[Hardware ] SSD Benefits

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Enterprise and consumer hardware has advanced in the last few years to the point that anything with moving parts becomes a significant bottleneck for data transfer. Hard disk drives (HDDs) are often the “weakest link” in serving information from a data center to the end user. In high IO environments (such as virtual desktop infrastructures), a slow, mechanical device like an HDD is simply going to significantly slow down data storage and retrieval. The benefits of a solid state drive (SSD), the newest trend in data storage hardware, remove this bottleneck.

Because SSDs use flash memory instead of magnetic disks, there are no mechanical parts which can fail due to extreme temperatures, falls, or simple mechanical failure. However, there is more to know about choosing between HDDs and SSDs for an enterprise data center. Here are some advantages and disadvantages of SSDs, as well as possible solutions for your enterprise data storage.

 

 

SSDs offer numerous advantages of the traditional mechanical HDDs that have been used for decades.

Speed: the primary benefit of SSDs is speed, which delivers up to 100 times the performance of HDDs. This translates to faster boot times, quicker file transfers, and greater bandwidth for enterprise computing.
Lifetime Cost: Though cost for hardware is lower with HDDs, cost for bandwidth (in terms of $/GB) is much lower with SSDs. This is often a more important measure for enterprises than simple drive capacity per dollar. Enterprise SSDs are also expected to have a longer lifespan, making the cost savings add up in the long run.
Power Consumption: Ideally, SSDs consume less power than HDDs. This leads to cost savings, as well as decreased heat loss during operation when compared to HDDs.
Though SSDs deliver on the above advantages, there are some disadvantages when choosing them over HDDs.

Upfront Cost: While SSDs can ideally have a lower lifetime cost, the upfront cost for SSDs is much higher than HDDs. Price convergence in the consumer hard drive industry is misleading, as enterprise SSDs still cost several times the price of comparable storage for HDDs.
Gradual Wear: Like all flash storage, SSDs have a limited number of times data can be written, erased, and rewritten to a portion of the drive. However, as SSD technology advances, so do the lifespans of the drives. Additional read/write techniques may also be used to optimize drive life.
Maximum Capacity: Right now, the maximum capacity of an SSD is limited. However, advancements in flash memory are consistently increasing the storage capacity of SSDs.
 

SSD vs HDD Reliability

An important factor to consider when deciding which type of drive to use in a data center is drive reliability. As mentioned, all flash memory gradually wears out. Though the limited number of read/write cycles for an SSD would be more than enough for consumer applications, enterprise data centers may use many times the data transfer a consumer would ever need.

However, HDDs are not immune to drive failure. Drive heads can collapse, or other mechanical parts can seize and potentially cause data loss.

Where SSDs excel in reliability is in extremes. Unlike mechanical HDDs, SSDs are able to survive drops, extreme heat and cold, extreme pressure, and other physical conditions that would put an HDD out of commission.

A Common Solution
One way many enterprise data centers have balanced out the advantages and disadvantages of SSDs is to use a mix of SSD and HDD in their hardware stacks. This provides an ideal mix of benefits (such as increased bandwidth but with a lower cost than a “pure” SSD stack).

If you are evaluating disk storage solutions for your enterprise organization, contact Patriot for a consultation. Our experienced team can help determine which solution – SSDs, HDDs, or a mix of both – would best serve the data needs of your organization.

Top 6 Advantages of SSD ; 

 

SSDs have transformed into the newest trend in data storage hardware and their use is expected to become more and more common as time goes by. Undoubtedly, the importance of hard disk drives (HDDs) is huge. Yet, comparing it to that of SSD, it somehow wears itself out. As a result, hard disk drives could be said to become the weakest link when it comes to distributing information from a data center to an end user. But what exactly does a SSD have to offer? What are its benefits?

Durability and resistance
SSDs are more resistant and durable. For example, if a person happened to drop his/her laptop on the ground and it had a Solid State Drive installed, the screen would probably break before the SSD. That’s what we mean by SSD durability and resistance.

Speed
SSD has access speed of 35 to 100 micro-seconds which delivers 100 times the performance of HDDs. This results in instant-load performance, which equals faster boot times, faster application loading times, and better system responsiveness.

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Easier to carry
Since SSDs have lightweight components or moving parts, they are more mobile-friendly and are much better suited for constant traveling.

Efficiency and reliability
The solid state drive uses flash memory to store data, which provides a better reliability and efficacy over hard disk drives. Moreover, since SSDs don’t have any moving parts, they use less power to function. Respectively, users can benefit from longer battery life for their laptops.

 

Easy installation
Installing SSDs is easy and doesn’t require any previous experience. Just a screwdriver, perhaps.

Increased variety in size
Solid State Drive  can be purchased in 2.5″, 1.8″, and 1.0″. With such characteristics, solid state drives can easily and quickly replace hard disk drives. It is no surprise, then, to say that most computer owners are recommended to use SSDs as the primary drive for their operating system and most important programs.

 

So, is SSD Worth It?
Although the above usage cases are SSD sweet spots in the enterprise, this will raise prices on storage media purchases, and require more SSD swaps than hard drive media. Are SSDs worth the extra time and cost?

In high performance environments, yes. Because SSD form factors are the same as HDDs, replacing disk with SSDs is not a major technology refresh. And because of their higher performance and falling prices, SSDs continue to be a highly competitive storage media in the data center.