Dear all
I am running Windows 7 on my SSD with the controller set to AHCI mode, so that the TRIM command will be passed through. You can see my full specs by clicking on my avatar; the SSD is a 128 GB Crucial RealSSD C300 and the mobo is an Asus P7P55D Delux.
I would like to run XP off the SSD also. However, I am aware that XP does not pass the TRIM command, and that it misaligns the partition on which it is installed in such a way that the SSD suffers severe write amplification. Between the lack of TRIM and the misalignment, the performance of the SSD will be degraded.
I am looking for some very specific answers to some questions, preferably with links to an article on the subject.
1) Out of curiousity, does the TRIM command cause all of the eligible space to be marked free, or does it have to be issued on a block-by-block or file-by-file basis? I ask because I am guessing that in the former case running Win7 would clean up my disk; in the latter it would not.
2) Is there a way to force XP to be properly aligned, or another workaround? Ideally, I would be able to simply clone my existing XP partition; I really don't feel like re-installing and re-configuring all that software.
3) Will the fabled Intel SSD Toolkit solve my problems? Will it work on a non-Intel SSD? Do I have to run it regularly to clean up the drive, sort of like defrag for a platter drive?
4) What else do I need to know, that I didn't ask, to run XP on an SSD and realize the full potential of the drive?
Thanks in advance
-Peter
Edit:
5) Is there a way to examine a partition and see if it is correctly aligned?
I am running Windows 7 on my SSD with the controller set to AHCI mode, so that the TRIM command will be passed through. You can see my full specs by clicking on my avatar; the SSD is a 128 GB Crucial RealSSD C300 and the mobo is an Asus P7P55D Delux.
I would like to run XP off the SSD also. However, I am aware that XP does not pass the TRIM command, and that it misaligns the partition on which it is installed in such a way that the SSD suffers severe write amplification. Between the lack of TRIM and the misalignment, the performance of the SSD will be degraded.
I am looking for some very specific answers to some questions, preferably with links to an article on the subject.
1) Out of curiousity, does the TRIM command cause all of the eligible space to be marked free, or does it have to be issued on a block-by-block or file-by-file basis? I ask because I am guessing that in the former case running Win7 would clean up my disk; in the latter it would not.
2) Is there a way to force XP to be properly aligned, or another workaround? Ideally, I would be able to simply clone my existing XP partition; I really don't feel like re-installing and re-configuring all that software.
3) Will the fabled Intel SSD Toolkit solve my problems? Will it work on a non-Intel SSD? Do I have to run it regularly to clean up the drive, sort of like defrag for a platter drive?
4) What else do I need to know, that I didn't ask, to run XP on an SSD and realize the full potential of the drive?
Thanks in advance
-Peter
Edit:
5) Is there a way to examine a partition and see if it is correctly aligned?