This turns traditional data overwriting into a strange game of musical chairs, and it might be a longer period of time before that free space is erased and replaced with new data. Your data was told to be erased, but rather than write over the old place, new data is written to a new block: To counteract this, “wear leveling” is utilized to write data evenly over the drive. If you erased and re-wrote data to the same block over and over, the drive would wear out far faster than its true lifespan. The problem is, each time an electronic command is sent to the SSD, a small amount of physical wear happens to the drive. These cells are organized into “pages,” and typically 64 pages are grouped into a “block.” Blocks can only be written into once fully, and then they have to be completely erased and re-written. Rather than creating a magnetic pattern, the data is electronically programmed into the storage cell. However, this doesn’t mean that your files are removed when you hit “delete.” Let’s go back to our spreadsheet example: So how does Flash memory work? Like its predecessor, the drive has read and write functionality, but it also has the ability to erase data. Modern SSDs commonly use NAND non-volatile flash memory. Typically, they use “non-volatile flash memory,” meaning that the device will retain data even if you turn off your computer, but others will have volatile memory similar to RAM, and use batteries to maintain power and retain their data. Unlike an HDD drive, most SSDs store and retrieve data via using only electronic circuits, without the use of any mechanical parts. SSDs are fundamentally different than HDDs in nearly every aspect of how they store data, though you might not notice a difference as you save, delete, and move files. They will need time to acclimate if moved from cold to warm environments, and vice versa. Sensitive to temperature, and can degrade if left in ambient temperatures over 95° F (35° C).HDDs can be subject to mechanical failures due to their many moving parts.Of the two kinds of storage, they are far easier to reliably erase and reuse, since there are standardized methods of doing so (ATA Secure Erase being the most common).Great solution if you’re focused less on performance and more on reliable function.The risk of sudden, catastrophic data loss is typically lower.Best choice for archiving information and mass storage, as they resist degradation over time if kept in a dry environment with a low temperature.Reliable over long periods of time (9-11 years if treated well).This is why files on hard drives are often recoverable even after they’ve been “deleted,” assuming of course that they have not been overwritten already. It’s the same with reformatting a drive essentially, you’re just ignoring the file or files until the hard drive fills that space with new information.īecause of this, the information is still there for a while, waiting to be overwritten. If you delete a file on your computer, you are telling the drive to treat the space like blank space. So what happens when you “delete” a file? The only commands that a traditional hard drive has are “read,” or “write.” Notice that there is no “erase” or “delete” command. This way, the drive can read the code later and pull the document up again. When you save files, the hard drive magnetically writes the binary code for them into storage cells: So what does this type of storage look like? Picture the capacity of your hard drive like a spreadsheet, like the picture below: One magnetic polarity correlates to “1,” and the other to “0,” so the disk can write and read in binary code. Reading and writing happens by slightly changing the magnetic pattern on the surface of the platter. A series of “platters,” or disks coated in a magnetic material, are rotated at high speed, while the read/write arm follows commands to read or write information, providing you with everything from programs to documents. This is the inside of your traditional hard drive, and it still uses the same style of electromagnetic tech that makes floppy disks and credit card strips work. Not all storage solutions are created equal for the same use case. This general guide should inform how they work, and what you should use the drives for. SSD: which should you put in your PC? While you might not see any difference when saving and moving files around on computers that use either traditional hard drives or SSDs, the two pieces of hardware couldn’t be more different in how they function.
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