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Is my M4 dying?

A

apav

Gawd
Joined
Sep 15, 2011
Messages
524
Hey guys,

I made a post a while back on the seven forums about issues I was having with my OS:
http://www.sevenforums.com/crashes-...lems-after-windows-update-using-verifier.html

If you look at the logs I attached in the 4th post of that thread, you'll see that we narrowed the problem down to my apparently dying Crucial M4 mSATA SSD.

I emailed Crucial to start an RMA and they replied:
"Thank you for contacting Crucial. In some cases it is possible to restore an SSD to full functionality simply by reconfiguring it, and we want to ensure that we don't put you through the inconvenience of an unnecessary RMA. I apologize if this causes you any inconvenience."

So the rep is asking me all these questions about my drive and my computer, but do you guys think it is possibly to reconfigure my drive to make it healthy again? Or can I just ask him to skip the troubleshoot and go straight to the RMA?

Some picks of Crystaldisk:
8263798610_2bdd4084a3_c.jpg

8263798564_d0e723c87b_c.jpg


What do you guys think? Is this M4 faulty and I should just RMA it right away?? I'm not really that familiar with HDD terms so I don't understand what the numbers mean on CrystalDisk.

Thanks!
 
It was my understanding that SSD's 'degrade' over time? Would this not be normal if you've had the drive for some time?
 
I've only had my SSD for 4 or 5 months. Here were the problems I was having a couple months ago.

Installed Windows on my SSD. A month later I started getting random BSOD's and lock ups. Backed up and re installed Windows because it was getting too frequent. I was fine for a while, but then I started having the problems I listed in that thread:

-My graphics drivers aren't working for some reason, and reinstalling failed
-My updates fail to install every time
-My system feels glitchy and unresponsive at times
Click to expand...

Backed up my data and installed my OS on my HDD. No lockups, BSOD's freezes, or any other problems that I have encountered before. It's hard to believe at this point it's not my SSD.

What else can I do to check if my SSD is definitely failing? At this point, since there is nothing on it, I may just RMA it now.
 
flash new firmware.
the early version had a bug with x amount of hours then started to bsod.
I flashed mine 4 times already hehe
Latest firmware is 040H
I used the windows flash version from desktop, worked fine for me, back up data first though.
Never had any issue with my ssd but I flashed firmware as soon they been out.
http://www.crucial.com/support/firmware.aspx
 
What else can I do to check if my SSD is definitely failing?
Click to expand...

You really can not check. The reason I say this is most SSD failures are a result of a firmware bug or bad SSD controller. Niether of these usually show up in the SMART data.


Have you updated the firmware?
 
I will third the comment on checking the firmware version, and if there is an upgrade available look into that.
 
Interesting. This is what Crucial had to say:

Thank you for contacting us. The behavior you are describing is consistent with TRIM commands not executing on the drive (which may result from lots of writing and rewriting, especially OS installs, not done on the OS level). The accumulation of 'junk' data from file deletions, even reformats, basically clogs up the drive and reduces or sometimes even halts performance and can even dismount the drive. A secondary feature called Garbage Collection activates when the drive is powered, but has no data throughput, for an extended period, and does background cleanup on our SSDs which can make up for the lack of TRIM.

If this is the cause of your drive's behavior, a period of idling the drive without any data being written or read actively will improve its performance. We recommend you perform this idle period on a desktop computer because it allows you to only connect the SATA power connection. However, a USB enclosure with an external power source will also work. A laptop computer will also work, but you’ll have to connect the drive and navigate to the systems BIOS menu. (Please refer to your system manufacturer’s documentation on how to access the BIOS.)

For laptops, we don’t recommended using a USB enclosure powered via USB; dedicated AC power is preferable. In addition, Apple users must hold the Option key while they power on the system (with the SSD installed). This will boot the Mac to the Startup Manager screen. The Startup Manager screen works like the BIOS screen on a laptop, in that it gives the drive power without any data throughput. An alternative Apple method is to close all open programs (including background processes) after startup and idle on your desktop. Just power the drive and let it sit, preferably overnight, but even a few hours should improve performance if this is the cause of your drive's erratic performance, though full Garbage Collection takes 8-24 hours and should be resumed when you can be without that system for an extended period.

However, if the Active Garbage Collection does not resolve the current issues, please write your RMA number on the outside of your package and return the product to Crucial within 10 business days.
Click to expand...

I don't have a means to do what they described, so I'll probably just rma it. Will the new SSD I will get come with upgraded firmware?
 
Why can't you upgrade the firmware and just leave the PC on for a few minutes without running any applications?
 
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I call bullshit on that advice from Crucial, at least part of it.

TRIM not working isn't going to cause BSODs nor the drive to 'dismount' (what wonderfully colorful wording!)

'clogs up the drive'? Seriously Crucial?


If you're confident the drive is the culprit insist they RMA it. I personally would try it out in another system first because the symptoms you describe don't immediately scream 'dying SSD' to me.
 
On a side note for updating firmware, is it safe to update the firmware of two SSD's in RAID0? Or will I have to re-install everything on them and re-create the array?
 
Anticommon said:
On a side note for updating firmware, is it safe to update the firmware of two SSD's in RAID0? Or will I have to re-install everything on them and re-create the array?
Click to expand...

Some people will argue back and forth, I'll just give you my personal experience:

Since I got my two M4s and have had them in RAID0 I've done two firmware updates. Both of them went perfect and I did not have to drop them out of RAID nor did I have to disable RAID in the BIOS.

I did, however, have to use the bootable USB method (the second method Crucial gives in their instructions) - the Windows based firmware updater won't work on drives in a RAID array.
 
It should be fine. The update installs a small dos boot in your system that boots directly into the update on your first reboot.

With that said you may want to try the iso (burn a cd) method instead that should be safer since it will not mess with your booting.
 
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