SSD storage technology reached home users in the last decade, but some people still wonder what an SSD is . This technology remains relatively new outside of enthusiast and hobbyist circles, and it's important to understand it now that it's becoming more widespread.
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What is an SSD?
SSD stands for Solid State Drive. It's a type of storage comparable to hard drives. A Solid State Drive is completely stationary because it uses non-volatile memory instead of magnetic disks and moving parts like traditional hard drives. This results in much faster read and write speeds and lower energy consumption.
For practical purposes for many home users, it is a faster and quieter hard drive. For higher-end users, it is a much more stable storage system, with fewer errors and lower power consumption. Because their technology is relatively new and their demand from home users is lower, they tend to have higher prices than a hard drive of the same storage because for now their demand is for a somewhat more technical level.
Recommended Uses of SSD
Using an SSD as a boot drive: This refers to using the SSD as the storage from which the operating system is run and loaded, whether it's Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Windows 11, any Linux distribution, etc. Because an SSD has high read and data transfer speeds, the operating system loads much faster when starting up or restarting than if it's loading from a hard drive.
It will also make its functions and the loading of applications within the operating system itself much faster. These days, installing Windows on an SSD instead of a hard drive is highly recommended because it improves the user experience, even for casual users, as the application loading speed is always noticeable. This is so widespread that an SSD is a requirement for Windows 11, since its functions and applications are optimized for SSDs.
Fast game and application loading: If you're an avid gamer, you'll want to install your games on your SSD. This can be a problem if your storage capacity is limited, below 256 GB, since with 128 GB, the operating system and other applications can quickly fill that space.
If you have space, it is advisable to install games that have a lot of load times on an SSD. For example, a seemingly simple, decade-old game like Dark Souls loads much faster, and it is appreciated if you get beaten a lot; or Genshin Impact with a much faster start. More and more games are putting as a minimum requirement that it be installed on a Solid State Disk because they can put larger resources and more often, as World of Warcraft already asks from the Shadowlands expansion, or Microsoft Flight Simulator. That is, games that you play daily or require a lot of data transfer, it is recommended to use an SSD.
Similarly, we can apply it to browsers, office automation or work tools such as the Adobe suite. As all the internal resources are in an SSD, the processes will go much faster than if we store the applications and programs on a hard drive.
Disadvantages of SSDs
Although we have actively recommended using an SSD for loading operating systems and frequently used programs, it is not recommended to use it for storing important data. Due to the fact that despite having a low power consumption, they require a small amount of power to maintain the saved data, and a long time disconnected can cause them to be lost. And once data is lost, it is difficult to recover. In this way we recommend that if you save important files on an SSD, you have backup copies in the cloud such as Dropbox or Drive, or on a hard drive.
Another big problem they present is that their use over time degrades the components. SSDs have a maximum rating of TeraBytes Written, which is the amount of data they can write and erase before failing. The useful life of an SSD is about ten years for normal use, although these can be shortened more quickly if we use them in a really exhaustive way, such as the mining of the Chia cryptocurrency in an extreme use case.
How to install an SSD in the PC
First you have to know what type of SSD we have, if it is SATA or if it is NVME, since they will require different installations.
If it's a SATA SSD , installation involves connecting the SATA power cable and a SATA data cable to the motherboard. This requires opening the desktop or laptop case and using the correct connectors. A non-modular or semi-modular power supply should already provide enough SATA power cables to power multiple storage drives.
Next, you will need SATA data cables, ideally one for each drive; that are quite accessible economically. SATA SSDs are characterized by easy installation and being automatically detected by the operating system.
In the case of NVMe SSDs , installation can vary from simply connecting it to one of the motherboard's PCIe slots to connecting it to the NVMe port found on many modern motherboards. With the latter, you may need to install the connectors using screwdrivers, so for safety, handle the computer with the power supply turned off or disconnected, and if possible, use an anti-static wrist strap to avoid damaging motherboard components.
A small drawback that this model of SSD has, is that they require a heatsink to avoid damaging them or nearby components. The heatsinks are quite large, which in fairly compact equipment can be a problem.
If we are mounting an SSD to be the boot disk of the PC, the storage system must have a version of the operating system. In the event that we are mounting a PC from scratch and we put a new SSD, either SATA or NVMe, we will have to connect a USB or put a disk with an image file of the operating system that we want to install, and run it from the BIOS of the motherboard.
SSD or Hard Drive for your PC?
It's inevitable that this has sparked a debate about whether it's better to use an SSD or a hard drive. SSD vs. HDD . We've already discussed the advantages of a Solid State Drive, such as low power consumption and speed. But speed isn't everything in a computer. Ideally, you should combine the use of a hard drive and a solid state drive, as it's not impossible for a system to use both simultaneously.
In favor of HDDs is that they are especially safe for storing important files, and they are also cheaper in relation to their storage. They're still great for vast Steam game libraries and the Epic Games Store if they're games we play sporadically or aren't going to get much better with faster loading. Hard drives are also ideal for those important files that we need not to lose but do not need to constantly consult, such as invoices, receipts or bureaucratic or accounting files.
Ideally, a PC should have both, since having at least a 512GB SSD and a 2TB hard drive only slightly increases the final cost. This way, you get the speed of an SSD for loading the operating system and applications, along with the security and storage capacity of a hard drive.
What is the useful life of an SSD drive?
SSDs have a more limited lifespan than hard drives. This is because the components degrade due to their use over time, an example of this is the SSD units intended for Chia mining, which stopped working in just a month. The useful life of an SSD is approximately ten years, a time limit that many people tend to ignore and forget, and which is shorter than hard drives.
How does an SSD wear out?
SSDs wear out due to writing data, as happens when saving files. Every time a NAND flash memory cell is written, a small amount of wear or degradation occurs. This is not noticeable at first, but over time, this degradation becomes noticeable, causing the SSD to lose efficiency and eventually causing errors.
What should not be done with an SSD?
Unlike a hard drive, an SSD doesn't need to be defragmented , as this would reorganize storage that doesn't benefit from defragmentation, something a hard drive does. It's also not recommended to clean up files or use an operating system not optimized for SSDs. Furthermore, it's not recommended to perform constant or heavy write operations on an SSD, as we mentioned earlier regarding intensive Chia mining.
Where is the SSD placed?
An SSD can be placed in the 2,5″ hard drive slots of a PC tower, if it is not an M.2 format SSD. If it is an M.2 like an M.2 NVMe, the SSD connects to the M.2 slots on the motherboard, as long as it is the size that allows, and screwing the SSD to the motherboard.
Where is it better to install Windows on SSD or HDD?
It's always best to install Windows on an SSD, because running the operating system on a faster storage system means it will load in just a few seconds . SSDs are ideal for storing the operating system and some of the most demanding games.
How long does it take to boot Windows 10 with SSD?
If Windows 10 or 11 is installed on an SSD, its boot time can be as little as 20 seconds, although it will depend on the transfer speed of the SSD.
What happens if I unplug the SSD?
You can disconnect an SSD from a computer without any problem of losing data, and reinstall it in another system without problems. But you have to do it with the system turned off to avoid problems.
