Date: 27/10/2009

Intel's solid-state drive toolbox with its SSD optimizer offers high performance

Intel has made available its Solid-State Drive (SSD) toolbox with its SSD optimizer and firmware update, for its 34nm Intel X25-M Mainstream SATA SSDs to manage and enhance the performance of Intel SSDs.

For 34nm X25-M 160GB, the firmware update also offers a performance boost to sequential write speeds by delivering up to 100MB per second, a 40 percent performance improvement over the existing firmware version.

The firmware upgrade and Intel SSD optimizer use the Windows 7 ATA data sSet management command (known as Trim) to keep the Intel SSD running at continued high performance. In addition, the SSD Toolbox and Optimizer also allow the respective enhancements to work with Windows XP and Vista operating systems.

"Fast and reliable access to data is critical for our SSD users," said Pete Hazen, director of marketing, Intel NAND Solutions Group. "The latest firmware and toolbox upgrade for Intel 34nm SSD users provide a host of new management, information and diagnostic tools to help SSDs retain out-of-box performance. We are encouraging our 34nm customers to download the new firmware update today. Not only will Windows 7 users receive the performance enhancements of the Trim command, but so will our Windows XP and Vista users."

The Intel SSD Toolbox provides SSD management tools and information about the drive, including comparing Self-Monitoring and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T.) drive attributes to manufacturer threshold. It provides basic and full diagnostics, along with recommended actions. The Toolbox also features an easy-to-use graphical user interface that will allow end users to schedule and run the Trim command independent of the operating system. The company recommends users install the firmware update and toolbox, and run the Trim function daily to ensure best performance
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Editorial Product Rating: Average