you want to at least create a partition on each SSD, FORMAT it, leave the system idle at that setup screen for at least 1/2 an hour and then delete the partition. This will effectively TRIM the SSD and bring it as close as possible to 'as-new' performance... short of a SE.

Now that all the above is done (and making sure that only one drive is installed until Win8x64 (highly recommended) is fully installed, make sure to also OP each SSD by using only 70% (maximum) of the available capacity at the Setup screen (not after you've installed Windows) by leaving 30% of the capacity as 'unallocated'.


This should get you to the best base of having a system that sustains it's performance over time.

These suggestions should also be followed too for maximum responsiveness:

See:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/sol...rage/718208-asus-ux32vd-db71.html#post9194652



Good luck.

 

omg thank you so much

 

Another great post, another great start.

Re SE also see tiller's post #11 (and my #12) in NBR thread: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sol...age/718529-slow-ssd-write-speed-raid-0-a.html

Nice list of suggestions in the asus ux32vd-db71 link.

I tried doing this one: "1) With 16GB of RAM (or more) - disable the Pagefile." --- on both my laptops, and it has worked fine. My T530 has 16GB of RAM (2x8GB), and my older X220 has a mere 8GB of RAM (2x4GB).

What are the risks of disabling the pagefile when one only has 8GB of RAM???

I note that you're the only one on NBR who does this "Good luck" ending.

Finally, for those who have no clue what GC, TRIM, SE, wear leveling, etc. etc., actually mean and why they're important, wiki has a decent writeup on the whole schmeer under "write amplification" at: Write amplification - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Borrowing from E.Murrow: Good day and good luck.

 

With your page file enabled you can monitor its usage with WinDirStat - Permalinks to downloads and other content
I have 8 GIG ram and noticed it was not being used at all (of course I do not use any programs such as photoshop; that require a page file apparently) so I disabled it about 6 months ago & have not noticed any related issues.

 

you could get out of memory errors for memory hungry programs like permiere pro and after effects.
also certain legacy programs may require the presence of a pagefile and wont work without them.
if you dont have both, then youre safe to delete it even on 8gb.

 

If you don't have a SSD that comes with a software toolbox, you should be able to use parted magic to perform a secure erase on your SSD by the way.

 

The issues that need to be considered when considering disabling the pagefile are:

1) Windows will not be able to write an error event with the pagefile disabled. As I also disable System Restore on all my systems (have only found System Restore to be a huge waste of time - with no redeeming benefits in the last few decades), I do not see this as a negative.

Limiting the pagefile to ~400MB (as recommended by Win8x64...) to keep this ability to write to write a potential error condition is equivalent to leaving the pagefile fully enabled. Either on or off. Your choice.

2) Certain Programs need(ed) a pagefile to operate properly. Check to see if the latest version you're running still has that requirement (PS CS6 doesn't complain anymore, for example with 16GB RAM or more). Even if a program insists that a pagefile is required; it may still run fine (if you can get it to run) with your specific workflow.

3) With 8/16/32GB and even greater capacities of RAM possible in modern platforms - do note that an equivalent amount of SSD capacity is also reserved/used. And with a properly setup SSD - it is reserved/used for no good (performance) reason.

4) While a pagefile can make a Windows installation more stable, there are fairly large drawbacks for insisting on one with a modern platform (hardware and O/S) which is upgraded to anything above the minimums they are usually sold with.


The number one thing to keep in mind is that disabling the pagefile will not hurt your computer. If a program doesn't like the setup, it will let you know - then you can simply put it back to how it was before.

Even with 'just' 8GB RAM (depending on your programs and workflow, of course).


Hope this helps.

Good luck.

 

Well, system restore is a nice feature if one like to try beta display drivers. It doesn't take more than few GBs to work.