Help with SSD optimizing using a laptop SATA 3 port ?

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pipi_strello

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Hello all,

I am not at all computer savvy so I feel very ignorant about what I am about to ask - if you feel you can help please be very detailed and assume you are writing to someone who knows very little about the subject.

I recently bought a Samsung 860 evo 1tb SSD card to upgrade my PS4 PRO. I used it for a while and it was pretty good and quick. But than I made a mistake and followed a bad advice - and used it as an external storage for something else I had to do.
So I deleted all partitions and formatted the SSD to FAT32 and used it as external storage with a mounting device - worked just fine. when I was done, I deleted all the files and reinstall it as internal drive for the PS4pro. It didnt run as fast as it did when I first put it in the PS4PRO.... so I deleted all partitions and formatted to NTFS and installed again as PS4PRO internal hard drive. I think it now works faster than when formatted to FAT32 but slower than the first time I installed it in the PS4PRO.

Questions:
1. Will it do any good if I used Samsung Magician to Safe Erase this SSD and have it restore the factory bench marks... and then install it in the PS4PRO for the 4th time ?
2. I tried to do it with the mount I have but as most of you probably know the Samsung Magician wont acknowledge the SSD unless it is connected directly through a SATA 3 port.
3. I was advised to use my laptop for this - to take out the hard drive so I can use the SATA 3 port to connect the SSD. OK cool - but I don't get how I can take out the hard drive and still use the laptop with only an empty SSD connected to it. Like.... how can I use the Windows software and also the Samsung Magician software if I take the hard drive out ? USB ?
4. If the answer is - Yes you should Safe Erase, and Yes you can use your laptop for this and run the Magician from a USB - can you please give or refer to detailed instructions of all the necessary steps ?

I hope anyone here can answer some of these questions at least - thanks.
 
A secure erase will return it to factory condition, yes. Secure erase wipes the mapping table and sends a TRIM command to the entire drive, given a little bit of idle time it will erase the blocks. TRIM is an ATA command, however UNMAP via SCSI will work - this would be over USB (UASP). If Magician doesn't handle externally-connected drives you may be able to find some software that does, e.g. bootable Linux or in the BIOS.
 
TRIM... ATA... UNMAP via SCSI... UASP = OK that's very impressive (to me). Here's what I understand of what you say:
1. I think you are saying secure erase will probably result in improvement ?
2. I think you are saying I can use a non Samsung software to secure erase over USB (UNMAP vis SCSI?) rather than direct SATA 3.

Ok but the Samsung software will secure erase and also restore the Samsung model specific original Bench Marks (not sure I know what that is - commands as to where the disk should not be written over?).
Will a non-Samsung software will also restore the model specific Bench Marks and optimize it ?

Thank you for your advice !
 
A secure erase followed by block erase basically returns the drive to factory condition. Not precisely that, but effectively. The secure erase itself should send TRIM (as should a format with a supporting OS) although you can also run retrim, this can on some drives more or less make the data unreadable ("secure") but the blocks still need to be erased. A sanitize is a secure erase + block erase. Some information here and here. Keep in mind a trimmed drive will erase blocks when idle, it doesn't take long.

If you're using a USB enclosure it will have a bridge chip to communicate between SATA and USB. Modern enclosures support UASP or SCSI, the SCSI command UNMAP is the same as the ATA command TRIM. Although either way, a properly erased drive will return to peak performance quickly.
 
pipi_strello said:
Hello all,

I hope anyone here can answer some of these questions at least - thanks.
Click to expand...

you shouldn't have to format it as NTFS or FAT32 , so not sure why your doing that step

the PS4 Pro is far slower than a samsung 860 evo in any condition (more likely you need to clean all the dust off the heatsink inside the PS4)

make the samsung secure erase USB stick from the samsung magician and wipe the SDD from there when power off and put it right into the PS4 and put the USB stick into the PS4 with the "PS4 System Software Update"
 
Maxx said:
A secure erase followed by block erase basically returns the drive to factory condition. Not precisely that, but effectively. The secure erase itself should send TRIM (as should a format with a supporting OS) although you can also run retrim, this can on some drives more or less make the data unreadable ("secure") but the blocks still need to be erased. A sanitize is a secure erase + block erase. Some information here and here. Keep in mind a trimmed drive will erase blocks when idle, it doesn't take long.

If you're using a USB enclosure it will have a bridge chip to communicate between SATA and USB. Modern enclosures support UASP or SCSI, the SCSI command UNMAP is the same as the ATA command TRIM. Although either way, a properly erased drive will return to peak performance quickly.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the follow up - plus I think u helped finally understand what "secure erase" actually means !
 
likeman said:
you shouldn't have to format it as NTFS or FAT32 , so not sure why your doing that step

the PS4 Pro is far slower than a samsung 860 evo in any condition (more likely you need to clean all the dust off the heatsink inside the PS4)

make the samsung secure erase USB stick from the samsung magician and wipe the SDD from there when power off and put it right into the PS4 and put the USB stick into the PS4 with the "PS4 System Software Update"
Click to expand...

I formatted to FAT32 and then to NTFS because I thought I was being clever. I wasn't. I don't know computers very well.

"make the samsung secure erase USB stick from the samsung magician and wipe the SDD from there when power off and put it right into the PS4 and put the USB stick into the PS4 with the "PS4 System Software Update"
.... lol what ?!
 
pipi_strello said:
I formatted to FAT32 and then to NTFS because I thought I was being clever. I wasn't. I don't know computers very well.

"make the samsung secure erase USB stick from the samsung magician and wipe the SDD from there when power off and put it right into the PS4 and put the USB stick into the PS4 with the "PS4 System Software Update"
.... lol what ?!
Click to expand...
i was typing what i was thinking (did seem a bit like gibberish)

use samsung magician to Make the secure erase USB stick so you can Secure erase the SSD (unless the samsung magician can do it from inside windows, sure you had to boot into the USB or CD/DVD to use secure erase, as i have a USB stick for secure erasing used samsung SSDs i buy)
(ideally the above is inside a PC, as you might have to unplug the SSD and plug it back in so you can remove the secure erase lock, inside a laptop you could just slide it out and slide it back in)
put SSD into the PS4
put the PS4 into safe mode and put the USB stick in that has the PS4 System Software Update file on it (as the PS4 wont work until its been installed)

https://support.playstation.com/s/article/Replacing-Internal-Hard-Drive-on-PS4-Pro?language=en_US
 
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