Momentus XT, Momentus, Momentus Thin, MobileMax, and other notebook drives

[JanJanowski]

Why is it that for years and years, we have been adding hard drives and using them, and many  manufacturer's have written software to backup  and restore existing drives (Heck, that software used to come with the new drives!), and this included limitations in Disk Controllers regarding size of drives...  There has always been a "Work Around", there has never been rules saying:  "Only a Clean Install--or drive won't work correctly"...........  "Don't believe Benchmarks (Though we have for years)"

This drive is "Transparent"  

If these drives are "Transparent" Why should all these rules 'be'?

The reason I post is:  I am using multiple XT drives...  I have not done anything out of  the ordinary with them.... I installed them, using Restore of  an existing image.... Partitioned them, Beat on them, Used them in a Raid when Posts said "DON'T!"

What the heck?   Why all the rules?  It's just a Hard Drive!!!  As long as I don't do something stupid, like plug it in HOT or drop it..... It should do the work I ask of it....

The XT1 drives I have have not been baby'd at all.... I installed them, Updated them with firmware, and kept going.. I treat them like any other drive I've ever purchased.....

I cannot understand why we should have to treat them any  different than any  other hard drive that is  sitting on the shelf....

IF I'm Wrong........   SEAGATE..... PLEASE ADVISE ME!!!

If I'm Right........ I assume this thread will have no answers from Seagate....

Jan

[JanJanowski]

I'm bumping this in hopes that someone from Seagate will answer it.

[JanJanowski]

Bumping again...  If I don't get an official answer.... All I have to assume is it's not needed!!!

[AlanM]

Hello Jan,

I am trying to understand what you're asking here. Why all the rules?

I admit that I don't have the experience you have in using drives in RAID setups, let alone Momentus XT drives in RAID setups. But I'm sure you can accept that there have to be rules in every game. That's the way the universe is. Hard drives don't work well as coffee grinders, nor are they at their best when immersed in molten lava.

When discussing less obvious issues than those, it often comes down to responding to unforeseen circumstances. We really do try to put our products through a serious battery of serious tests and diagnostics before we put them out on the market, but it is impossible to recreate every single array and sampling of equipment, software, and drivers that exists in customers' homes and offices. This is why we do our best to respond to customers as they see issues arise. Ideally no issues would arise, but in an imperfect world, we expect that at least sometimes things won't work precisely like we want them to.

Anyway, in the case of these Momentus XT drives, they aren't "just a hard drive", and I don't think you acquired them just so you could have "just a hard drive". You're after the promise of increased performance. Part of that promised increased performance capability is the firmware that governs the flash part of the drive that makes it a hybrid. It is learning how to best utilise its flash memory, to know what programs to launch from the flash and which to leave on the rotating hard disk. When our product developers give their recommendations with respect to proper usage, they are, in my experience, most of the time referring to how the firmware behaves in its learning. Using a configuration that the learning firmware doesn't understand will very possibly lead to not seeing the high performance that the hybrid drive is advertised to deliver (and which it does deliver when used according to the recommended setup[s]).

I hope that helps. I have taken my best shot at answering, but I felt the question was vague enough that I may well have misunderstood what you are asking.

[JanJanowski · Accepted solution]

I appreciate that the XT is a relatively new product...   But due to years and years of  "Plug & Play",  do you really want to try and push the idea that this drive is something special, and must be treated differently?

I'm not saying it's a bad Product... NO WAY!   I own 5 or 6 of them.... and haven't had one hiccough with any firmware update or operation...  But I have not done "Clean Installs", or babied the drives... I treated them like any other drive I'd install... 

I've moved them to and from Raid operation when needed, and once installed, I'm relying on the Drive's firmware to "Learn" the system.... If I don't get 100% speed on first use, not a problem.... It will adapt...  And I'm finding it does! (Good Thing!!)

I immediately go into Device Manager and turn on write caching... to speed it up...

You'd think that if the drive needed to be babied and treated with kid gloves, instead of using it as a commodity as I do.....

I should have run into issues along the way....   But I haven't. 

If this drive in fact Needs to be babied....  And I'm not.... Then this is a credit to your drive firmware... to keep me out of trouble....   And I hope that is the fact....

Personally, I don't believe I'd want any product I make to be considered as 'having to be treated specially'......

And now that I have your attention... Would you PLEASE put DRIVE ACTIVITY LED'S on your next product???

You'll Sell more to Raid user's if you do!