Electronic storage media companies are scrambling to produce zoned namespace, solid-state drive (ZNS SSD) hardware. This is because the technology brings a motley of benefits beyond what standard SSDs have to offer.
But what about the technology is particularly notable, and how did it even come about in the first place? Let’s take a look.
The Development of ZNS SSD Technology
Zoned storage media is a category of storage devices whose space is partitioned into zones, with each zone being written sequentially. Unlike in standard SSDs, data is not overwritten. Instead, it is compartmentalized and deleted using reset commands.
Zoned storage devices utilize ZNS technology in SSDs. ZNS was initially developed to alleviate some of the crucial read-write problems prevalent in SSDs and hard disk drives (HDDs).
The first SSDs relied on an internal management sequence dubbed flash translation layer (FTL). However, it had a recording problem: some sectors had to be shifted each time new data was added.
The constant shifting led to a phenomenon called write amplification. It was caused by constant writing and rewriting through a process called garbage collection (GC). Because of the harshness of write amplification, consequent wear on the SSD mechanism greatly reduced hardware reliability over time.
There were also issues related to over-provisioning, which is the need to have extra space in a hard disk that’s enough to allow stacks of data to be moved around during garbage collection processes. To counter these problems, more efficient recording and storage technology was developed.
Zoned storage media addressed these problems by leveraging ZNS technology. ZNS groups data in zoned storage devices according to the frequency of usage and in isolated zones. This reduces the need to constantly arrange and rearrange data, and dramatically minimizes write amplification issues.
It is estimated that ZNS SSDs last up to four times longer when compared to standard SSDs because of their more efficient read-write performance.
The Benefits of Using ZNS Technology
Over time, the growing need to compress data led to the search for condensed data storage formats. It also resulted in the introduction of more effective data reading technologies to boost efficiency and prevent data losses.
ZNS enhances the efficiency of high-capacity SSDs through multitenancy. For cloud service and data center providers, the solution offers better data structuring and scalability to meet today’s data storage demands.
The Future of Storage Technology
The need for efficient, high-performance storage systems is pushing data management storage systems and compression technologies beyond their limits. And this doesn’t look like it will slow down in the near future.
As storage technology advances, make sure you balance convenience with security. That way, you’ll be able to both use your files effectively and protect them accordingly.