SSD Thread (Benchmarks, Brands, News, and Advice)

Can't see why not.

 

If anyone with a Samsung SSD is doing an upgrade to the TRIM firmware, do not run Tony Trim!. Here's why:

Code:

> Run Time 00:00:00.02
> Disk  Sequential 64.0 Read                   170.27 MB/s          7.2
> Disk  Random 16.0 Read                       56.60 MB/s          6.6
> Responsiveness: Average IO Rate              3.16 ms/IO          6.3
> Responsiveness: Grouped IOs                  11.40 units          6.9
> Responsiveness: Long IOs                     32.68 units          1.9
> Responsiveness: Overall                      372.64 units          4.5
> Responsiveness: PenaltyFactor                1.0
> Disk  Sequential 64.0 Write                  125.18 MB/s          7.0
> Average Read Time with Sequential Writes     0.555 ms          7.9
> Latency: 95th Percentile                     1.300 ms          7.9
> Latency: Maximum                             227.246 ms          7.3
> Average Read Time with Random Writes         0.619 ms          7.9
> Total Run Time 00:01:53.99

My scores plummeted compared to the ones I previously posted. Hopefully the drive can fix itself over time. What a mess.

 

Way too many pages to read through to see if this has already been mentioned.. but Samsung finally released TRIM support for their drives! This means all actual Samsung branded drives, as well as some by Corsair, OCZ, Dell and others can be flahsed to support TRIM. This is a destructive FW though.

ETA: Guess I should have read up one Actually, there are are a lot of people complaining that the drive speed starts steadily decreasing after the flash :\ One guy with a Summit left Windows 7 in sleep mode and woke up to huge decreases. So far all anyone has to say is that it's normal.

 

Dave told me I already have the latest firmware. No need to upgrade.

Windows 7 32 bit.

Absolutely.

 

you said you have "The firmware is 2CV102HA"
my ssd's firmware is 2CV102HD. just one letter is different.

but on the intel's website

This firmware update tool provides the latest firmware for the following Intel SSDs in all capacities:
- Intel® X25-M/X18-M SATA SSD on 34nm (silver case) - updates to FW version 02HD .

so you still need to update it.
am i wrong? are these two firmware same?

 

http://www.techpowerup.com/107062/Intel_Retracts_02HA_SSD_Firmware_Update.html

Be careful, Phil, if you don't upgrade to 02HD. Your drive may stop working.

 

Are you talking about a flasher straight from Samsung or one of the OCZ / Corsair variants?

 

Just placed an order for the Intel SSD X25-M 80gb retail. I am running beta Windows 7 (7100 build). I read in order to take advantage of the speed the OS has to support TRIM. Just wondering if the beta version of my OS support TRIM? Also, when i get the drive is it okay to split the drive into two partition? Will this effect the speed of the drive? Planning on running the OS on 35gb and create a secondary partition for the remaining space

 

Mine did the same thing dood -- totally borked, oof

 

comparing X-25M G2 160G with P256 for real world applications, intel is indeed noticeable faster, especially with intel driver 9.5.4 which minimizes max latency from over 20 ms with original M$ driver down to 2.885ms:

 

It's all the exact same firmware actually. I've seen it on both Corsair and OCZ forums.

 

Yeah I'm pretty pissed off about it. It basically cut my drive performance in half. I'm debating whether or not I should clear the nand and start over but that is such a big hassle. Hopefully the drive will self heal over time with use. Has yours seen any improvement?

 

Yeah, I'm trying to get used to this TRIM thing -- it took me awhile to figure out how to get GC to work on my system and AS Cleaner seemed to be the magic bullet that would initiate it. AS Cleaner worked good on VBM18C1Q but really killed my performance on VBM19C1Q. I didn't really need to run As Cleaner because my disks performance has been very good since I flashed it to VBM19C1Q but some other users were experiencing performance problems and I suggested As Cleaner followed by shutdown and time at the logon screen. Well, I thought because I was recommending something I should try it myself since I had changed firmware. Well, I tried it and it did not work anything like the previous firmware.

 

I think Tony is right when he says VBM18C1Q is better because I could beat the hell out of this drive and then make it recover within minutes. With VBM19C1Q I don't have a clue how to get it to recover it's performance. Tony says they are working with Samsung to get a public flasher for 18c but who knows how long that will take?

 

Ok, I try to keep up with this thread, but it's not possible. lol

I'm running Win7 x64, do I just update to the newest firmware and forget about it? Or is the firmware still bricking drives and/or trim isn't working right?

 

a quick question for intel X-25M owners, i found the serial number shown in crystal disk info as well as in intel ssd toolbox is different from the retail package G2R5 box (both format and numbers are completely different), is that normal?

 

If you're talking about G2 Intel's, go for it! No bricking reported in weeks after it's release!

 

Whoa! That sounds not good, but I wouldn't worry about crystal disk info though.

Sounds like a few people that received a few lenses with the same issue (box/item/warranty card not matched, serial number-wise).

I would contact Intel and immediately explain the situation - you may have an SSD that should not have been shipped?

 

crystal disk info actually shows same serial number as intel ssd toolbox in a format(CVP09XXXXXXX160AGN) shown in legitreview.com site review image(as image below), but package S/N (a printed slip in the blue color box, in G2R5 version) looks complete different format.

 

vostro1400user,

hmmm, if Crystal Disk Info is matching the Intel SSD Toolbox, then I guess its accurate. But both don't match the printed slip?

Do any of them match the actual serial number on the SSD itself?

I don't think it matters now, but if you have issues in a few months/year(s) it may become a huge one, right?

 

I'm pretty sure that TRIM was enabled in Windows 7 RC and later of course, not in any of the beta's. I could be wrong though, about that.

No problem splitting the drive into 2 partitions, but you know the only benefit is keeping your data logically split from the O/S - there should be no performance difference at all.

 

crystal disk info matches the S/N printed in SSD itself but not the S/N printed in outer blue box(i.e. G2R5 version, if it's G2C1 version then its brown box S/N should match SSD's S/N, but G2R5's inner brown box has no S/N slip).

 

Okay, had to try this with my mech. 7K500 too.

Before Win 7 x64 even booted up fully I could feel the difference (laugh all you nay-sayers, but I can feel ms's! )

Right clicking on my computer and hitting 'g' brought up the management console noticeably quicker, for example. Another is Adobe CS4 Premiere Pro starting up over 5 seconds quicker from a cold boot (over 10% speed increase from 39 to ~33.5 secs).

What is most impressive is that the scores for certain runs has changed considerably for the better:

Latency 95th Percentile from 1.9 to 2.3

These drivers seem gooood.

(They still didn't change the WEI reported overall score of 5.9 for the disk though).


IRST drivers 9.5.4.1001 installed:

Code:

C:\Windows\system32>winsat disk
Windows System Assessment Tool
> Running: Feature Enumeration ''
> Run Time 00:00:00.00
> Running: Storage Assessment '-seq -read -n 0'
> Run Time 00:00:10.08
> Running: Storage Assessment '-ran -read -n 0'
> Run Time 00:00:15.15
> Running: Storage Assessment '-scen 2009 -drive C:'
> Run Time 00:01:00.65
> Running: Storage Assessment '-seq -write -drive C:'
> Run Time 00:00:08.39
> Running: Storage Assessment '-flush -drive C: -seq'
> Run Time 00:00:05.51
> Running: Storage Assessment '-flush -drive C: -ran'
> Run Time 00:00:11.76
> Running: Storage Assessment '-hybrid -ran -read -n 0 -ransize 4096'
NV Cache not present.
> Run Time 00:00:00.00
> Running: Storage Assessment '-hybrid -ran -read -n 0 -ransize 16384'
NV Cache not present.
> Run Time 00:00:00.00
> Disk  Sequential 64.0 Read                   85.62 MB/s          6.3
> Disk  Random 16.0 Read                       1.08 MB/s          3.2
> Responsiveness: Average IO Rate              2.38 ms/IO          6.8
> Responsiveness: Grouped IOs                  10.39 units          7.1
> Responsiveness: Long IOs                     7.50 units          7.6
> Responsiveness: Overall                      77.96 units          6.9
> Responsiveness: PenaltyFactor                0.0
> Disk  Sequential 64.0 Write                  100.99 MB/s          6.6
> Average Read Time with Sequential Writes     7.986 ms          5.0
> Latency: 95th Percentile                     37.829 ms          2.3
> Latency: Maximum                             449.781 ms          4.2
> Average Read Time with Random Writes         18.561 ms          2.7
> Total Run Time 00:01:52.43

C:\Windows\system32>

'Old' IRST drivers 9.5.0.1037 installed:

Code:

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.1.7600]
Copyright (c) 2009 Microsoft Corporation.  All rights reserved.

C:\Windows\system32>winsat disk
Windows System Assessment Tool
> Running: Feature Enumeration ''
> Run Time 00:00:00.00
> Running: Storage Assessment '-seq -read -n 0'
> Run Time 00:00:10.73
> Running: Storage Assessment '-ran -read -n 0'
> Run Time 00:00:15.19
> Running: Storage Assessment '-scen 2009 -drive C:'
> Run Time 00:01:00.84
> Running: Storage Assessment '-seq -write -drive C:'
> Run Time 00:00:08.83
> Running: Storage Assessment '-flush -drive C: -seq'
> Run Time 00:00:05.46
> Running: Storage Assessment '-flush -drive C: -ran'
> Run Time 00:00:11.11
> Running: Storage Assessment '-hybrid -ran -read -n 0 -ransize 4096'
NV Cache not present.
> Run Time 00:00:00.01
> Running: Storage Assessment '-hybrid -ran -read -n 0 -ransize 16384'
NV Cache not present.
> Run Time 00:00:00.02
> Disk  Sequential 64.0 Read                   85.70 MB/s          6.3
> Disk  Random 16.0 Read                       1.11 MB/s          3.2
> Responsiveness: Average IO Rate              2.37 ms/IO          6.8
> Responsiveness: Grouped IOs                  10.48 units          7.1
> Responsiveness: Long IOs                     8.03 units          7.5
> Responsiveness: Overall                      84.16 units          6.9
> Responsiveness: PenaltyFactor                0.0
> Disk  Sequential 64.0 Write                  96.97 MB/s          6.5
> Average Read Time with Sequential Writes     7.997 ms          5.0
> Latency: 95th Percentile                     47.857 ms          1.9
> Latency: Maximum                             413.502 ms          4.8
> Average Read Time with Random Writes         17.386 ms          2.9
> Total Run Time 00:01:53.29

C:\Windows\system32>

 

Could be a simple packaging mistake, or an SSD walked away from Intel somehow in someone's back pocket...

Either way, I would check to see what S/N is printed on your receipt and if it matches or not, I would contact Intel and make sure you're protected for any future warranty work. Make sure you get that in writing from INTEL themselves.

Good luck.

 

Yo vostro, any suggestions on how I can repair my drive short of erasing the Nand? That tony trim really screwed up the performance.

 

5150Joker,

Man! I feel really bad about this (as I suggested it to you as a possible quick fix).

Hope it comes back soon and hope you don't hate me too much? Come on, it's Christmas!!!

Cheers!

 

Okay, one person in the whole world has a 'little' faith in me!

Today, one person... tomorrow the world!

 

Haha don't worry I don't hate you. I should have listened to my gut feeling though, the drive was performing great and I knew I was asking for trouble. Well there always has to be a guinea pig and I was it. I'll probably reset the drive and start over since I can feel the slow down while using the system.

 

if it's true that 19C has both GC and TRIM, then you can just power on from cold and keep it several hours in pre-log-on status during sleep hours...

 

it seems intel uses different S/N(with different format as well) on its packaging and SSD itself. the receipt S/N only matches the packaging box S/N but not the S/N printed in SSD itself. have to call intel to verify if other buyers here of G2R5 don't have different S/N on packaging box and SSD itself.

 

Again, to me that is a red flag (different S/N on pkg vs. SSD).

Don't put calling Intel off too long. Yesterday seems about right for this issue.

 

Phil, looks like you do need to update the firmware.

I would also try IRST driver 9.5.4.1001 too.

 

My battery life went down more than 30 minutes! (measured with battery bar).

I will have to do some more testing though.

I don't have time for the update now, may do it later.

 

if there's a slowdown from the fill-the-disk-then-delete it method, it can only mean one thing: a non-working or bad implemented trim support.

trim should, by definition, immediately bring the drive to great performance at the moment the files get deleted.

so i'm quite in fear that those samsung firmwares don't get trim working right..

 

another one experiencing the same as me.

have to catch those intel drivers now..

 

just been reading this
Erasing USB key Drives
does this apply to SSD's? would there be a way to safely and securely clean free space in an SSD?

 

Vostro1400user, how about the booting up etc that we talked of earlier? It doesn't surprise me at all that the Intel is faster in carrying out some tasks.

It seems like your drive might still be recovering from the FW update so the test might be flawed slightly.

Phil, with my first SSD in my SZ my battery life with my Corsair went up by 20-30mins. The Intel drive is still a low power consumption drive so may be something is not quite right somewhere.

Having read these recent reports about the FW i think i will be definitely sticking with what i have. Mine work perfectly. I have one with a VBM19D1Q and one with a VMB1801Q which is like the first gen release with these G2 drives.

 

The firmware on my Samsung drives are: VBM15D1Q for the main drive and the one in the ultra bay is the same. They are running fine so I don't want to risk flashing them.

 

for booting up time, current intel number is about 17 sec while P256 was about 20 sec but it's not that accurate as i haven't installed all software which P256 had.

 

may i ask if your intel package box S/N is same as S/N printed in SSD?(if you got G2R5 package)

 

Phil, are you using Windows 7? I know Thinkpad T400 and T/W500 users have noticed that upgrading W7 actually decreased battery life a little. Read about this in our Thinkpad forum. Presumably still using ye olden spinning hard drives, but I suspect the results wouldnt be much different with an SSD

 

I'm using Windows 7.
With Intel SSD: 4:45 minutes battery life.
With Seagate 5400.6: 5:25 minutes battery life.

I'm still using the old firmware.

 

i have G2C1 here, and it's the same serial on both, yes.

 

I tried to update my Dell drive with VBM15D1Q and got the Mushkin.de flasher (maindiag.exe) to recognize it on a generic HP-Compaq office PC. But it won't allow new firmware to be written, making me wonder if it is non-flashable.

I'm not sure what difference there is between VBM15D1Q and VBM1801Q,19D1Q,24D1Q, etc if there is any. My 15D1Q drive seems okay with real world use but does poorly in benchmarks. I use PerfectDisk10 & AS-Cleaner/FF to maintain it.

If you ultimately decide to try the flash, please follow-up on whether you can write new firmware to the drive. Even if you want to update, you may not be able to if Dell has made locked the firmware, which seems completely stupid since it was a pre-release, Rev0 version.

The clear NAND does work on my drive (and does not enable subsequent flash) so you can erase it.

 

Tony @ OCZ implied there were problems with the TRIM firmware (functionality and/or performance) as people were getting impatient for him to release the flasher/firmware. The firmware that was released is dated 9/21/09 - prior to Win7 release - so maybe there is another version on the way.

A great Christmas present would be an generic, universal Samsung flash utility that will work on all PCs (i.e. AHCI & IDE support) with new firmware that lets the drive perform at rated specs with proper TRIM support.

Not expecting that, anyone know when the 320gb Intel drive will be available ? Would love to sell the Samsung I have and put in a faster drive with more capacity even though it won't be cheap.

 

wait for CES in january like we all do to see new products, and releasedate updates.

 

I've update the firmware. No improvements. Still this strange dip at the beginning and unusual power consumption.

Someone on a dutch forum is saying HP DM1 does have SATA 2 so that's not the cause.

Time to return it?

Should I try the toolbox?

 

Comparing CdystalDiskMark 2.2 and 3.01 Beta - test run after each other...

 

waited almost half hour to get right person in SSD warranty department but still have to wait until next week to know whether it's valid or not. it's a shame that intel won't provide free number for customer service.

 

With VBM1901Q GC work in Win7 while I type in Visual Studio, so I think it would work with VBM19C1Q too.

How do You guys know if TRIM is actually working?