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In what cases is a DRAM-less SSD good enough? (lemmy.ml)

submitted 8 months ago by geoma@lemmy.ml to c/hardware@lemmy.ml

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Where I live, DRAM-less SSDs are a lot cheaper (half the price). Most sources online say "go for an SSD with DRAM". But I wonder, are cases in which a DRAM-less SSD will do just fine?

My main focus is resurrecting old laptops (from 2006 to 2015), installing GNU/Linux and an sometimes investing in an SSD will give them a performance boost, but the budget is limited because I can't sella uch an old laptop at a non very budgety price.

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[–] ShortN0te@lemmy.ml 2 points 8 months ago

The primary function of the DRAM is to hold the dictionary for translating logical addresses (e.g. sectors) from the OS to the physical addresses (which NAND chip, which bank etc.). This indirection is needed for the controller to do wear leveling without corrupting the filesystem.

That data is still only cached on the DRAM, since it is losing its data when it is no longer powered.