Storage Devices

What is the max RPM in modern HDDs

15k

What is the laptop form factor

2.5-inch

What is an HDD form factor for desktops

3.5-inch

NVMe features

1. Developed specifically for SSDs

2. Uses the PCIe interface for data transfer

SATA interface features

1. Common in 2.5-inch SSDs replacing traditional HDDs

2. Widely used in consumer-grade laptops and desktops

3. An older interface originally designed for mechanical hard drives

4. Capped at a maximum data transfer rate of 6 Gbps

What is PCIe

A general purpose high-speed interface that serves as the backbone for NVMe SSDs and other high-performance hardware devices

SAS features

1. Designed for systems requiring high redundancy, error correction, and uptime

2. Optimized for multi-drive configuration in a daisy-chain technology

3. Commonly implemented in mission-critical environments like servers and data centers

What is an M.2 key

A notch on the pin contact surface to prevent its insertion into an incompatible socket with 12 available keys (A-M)

What did M.2 supersede

mSATA

Standard SSD form factors

1. M.2

2. mSATA

RAID 0 features

1. Requires minimum of 2 drives

2. Disk striping

3. Decreases reliability (Failure of 1 disk results in loss of all data in array)

4. Is suitable for systems where performance takes precedence

RAID 1 features

1. Requires at least 2 drives

2. Improves reliability by duplicating data on each drive (If one drive fails, data remains accessible)

3. Disk mirroring

RAID 5 features

1. Requires at least 3 drives

2. Offers both increased performance and fault tolerance (A single drive does not result in data loss; the array can rebuild the missing data

3. Striping with parity

RAID 6 features

1. Requires at least 4 drives

2. Offers increased performance and fault tolerance (Up to 2 drives can fail without data loss

3. Striping with double parity

RAID 10 (RAID 1+0) features

1. Requires at least 4 drives

2. Offers increased performance and fault tolerance (The array can survive of one drive in each mirrored pair)

3. a stripe of mirrors

What RAID config does not have fault tolerance

RAID 0

What RAID config has the greatest level of redundancy

RAID 6

What RAID config offers best performance

RAID 0

Flash drive characteristics

1. Plug-and-play across most devices supporting USB

2. Non-volatile, rewritable storage media type

3. Solid-state memory technology

4. Designed for general purpose file transfer and storage

What differentiates memory cards from flash drives

1. Compatible with dedicated slots or card readers

2. Primarily designed to expand storage capacity of compact electronics

What do modern laptops no longer include built-in

Optical drives