| 1 | = NVME Solid State Storage |
| 2 | |
| 3 | NVME (nonvolatile memory express) storage is a solid state storage option to be was primarily started for use in consumer laptops but is also able to be used on Gateworks SBCs. |
| 4 | |
| 5 | This is different than mSATA discussed [wiki:sata here] |
| 6 | |
| 7 | Note Venice SBCs don't support mSATA, thus the desire for NVME support. |
| 8 | |
| 9 | == Signals |
| 10 | |
| 11 | The biggest thing to note about NVME is that it typically uses QTY 4 PCIe lanes for super high speeds. |
| 12 | However, Gateworks SBCs have Mini-PCIe slots that have a single PCIe lane. Thus, the speeds are reduced while using the Gateworks SBCs compared to the full potential, but speeds are still very fast at around 225-275MB/s. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | == Sizes |
| 15 | |
| 16 | Typical NVME sizes are 22mm wide. |
| 17 | Some lengths quite long, designed for consumer laptops. (80mm long, 2280 defined size) |
| 18 | These longer sizes are not ideal for the Gateworks SBCs. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | Thus, for a Gateworks SBC, common sizes that would be compatible are a 2230 & 2242 |
| 21 | |
| 22 | == M.2 Keys |
| 23 | |
| 24 | Gateworks has created an M.2 adapter for Mini-PCIe slots, but the first adapter was designed for cellular modems which often take the B-Key. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | Most NVME drives are M-Key. Gateworks plans to create an M-Key M.2 adapter for Mini-PCIe. Please contact Gateworks for more information. |
| 27 | |
| 28 | == Speeds |
| 29 | |
| 30 | As mentioned above, Gateworks SBCs only expose 1x PCIe lane per slot, thus the speeds achieved will not be the same as on an x86 desktop with a full 4x PCIe lanes. |
| 31 | |
| 32 | However, the speeds achieved are still often higher than even the onboard eMMC storage as discussed [wiki:MMC here] |
| 33 | |
| 34 | Gateworks has ran some sample speed tests using a GW73xx Venice SBC (PCIe Gen 2) and the following command: |
| 35 | {{{ |
| 36 | dd if=/dev/nvme0n1 of=/dev/null bs=1M count=500 iflag=nocache |
| 37 | }}} |
| 38 | |
| 39 | ||= Drive =||= Speed =||= Notes =|| |
| 40 | || Samsung SSD980 || ~225 Megabytes/sec || 2280 size, no proper adapter || |
| 41 | || Silicon Motion MD681GEDKAF3 || ~240 Megabytes/sec || 2242 size || |
| 42 | |