Should You Upgrade? From A Hard Drive To An SSD

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Should you buy a new processor for your next machine? How about a new graphics card? Have you given any thought to the status of your storage subsystem? We're making a case for incorporating solid-state technology the next time you're upgrade-shopping.

Test System

System Hardware for Performance Measurements
HardwareDetails
CPUIntel Core i5-2500K (Sandy Bridge) 32 nm, D2, 4C/4T, 3.3 GHz, 4 x 256 KB L2 Cache, 6 MB L3 Cache w/ HD Graphics 3000, 95 W TDP, 3.7 GHz max. Turbo Boost
Motherboard (LGA 1155)Gigabyte Z68X-UD3H-B3, Revision: 0.2, Chipset: Intel Z68 Express, BIOS: F3
RAM2 x 2 GB DDR3-1333, Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D
System SSDIntel X25-M G1, 80 GB, Firmware 0701, SATA 3 Gb/s
ControllerIntel PCH Z68 SATA 6 Gb/s
Power SupplySeasonic X-760 760 W, SS-760KM Active PFC F3
Benchmarks
Performance Measurementsh2benchw 3.16
PCMark 7 1.0.4
I/O PerformanceIometer 2006.07.27
File server Benchmark
Web server Benchmark
Database Benchmark
Workstation Benchmark
Streaming Reads
Streaming Writes
4K Random Reads
4K Random Writes
System Software & Drivers
DriverDetails
Operating SystemWindows 7 x64 Ultimate SP1
Intel Inf9.2.0.1030
Intel Rapid Storage10.​5.​0.​1026

Our test system
System Hardware for Power Draw Measurements (SSD Variant)
HardwareDetails
CPUIntel Core 2 Extreme X7800 (Merom), 65 nm, E1, 2C/2T, 2.6 GHz, 4 MB L2 Cache, 44 W TDP
Motherboard (Socket 478)MSI Fuzzy GM965, Revision: 1.0, Chipset: Intel GM965, BIOS: A9803IMS.220
RAM2 x 1 GB DDR2-666, Crucial BallistiX CM128M6416U27AD2F-3VX
System HDDWestern Digital WD3200BEVT, 320 GB, SATA 3 Gb/s, 5400 RPM
ControllerIntel ICH8-ME
Power SupplySeasonic X-760 760 W, SS-760KM Active PFC F3
Benchmarks
Video PlaybackVLC 1.1.1
Big_Buck_Bunny_1080p
I/O PerformanceIometer 2006.07.27
Database Benchmark
Streaming Writes
Operating System & Drivers
DriverDetails
Operating SystemWindows 7 x64 Ultimate SP1
Intel Inf9.2.0.1021
Intel Graphics15.12.75.4.64
System Hardware for Real-Life Tests
HardwareDetails
CPUIntel Core i3-530 (Clarkdale) 32 nm, C2, 2C/4T, 2.93 GHz, 2x 256 KB L2 Cache, 4 MB L3 Cache, w/ HD Graphics, 73 W TDP
Motherboard (LGA 1155)MSI H57M-ED65, Revision: 1.0, Chipset: Intel H57, BIOS: 1.5
RAM2 x 4 GB DDR3-1333, Kingston KHX1600C9D3K2/8GX
ControllerIntel PCH H57 SATA 3 Gb/s
Power SupplySeasonic X-760 760 W, SS-760KM Active PFC F3
Benchmarks
Performance MeasurementsSYSmark 2012
Operating System & Drivers
DriverDetails
Operating SystemWindows 7 x64 Ultimate SP1 (updated on 2011-08-10)
Intel Inf9.2.0.1030
Intel Rapid Storage10.6.0.1002

The following test results are representative of most SSDs and hard disks. The test components were chosen in order to make the best comparison between both variants. Our drives are tested on the very same systems. The object of this article is to explore the performance benefits of SSDs versus hard disks as system drives. The goal here isn't to suggest that SSDs are a cure-all for any performance issue, and we certainly don't recommend solid-state technology in a storage role, where the purpose is capacity-driven.

Patrick Schmid and Achim Roos