SSD Lifespan

Hi fellas I got a question, I would like to know how long would a SSD last? If I turn on my laptop for like 24/7. Does it last longer than the normal Sata HDD?

 

Depends on what SSD you have - in general though, yes, SSDs are more reliable and will last longer than any HDD. I suggest searching around since this question pops up very commonly.

 

Your question's answer has a lot of caveats. Depends on the drive and depends on how you use it. SSDs more or less have a finite life. That means after you write a certain amount of data to them, they're generally done. Also depends on their wear leveling and do many other factors. To say an SSD will outlast an HDD is partially true, again, depends on how you use it and what drive it is.

 

should last 3-5 years as long as u don't waste write cycles with system restore and hibernation...

 

Modern MLC-based SSD's are rated at about 80,000 - 100,000 write cycles. Manufacturers guarantee that if you wrote 20GB to the drive every single day, it would last you at least 5 years. Even after the drive uses all of its write cycles, the drive doesn't die. It simply loses its ability to be written to, and becomes a read-only drive.

I have never kept a mechanical hard drive for 5 years. They have all been replaced either due to mechanical failure, or as part of capacity / speed upgrades. I don't expect to keep the same SSD for 5+ years, so I consider this lifespan issue to be moot.

On top of that, you have to consider that SSD's are not susceptible to shock / fall damage like regular hard drives are, and also operate in a much wider temperature range. When you consider the physical durability, and the 5+ year lifespan that is equivalent to or greater than most mechanical hard drives, I would say: Yes, SSD's have a longer lifespan than a mechanical hard drive.

 

The 20GB/day for 5 year 'guarantee' is only for Intel SSD's, not everyone else's.

 

The most important thing to do if you have an SSD and keep your computer on for most of the day is to disable the Disk Defragmenter service in services.msc in order to stop the auto defrag that Windows does while your computer is idle

 

cheers dude.. no one told me about this anywhere.. but if u disable the service and also have a HDD+ SSD combo, how will the HDD be defragged? Can't u choose which one to defrag?

 

The 'problem' with SSDs isn't their projected lifespan.

(and do remember that SSD lifespans are projected, no one has more than a year or 18 months worth of real-world experience with the things yet, just so-called accelerated engineering testing)

The 'problem' is the failure mode of an SSD. When an SSD has an internal failure it typically bricks the device. 100% data loss. Nothing short of a very expensive visit to the factory will recover data from a dead SSD. They don't just become unbootable, they are bricked with no access at all.

Now think to all of the failure modes a conventional mechanical HDD has and all of the recovery tools available. We've all recovered data from 'dead' hard drives.

There doesn't seem to be a middle ground with SSD failures.

Be careful out there......

 

Just disable defragmentation of your SSD, you don't have to stop the service if you have a HDD as well.

 

Since SSD are a new technology, their long term effectiveness is still not 100% verified. However, tests reveal that there's no reason that their longevity and effectiveness is any less than conventional data storage devices.

 

Sean, open disk defragmenter and disable the defragment on a schedule option. That will disable auto defrag that windows does when the hard disk is idle. I would double check by typing in services.msc in the run box, and make sure the disk defragmenter service is set to manual. If you're solely running an SSD then I recommend disabling the service completely.

 

I had a Gskill Falcon 64GB. I used my laptop all day long. Lots of writting to it. It lasted less than an year. I was copying some files and laptop freezed. That disk never worked again.
It wasn't too bad, because all my stuff is in an external hdd. But it died too quick... Now i use a 7200rpm hdd. I'll wait an year or two before buying another ssd. Money is hard to earn....
It worked great, but died just like that....
I didn't activate warranty, because i had sensitive data on it. Just breaked all its chips. Byebye SSDs (for now)

 

Like I said, it's a new technology; and that's one of the main negatives (along with price) of being the first to invest in it. Still, not all SSDs are created equally, and like anything else, they come in economy as well as deluxe models. So you shouldn't give up on them so quickly since they're getting better with every generation.

Yes, absolutely! This feature would serve no useful purpose with an SSD; and due to the nature of their construction, would in fact, have a detrimental effect on it's effectiveness.

 

Dual post. I keep forgetting about this limitation.

 

I'll stay away from them until they become more cost effective. I just don't see the point for everyday users especially when the price is night and day from your sata hds

 

I guess I wont get myself an SSD after 1 or 2 more years since the technology it's new and expensive. I have lots of important data and usually my HDD would last me more than 5 years. Thanks for the info guys. I think I will stick back to HDD.

Just curious, how's the performance gain over HDD? much difference?

 

Iv used all the mechanical HDD software and while they didnt help me out, I know others that they have. Over time SSDs will come out with similar support.

 

SSDs are great, and after using that one for a few months, it's really hard to get back to mechanical hdds.... But i just can't afford to buy a new one.
I had to make an option: send back my gskill to warranty, and risk my data, or buy a new hard drive. I've chosen the second one.
I will buy a new ssd when i can afford it, and when technology is better.
They work great, and are really fast. But when they die....... I just don't have the money to play with. I bought one, but i won't be filling others pockets with my money.

 

i'm getting myself a C300... its seems to reliable and since i had spare cash anyways , i thought i get it.. hopefully it lastes 3 years

 

I had my first C300 256gb SSD fail after just one month of using it. I sent it to crucial for replacement and one week later got a brand new drive with updated firmware. I think my first one was defective, and yes of course I had data on it that was important to me, but you can't believe that your data will be exploited, because if you do then you will be afraid to do anything. Just have some trust in the companies you deal with.

 

I have had several HD failures over the years. I have only returned one drive (because it died with no important data on it). Why did I eat the cost of those other drives?

Because my clients trust me. For a reason.

The reason? I have never given them reason not to - nor will I ever for a hundred dollars or so for a HD.

 

Um, no! In fact, trust no one. This is the data age, and being so means the temptation for exploitation of your information is too great. Either that or they may simply hand your information over to anyone with a boyscout badge (think AT&T).

 

It would truly be very useful to have a thread listing peoples SSD's and how long they have had them and whether they have had issues and had to RMA or not.

 

^^^ This. This is why clients trust people, people and companies they rely on, because like Tiller, I do not trust some unknown worker bee any company to have even the possibility of accessing private, personal or proprietary information. If no one else can access it, I don't fear it being exploited. My clients rely on me, Tillers rely on him, and neither of our customers will ever have an issue with exploitation of recovered information because of us. Just good business sense.

 

Several years ago we had to go to Canada for a hockey tournament. Over 6 months after we returned, we received a call from our bank. Someone in Canada had used our credit card. We had used it just a day before, and they were making sure it was us...it wasn't. Thanks to that, we didn't incur a penny in charges, but someone up their may have copied our info, waited, and then used it. They did the usual, bought several small items to see if it worked, and no doubt would have used it to buy much more expensive items if they had not been stopped by our banks call. So as Krane said, trust NO ONE.