So what do I have to do now to my SSD??

hitman · 19 Feb 2010 at 07:55

I've had loads of help from people on here setting up my SSD-it took me ages to install firmware update I managed now, I originally started on IDE mode button now running AHCI. I've installed the Intel SSD toolbox and have run the optimiser and as you can see my benchmark test is much better. I set up Windows with a number of tweaks and it's running well.

What should I do now?

Most people seem to recommend reformatting the disc and running a HCI from the start, and copying windows across to a second hard drive and then moving back after reinstalling the SSD. Is this what people would recommend?
Here's my recent benchmark:
AS SSD Benchmark 1.4.3645.3568
------------------------------
Name: INTEL SSDSA2M080G2GC ATA Device
Firmware: 2CV102HD
Controller: msahci
Offset: 103424 K - OK
Size: 74.53 GB
Date: 19/02/2010 07:40:34
------------------------------
Sequential:
------------------------------
Read: 253.43 MB/s
Write: 81.27 MB/s
------------------------------
4K:
------------------------------
Read: 19.94 MB/s
Write: 39.41 MB/s
------------------------------
4K-64Threads:
------------------------------
Read: 119.29 MB/s
Write: 34.53 MB/s
------------------------------
Access Times:
------------------------------
Read: 0.140 ms
Write: 0.117 ms
------------------------------
Score:
------------------------------
Read: 165
Write: 82
Total: 330
------------------------------

cheers for the help everybody

just read my heading and perhaps it should read, what should I do to my SSD now? LOL

Chandler_90 · 19 Feb 2010 at 10:39

I was under the impression that installing intel drivers/matrix/toolbox disabled the automatic TRIM function...

Other than that I think your drive looks like it's running at optimal settings..

hitman · 19 Feb 2010 at 11:53

The Intel SSD Optimizer in the toolbox uses Trim which I'm sure can be set to automatic

hitman · 19 Feb 2010 at 19:22

what about re-formatting and running AHCI from the start - will this make much differnce to my ssd??

Zarf · 19 Feb 2010 at 21:16

You don't have to do anything, it looks like your drive is running fine for a used state drive. You can mess about with imaging it, secure erasing and then restoring the image, but it'll feel exactly the same to use and only buy you a week or two before it's back to the same performance level in benchmarks.

Makes no difference if you enabled AHCI afterwards.

hitman · 19 Feb 2010 at 21:57

You don't have to do anything, it looks like your drive is running fine for a used state drive. You can mess about with imaging it, secure erasing and then restoring the image, but it'll feel exactly the same to use and only buy you a week or two before it's back to the same performance level in benchmarks.

Makes no difference if you enabled AHCI afterwards.

cheers Zarf, didnt feel like installing everything again, and now I know spore can only be installed 3 times its a good thing. Going to set up my mech hd and enjoy

Outpost262 · 19 Feb 2010 at 22:59

Can't see that the benchmark is much better. This is what you posted here six days ago:
http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=15952720&postcount=31

AS SSD Benchmark 1.4.3645.3568
------------------------------
Name: INTEL SSDSA2M080G2GC ATA Device
Firmware: 2CV102HA
Controller: msahci
Offset: 103424 K - OK
Size: 74.53 GB
Date: 13/02/2010 06:20:08
------------------------------
Sequential:
------------------------------
Read: 253.00 MB/s
Write: 71.39 MB/s
------------------------------
4K:
------------------------------
Read: 16.63 MB/s
Write: 27.17 MB/s
------------------------------
4K-64Threads:
------------------------------
Read: 126.81 MB/s
Write: 57.69 MB/s
------------------------------
Access Times:
------------------------------
Read: 0.164 ms
Write: 0.164 ms
------------------------------
Score:
------------------------------
Read: 169
Write: 92
Total: 344
------------------------------

So your current bench seems a bit worse as an overall result. I haven't noticed any slow down after a couple of weeks of my setup so I wouldn't have thought you'd be suffering that yet.

I'm not sure why it's off the mark compared to the 400s results typical for this drive. Perhaps the SATA controllers on the AMD motherboards aren't as well honed to Intel drives as Intel chipsets are, though if this performance difference was typical I would have thought there'd be a lot of discussion about it online. I can't find any.

Did you check your cable is a SATA 2? Maybe try another SATA port.

hitman · 20 Feb 2010 at 06:01

So your current bench seems a bit worse as an overall result. I haven't noticed any slow down after a couple of weeks of my setup so I wouldn't have thought you'd be suffering that yet.

I'm not sure why it's off the mark compared to the 400s results typical for this drive. Perhaps the SATA controllers on the AMD motherboards aren't as well honed to Intel drives as Intel chipsets are, though if this performance difference was typical I would have thought there'd be a lot of discussion about it online. I can't find any.

Did you check your cable is a SATA 2? Maybe try another SATA port.

Look9ing at the two tests, you're right performance has got worse! Dont know why - I havent changed the cable but still not sure why its not around 400?? Is this a hardware issue. Tempted to try re-formatting and running on AHCI from the start but then I have issues with re-installing software and licences! Wonder if I should contact OC about this ??

hitman · 20 Feb 2010 at 06:16

After reading this again Ive run another benchtest again and the performance of the ssd has got worse again!
Abyone know why this is?

AS SSD Benchmark 1.4.3645.3568
------------------------------
Name: INTEL SSDSA2M080G2GC ATA Device
Firmware: 2CV102HD
Controller: msahci
Offset: 103424 K - OK
Size: 74.53 GB
Date: 20/02/2010 06:13:45
------------------------------
Sequential:
------------------------------
Read: 252.40 MB/s
Write: 60.59 MB/s
------------------------------
4K:
------------------------------
Read: 19.77 MB/s
Write: 28.09 MB/s
------------------------------
4K-64Threads:
------------------------------
Read: 108.14 MB/s
Write: 37.50 MB/s
------------------------------
Access Times:
------------------------------
Read: 0.137 ms
Write: 0.113 ms
------------------------------
Score:
------------------------------
Read: 153
Write: 72
Total: 302
------------------------------

VortexA1 · 20 Feb 2010 at 07:32

hitman said:
After reading this again Ive run another benchtest again and the performance of the ssd has got worse again!
Abyone know why this is?

AS SSD Benchmark 1.4.3645.3568
------------------------------
Name: INTEL SSDSA2M080G2GC ATA Device
Firmware: 2CV102HD
Controller: msahci
Offset: 103424 K - OK
Size: 74.53 GB
Date: 20/02/2010 06:13:45
------------------------------
Sequential:
------------------------------
Read: 252.40 MB/s
Write: 60.59 MB/s
------------------------------
4K:
------------------------------
Read: 19.77 MB/s
Write: 28.09 MB/s
------------------------------
4K-64Threads:
------------------------------
Read: 108.14 MB/s
Write: 37.50 MB/s
------------------------------
Access Times:
------------------------------
Read: 0.137 ms
Write: 0.113 ms
------------------------------
Score:
------------------------------
Read: 153
Write: 72
Total: 302
------------------------------

I know where youre coming from but tbo I wouldn't worry about it.

Other things could've been running in the background at the same time. I'm sure that your windows performance feels just as snappy as before.

I'm not being flippant or anything but we can all do it sometimes - worry a lot about our 'computer benchmarks'.

You still have good performance from your SSDs

hitman · 20 Feb 2010 at 10:01

cheers vortex
no nothing running inthe background but I am just inclined to leave it

VortexA1 · 20 Feb 2010 at 12:34

Yw m8

Outpost262 · 20 Feb 2010 at 18:12

hitman said:
...I am just inclined to leave it

Given that your drive is prone to running at only three-quarters of its true potential, I would be inclined to persist in finding out why. After all, the speed of these things is what we pay a lot of money for.

There's still some investigation you can do without formatting and reinstalling. Trying another SATA cable and another SATA port are obvious easy things to rule out. Taking a careful look through your bios settings might throw up some obscure setting that's slowing things up.

Another worthwhile move is to put the SSD as a secondary drive into another computer (preferably a recent Intel based model) - then run the benchmark there. If it runs at full speed in that situation then you know the drive isn't malfunctioning.

And that's what you need to know - whether you have a duffer or not.

hitman · 20 Feb 2010 at 19:49

And that's what you need to know - whether you have a duffer or not.

Do you think its possible then?? FWIW Ive got it in SATA 0 which I thought was the best place for it?
Going to order a new mouse from OC, so will order a new cable at the same time and will see if I can find someone with a pentium pc

Outpost262 · 20 Feb 2010 at 21:31

hitman said:
...with a pentium pc

Stretching the definition of "recent Intel based" just a little too much there...

Zarf · 20 Feb 2010 at 22:11

Did you run a toolbox trim before that last bench?

Honestly though unless you are actually feeling any slowdown, don't spend too much time stressing - life's too short to endlessly bench and rebuild your pc.

hitman · 20 Feb 2010 at 22:43

Outpost262 · 21 Feb 2010 at 00:01

Certainly there'd be no point poncing about if the score was 399 instead of 407, but 302 - 340 indicates a problem somewhere in the chain. Having just paid a small fortune for 80Gb of rapid storage I'd want to either solve the problem or rule my new purchase out as a guilty party.

If it turns out to be, say, the controllers on the AMD motherboard being not-so-hot, then sure, relax and move on. But at least rule out a problem with the drive. Otherwise it could be time-bomb city.

hitman · 21 Feb 2010 at 07:42

My new score this morning after doing nothing to the SSD !!!

AS SSD Benchmark 1.4.3645.3568
------------------------------
Name: INTEL SSDSA2M080G2GC ATA Device
Firmware: 2CV102HD
Controller: msahci
Offset: 103424 K - OK
Size: 74.53 GB
Date: 21/02/2010 07:42:07
------------------------------
Sequential:
------------------------------
Read: 252.13 MB/s
Write: 85.64 MB/s
------------------------------
4K:
------------------------------
Read: 19.49 MB/s
Write: 39.49 MB/s
------------------------------
4K-64Threads:
------------------------------
Read: 128.50 MB/s
Write: 58.80 MB/s
------------------------------
Access Times:
------------------------------
Read: 0.143 ms
Write: 0.107 ms
------------------------------
Score:
------------------------------
Read: 173
Write: 107
Total: 368
------------------------------

AWPC · 21 Feb 2010 at 08:52

Are you using a SATA3 cable as I found SATA2 lacks performance compared to SATA3?

Try using the Intel iastor drivers as these appear to be much faster on Vista vs the MSAHCI drivers.

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showpost.php?p=15997921&postcount=10