SSD Performance Variability, Wearout Failure, and Help With Specifying SSDs

The maturity level and consistent operation of hard disk drives (HDD) from the few vendors still making HDDs may lull you into expecting similar consistency from solid-state disks (SSDs). After all, both HDDs and SDDs use the same disk interfaces (PATA, SATA, and SAS (serial-attached SCSI)), so where’s the inconsistency? ...You need a more objective view. I got one at the Summit by interviewing Mike Ajlouny, VP of Sales at Flexstar Technology, a drive-tester manufacturer in Fremont, CA.

…The subsystem-level design of an SSD determines how fast it wears out. For example, all SSDs implement wear-leveling algorithms that spread writes to the NAND Flash across as much of the storage array as possible. Some wear-leveling algorithms are better than others, so some SSDs will wear out faster than others. Flexstar’s drive testers can test SSDs to failure and they have. So it's possible to test drive samples from various SSD vendors to evaluate the relative effectiveness their wear-leveling algorithms as well as the quality of the NAND Flash chips incorporated into the SSD's design.

Product highlights from the Flash Memory Summit

A handful of vendors used this week's Flash Memory Summit in Santa Clara, CA to make new product announcements, or pre-announcements.

…storage device testing specialist Flexstar Technology announced a service for outsourcing the testing of SSDs. The Flexstar Testing Service Solutions program is aimed primarily at SSD manufacturers.

Flexstar Addresses Need for New Approach to Storage Testing

The Flexstar Testing Service Solutions program combines Flexstar's many years of industry knowledge with the company's most popular test systems to provide a complete and affordable testing solution for SSD customers. "Testing requirements don't just go away, and Flexstar has come up with a solution that allows smaller companies to test their products using the same Flexstar systems that the major HDD and SSD manufacturers are using," continued Lavia. "By outsourcing testing to Flexstar, companies can ensure the long term reliability of their drives - for a comparatively minimal investment."

Flexstar Addresses Need for New Approach to Storage Testing

Flexstar Technology believes that the solution to this problem is the outsourcing of the testing process, and is now offering testing services. By enabling SSD manufacturers to test the end product storage device and not just its component pieces, Flexstar's approach brings storage testing to new levels.