Well the biggest difference is NAND is not the same thing as RAM. NAND is non volatile, meaning it retains what its stored when powered off. To clear NAND storage, voltage is applied to the module and it is then erased, but in doing so the voltage required to clear that area of memory goes up a little as the resistance changes each time its done. Eventually this will cause the chip to be no longer erasable, so what is written is there for good. Its not that the memory fails its that the ability to delete it and write again fails.
RAM is volatile so once one powers the system down for any length of time the RAM is effectively cleared and ready to take in more data.
Another reason it’s pointless is with a normal mechanical disk you would want your information to be read in a single contiguous chunk. This is because the mechanical disk works like a record player. A fragmented file is like a song that stops halfway through and picks up on another part of the record. This causes a time delay for actuation of the read heads to where the rest of the file is. Do this enough times and the access throughput of a given file is noticeably slower. Flash memory doesnt have this problem because there is no seek time for the file. The reason it’s pointless to defrag is precisely because there is no moving part to optimize for.
And yet a third reason its pointless is because once the data is written to the drive its handled by the NAND controller so the operating system doesnt actually have a clue which memory module its actually stored in. The controller acts as a go between for the OS so that it appears as a normal mechanical drive from the outside, just much much faster.
Mind Blown. I knew about NAND wear-out, but I didn’t know the technical details behind it. That’s cool. Theoretically, does this mean we could just throw more voltage at it and extend the life of the cells?
It should be noted that my explanation is a gross oversimplification. I dont think you can actually just give it a little more juice and try it again. Theres more to it than I’m going in to but for purposes of understanding its enough to get the idea.
Oh yeah, I get that it’s oversimplified. I’m just wondering if running it out of voltage spec (similar to overvolting a CPU for higher overclocks) would provide a little bit more life from the unit.
If I ever have an SSD wear out on me, I’ll have to play around with it.
Hmm I guess defragging an SSD is not ideal, but some say it is one way to force the drive’s internal trim features. The gains probably don’t outway the cost in life though.
Most drive manufacturers provide their own SSD tools that can issue a trim command if the OS doesn’t support it. If someone is not willing to hear that defragging is bad, maybe they can be convinced to use the tools from the drive’s manufacturer to look after it.
What a superb amount of info, I’ll pass it on, thank you very much @Adubs!
He’s not one for change (quite old)…I hope I don’t get like that, but likely will. In the same way I’ll drive around corners at 20mph that can be safely navigated at 60!
Luckily I don’t connect to his network, with anything more than a phone!
Couldn’t have said it better
I think I’ll install the SSD tool if he allows me, to find out!
Hmm, thought I’d check mine, think I’ve had it installed since last November 2017, from new (or rather a replacement for a defective drive).
Thought I’d look at the other computer with a Samsung drive in it, just for funzies. Installed in October 2017, I tend to name my C drives with the date of the OS install (170911 = 2017, 9th month, 11th day) so I know how old it is…possibly a bad practice? Just helps if I’m doing an install which doesn’t work.
Installed in October 2017, I tend to name my C drives with the date of the OS install (170911 = 2017, 9th month, 11th day) so I know how old it is…possibly a bad practice? Just helps if I’m doing an install which doesn’t work.