How to choose a hard drive? Internal structure introduction and service life

There is no limit to the number of reads and writes for mechanical hard drives, but the mechanical structure has a lifespan. In theory, the lifespan of solid-state drives is indeed shorter than that of mechanical drives. However, in practical use, the normal service life of solid-state drives can currently reach 5-10 years. Due to their lack of mechanical structure, they are not afraid of collisions, falls, and power outages. Therefore, the editor believes that in practical applications, solid-state drives are relatively more durable. Let's start with traditional mechanical hard drives. The working principle of a mechanical hard drive is more like an optical drive. It has a hard disk drive (similar to a CD), a motor that drives the drive, and a magnetic head. It is a precision mechanical device. Its working principle is to use the high-speed rotation of the magnetic head to search. The information on the disk is completely closed, completing the data exchange work< Br/>


If not maintained, the mechanical structure will be damaged; Fatigue;. Therefore, if mechanical hard drives are used for a long time, they will produce noise and the seek time will increase. This is the main issue affecting the lifespan of mechanical hard drives< Br/>


The working principle of solid-state drives is more like a USB flash drive. Flash memory media stores data, and the main control chip controls the operation. The function of flash memory media is to enable integrated circuits to replace disks, write and read data through continuous charging and discharging, and complete data exchange through the main control chip. Solid state drives have no mechanical structure and do not require seek, so their read and write speeds are much faster than mechanical drives. However, due to the limited number of charging and discharging times of flash memory chips, each read and write is a charging and discharging process. Therefore, the lifespan of solid-state drives is mainly affected by the number of reads and writes and the capacity< Br/>


When it comes to mechanical hard drives, theoretically speaking, manufacturers of mechanical hard drives generally provide a 3-5 year warranty period for the hard drives. After the warranty period, mechanical hard drives may experience a decrease in data read and write speed and an increase in noise., Just like an engine, when a machine experiences aging problems, it needs maintenance but will not be scrapped, so the service life of a mechanical hard drive should be completely free of problems for 5-10 years, or even more< Br/>


The standard for determining the lifespan of a solid-state drive is generally the number of writes or the write capacity. Calculating the write capacity unit is not intuitive. There are also 4K and 8K random write capacities, usually calculated in TB and PB units. Usually, professionals and enthusiasts pay attention to write capacity. Here we also introduce the number of writes. According to the different types of flash memory chips (SLC, MLC), the SSD can read and write 10000 to 100000 times, professional level up to 1 million times, and the shortest lifespan range can also reach 5-10 years< Br/>


The number of writes does not mean that a solid-state drive will fail after 10000 uses, but rather that each storage unit can reach 10000-100000 times. There are many storage units in flash memory chips, and the main control chip will automatically allocate data to different storage units to share the risk of lifespan. Just like a public restroom with many toilets, each toilet can be used for 10000 yuan