SSD
Hello,
I recently purchased a PCI Express SSD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227598 card for a client. I had to load the drivers for this SSD before I could load Windows 7. Once I loaded Windows 7 I didn't seem to notice any speed difference, nor did my client. My Client uses Photoshop and Lightroom and is complaining of slow opening, and modifying speeds when working in Lightroom compared to his normal hard drives. His machine is a Dell Precision T5500.
I recently purchased a PCI Express SSD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227598 card for a client. I had to load the drivers for this SSD before I could load Windows 7. Once I loaded Windows 7 I didn't seem to notice any speed difference, nor did my client. My Client uses Photoshop and Lightroom and is complaining of slow opening, and modifying speeds when working in Lightroom compared to his normal hard drives. His machine is a Dell Precision T5500.
ASKER
Hi sublifer,
He is working from files from his internal server, he pulls the files into Lightroom/Photoshop and makes changes to those files from the server. His SSD is setup as a RAID0 and all programs are stored on his SSD, he does not have files on his SSD that he is working with, those files once again are all on the server. No other hard drives are in this machine now.
He is working from files from his internal server, he pulls the files into Lightroom/Photoshop and makes changes to those files from the server. His SSD is setup as a RAID0 and all programs are stored on his SSD, he does not have files on his SSD that he is working with, those files once again are all on the server. No other hard drives are in this machine now.
ahhh, okay then. If you're working from networked files then that is probably going to be the biggest bottleneck. With the SSD he should see a faster startup on the OS and the application should open quicker IF he is not opening a remote file with the application (double-clicking the file he wants to open) Have him go to the start menu and try opening the application alone. That should be much quicker.
If you want to speed up the file opening and editing then you'll either need to speed up the file server's drives or the network in between the workstation and the server.
Let me know if I can be of any further help.
If you want to speed up the file opening and editing then you'll either need to speed up the file server's drives or the network in between the workstation and the server.
Let me know if I can be of any further help.
ASKER
his internal network now is 10/100/1000 and his NIC and the servers NIC are 1GIG capable. And yes, his files that he is working on are all on the server, his programs are installed on the SSD drive.
Even though he is using an SSD, opening and editing files that are on the server are going to be dependant on the speed of the network and the server.
You can check to make sure that the server and workstation network cards are operating in gigabit mode. Also, not all gigabit network devices are equal. It may work on gig-e but the controller in the card/switch/router may not be capable of the fastest possible throughputs.
Another thing to be aware of, gigabit speed ~= 1000megaBITS per second. Divide that by 8 to see megabytes per second, the common hdd speed metric. You'll get 125 megaBYTEs per second. This is fast but some hard drives are much faster. That SSD is much faster. The server might still be slower though. What kind of storage do you have on the server?
You can check to make sure that the server and workstation network cards are operating in gigabit mode. Also, not all gigabit network devices are equal. It may work on gig-e but the controller in the card/switch/router may not be capable of the fastest possible throughputs.
Another thing to be aware of, gigabit speed ~= 1000megaBITS per second. Divide that by 8 to see megabytes per second, the common hdd speed metric. You'll get 125 megaBYTEs per second. This is fast but some hard drives are much faster. That SSD is much faster. The server might still be slower though. What kind of storage do you have on the server?
ASKER
I have 300GB SATA 3GBPS on the Server with speeds at 10000RPM per drive. So you think that it may be better for him in terms of speeds to modify the photos on his machine and then upload to server once he is finished?
Yes, it will be much quicker to do it that way.
Is that just a single drive on the server or a two drive RAID 1 mirror? If so then you only get the speed of one drive and SATA 3gbps is SATA II that is theoretically limited to ~280MBps though a spindle based drive will actually be much slower. Probably ~180MBps read and ~120MBps write
But yes, if he wants it to go faster then have him keep a working copy on his workstation and save a backup copy to the server at regular intervals.
Is that just a single drive on the server or a two drive RAID 1 mirror? If so then you only get the speed of one drive and SATA 3gbps is SATA II that is theoretically limited to ~280MBps though a spindle based drive will actually be much slower. Probably ~180MBps read and ~120MBps write
But yes, if he wants it to go faster then have him keep a working copy on his workstation and save a backup copy to the server at regular intervals.
ASKER
RAID6 on the server, 12 drives installed and a RAID1/0 for this OS. So, if he modifies his files on his machine with the SSD drive then he should see more of an improvement? Is there anything else I need to look for that may be slowing him down?
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ASKER
ok, thanks alot for your help....
You're quite welcome.
Depending on the previous drive setup, certain aspects of the drive may actually not be faster.
SSD's excel in IOPS and random reads, sustained reads will trade blows with standard drives and sustained write speeds on SSDs are usually slower than standard drives. The exact speeds will depend on a number of things and in general its best to gather this info from hardware reviews where they display actual results rather than just theoretical results.
That said, the revo drive is actually quite good so you made a good pick. Why he thinks it isn't any faster could be his own perception and the fact that he was expecting much more from this upgrade than he is perceiving. Here is a review of the drive that compare the drive to a couple of fast SSD's and a velociraptor (fastest of the traditional spindle based drives)
Another possible explanation is that the drive may require a period of usage before the drive learns what information to cache to improve performance.
Good luck,
sublifer