Enthusiast Transforms QLC SSD Into SLC With Drastic Endurance and Performance Increase

[Wirko]

In my opinion is deffo a market to have drives that in the vendor tool could be put into pure pSLC mode, I suppose the question is if any of them will figure the idea out. Right now their development path just seems to be to push out premium priced faster sequential drives.

Then it would become an SLC, as pure as it gets, without the "pseudo" part.

 

[Shrek]

Which would last even longer than pseudo SLC.

 

[lexluthermiester]

If I am understanding these numbers correctly, one more reason I am not touching a QLC drive.

As you shouldn't, IF you're buying a boot/OS drive. QLC is actually fairly ok for storage that doesn't require lots of repeated write performance.

Now, he is back with another equally interesting project of modifying a Quad-Level Cell (QLC) SATA III SSD into a Single-Level Cell (SLC) SATA III SSD.

This is excellent. Kinda shows what I've been saying for a few years. What would REALLY be excellent is if makers would build options into their firmware which would allow use users to dynamically select what mode to operate in, or ever dynamically select modes for specific address regions. Firmware's shouldn't be difficult to make.

 

[londiste]

Which would last even longer than pseudo SLC.

It really does not matter whether that is SLC or pseudo-SLC. Endurance is related to physical properties of the cell that remain the same when the cell is practically used as SLC.

 

[Shrek]

As you shouldn't, IF you're buying a boot/OS drive. QLC is actually fairly ok for storage that doesn't require lots of repeated write performance.

That is why I have an Optane P1600X on the way for my boot drive, so I don't need to worry about endurance or things slowing down; seems latency is amazing.

 

[GabrielLP14]

As you shouldn't, IF you're buying a boot/OS drive. QLC is actually fairly ok for storage that doesn't require lots of repeated write performance.


This is excellent. Kinda shows what I've been saying for a few years. What would REALLY be excellent is if makers would build options into their firmware which would allow use users to dynamically select what mode to operate in, or ever dynamically select modes for specific address regions. Firmware's shouldn't be difficult to make.

thanks in advance, unfortunately we'll never see manufacturers do that, but we do have SSDs that are pSLC by default, but are expensive AF.

 

[Shrek]

pSLC by default or SLC? I though SLC had even longer life than pSLC.

Don't get me wrong, it's a great project and I watch with great interest.

 

[Wirko]

Half-related and half off topic: if an SSD is supposed/expected/declared to switch to read-only mode when its firmware determines it's no longer safe for writing, what exactly does that mean? Are there any industry standards related to that? Specifically, is the SSD supposed to be dead after power cycling, or remain in read-only mode?

 

[GabrielLP14]

pSLC by default or SLC? I though SLC had even longer life than pSLC.

Don't get me wrong, it's a great project and I watch with great interest.

pSLC.
For example IIRC the AI TOP 100E from Gigabyte is in fact using Kioxia BiCS5 HDR 1Tb but runningthem in 341Gb mode (pSLC)

 

[chrcoluk]

pSLC.
For example IIRC the AI TOP 100E from Gigabyte is in fact using Kioxia BiCS5 HDR 1Tb but runningthem in 341Gb mode (pSLC)

Interesting on how that drive is achieving what it does, but its spec'd as 1TB, so is it 341GB or 1000GB with circa 3000GB nand?

 

[lexluthermiester]

That is why I have an Optane P1600X on the way for my boot drive, so I don't need to worry about endurance or things slowing down; seems latency is amazing.

Very cool. That drive should last you a long while.

unfortunately we'll never see manufacturers do that

Why not? If it would help them sell QLC based NAND, why wouldn't they?

 

[GabrielLP14]

Interesting on how that drive is achieving what it does, but its spec'd as 1TB, so is it 341GB or 1000GB with circa 3000GB nand?

its 4096GB running in pSLC mode getting about 1280GB of space with 1024GB of space and a lot of Over-provisioning

Very cool. That drive should last you a long while.


Why not? If it would help them sell QLC based NAND, why wouldn't they?

another point of failure perhaps and it would have to be developed a way to made these modifications, some simpler firmware updater tools might not do the job.

 

[chrcoluk]

its 4096GB running in pSLC mode getting about 1280GB of space with 1024GB of space and a lot of Over-provisioning


another point of failure perhaps and it would have to be developed a way to made these modifications, some simpler firmware updater tools might not do the job.

Thank you, so we know whats going on then, There is a 2TB model as well, so thats interesting also when you consider we have been told 8TB on a M.2 isnt possible.

 

[Wirko]

we have been told 8TB on a M.2 isnt possible

How so? There are multiple models available from Corsair, Adata, PNY, Teamgroup and Sabrent, and most are TLC. I guess many people simply ignore their existence because the prices are out of proportion with everything else, and in line with enterprise SSDs.

 

[chrcoluk]

How so? There are multiple models available from Corsair, Adata, PNY, Teamgroup and Sabrent, and most are TLC. I guess many people simply ignore their existence because the prices are out of proportion with everything else, and in line with enterprise SSDs.

Dont know about ignoring, me personally I wasnt aware of their existence. Typically models talked about on here, reveiewed by TPU are stated as 2TB or 4TB max SKU size. Thanks for informing me anyway.

Of course I am talking about consumer products though, so if they are priced at enterprise level, it sounds like they might be enterprise SKU's?

 

[lexluthermiester]

another point of failure perhaps and it would have to be developed a way to made these modifications, some simpler firmware updater tools might not do the job.

As the firmware of all NAND controllers determine when and how write cycles are handled, it would be nearly trivial to add in an option to lock out the second, third or fourth cell write cycle, effectively making a NAND cell(or block of cells) SLC, MLC, TLC or QLC, at the choice of the user.

 

[Wirko]

Dont know about ignoring, me personally I wasnt aware of their existence. Typically models talked about on here, reveiewed by TPU are stated as 2TB or 4TB max SKU size. Thanks for informing me anyway.

Of course I am talking about consumer products though, so if they are priced at enterprise level, it sounds like they might be enterprise SKU's?

Here are a few that are available in the UK (if you follow the link for the Sabrent Rocket 4 Plus, you can even find some reviews). And here a couple more for Germany. All consumer stuff. Enterprise M.2 actually ends at 3.84 TB - because many capacitors occupy the PCB space where flash chips "should" be (Micron 7450, Samsung PM9A3).

 

[_Fr4_]

Since my videos are mostly in Portuguese since i'm from Brazil, the english videos i usually leave a Flag just so people understand that it's in English ahahah


Indeed, this was a project to demonstrate only that it is possible as well.
I have other cool upcoming projects, such as disabling a DRAM Cache to show the real world impact in performance.
And one about over-provisioning showing how much it can affect performance.

What about the power consumption? I would like to do it for my homelab...usually enterprise hardware have lots of "problems" with idle states. Is it repeatable with another BX500?

 

[GabrielLP14]

What about the power consumption? I would like to do it for my homelab...usually enterprise hardware have lots of "problems" with idle states. Is it repeatable with another BX500?

i did show it on the review