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SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 12:55 pm
by rockz3r
So pretty much what my title says , planning on partitioning my 240gb ssd , to a 60gb as L2 cache using primocache and remaining for storage. Sounds good, or should i add more/less cache? Also ,can it harm my SSD life?
Also where to install OS , on the unused SSD partition or the tiered storage of ssd+hdd?
All i care about is fast windows boot and system snappiness and fast game loads .
Specs :
R5 1600 3.8ghz OC
Asus B350 F Strix
8GBX2 DDR4 3000Mhz Trident Z
KIngston A400 SATA 3 240GB SSD
Toshiba 7200RPM HDD
Re: SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:11 pm
by Jaga
60GB is probably large enough that it won't have any longevity issues.
How much data is that 60GB going to be caching? Not the size of the disk it caches, but the actual volume of data. I try to keep my L2 volume around 10% of the total data to be cached. So for a 60GB L2, you wouldn't want to have much more than 600GB of data on the HDD, or you may start to see hit rates drop.
Re: SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:37 pm
by rockz3r
Jaga wrote: ↑Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:11 pm
60GB is probably large enough that it won't have any longevity issues.
How much data is that 60GB going to be caching? Not the size of the disk it caches, but the actual volume of data. I try to keep my L2 volume around 10% of the total data to be cached. So for a 60GB L2, you wouldn't want to have much more than 600GB of data on the HDD, or you may start to see hit rates drop.
Thanks for the reply and mostly my HDD stays like 400-500gb full , so yes , 60gb will be enough i guess , coz as u said 10% of waht u are using.
Re: SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Thu Jan 31, 2019 6:40 pm
by rockz3r
rockz3r wrote: ↑Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:37 pm
Jaga wrote: ↑Thu Jan 31, 2019 4:11 pm
60GB is probably large enough that it won't have any longevity issues.
How much data is that 60GB going to be caching? Not the size of the disk it caches, but the actual volume of data. I try to keep my L2 volume around 10% of the total data to be cached. So for a 60GB L2, you wouldn't want to have much more than 600GB of data on the HDD, or you may start to see hit rates drop.
Thanks for the reply and mostly my HDD stays like 400-500gb full , so yes , 60gb will be enough i guess , coz as u said 10% of waht u are using.
Also , where should i install OS? The other 180Gb~ of the ssd or the hdd+ssd tiered partition?
Re: SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2019 2:07 am
by Jaga
If you install the OS to the SSD, it will of course be faster natively. But it won't be cached as part of the L2 contents, which may be a good thing in your case. It frees up your L2 to cache the rest of your data without contention, and ensures your OS files will always be as fast as possible.
Re: SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2019 3:22 am
by rockz3r
Jaga wrote: ↑Fri Feb 01, 2019 2:07 am
If you install the OS to the SSD, it will of course be faster natively. But it won't be cached as part of the L2 contents, which may be a good thing in your case. It frees up your L2 to cache the rest of your data without contention, and ensures your OS files will always be as fast as possible.
Exactly what i was thinking, but then i thought , i will turn on my pc daily so it will be used almost always, that means it will stay in the l2 cache always, right? Also , is it true that cache is cleared if ur pc crashes?
Re: SSD Cache with 1TB HDD Sounds good for gaming?
Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2019 4:42 am
by Jaga
There's no guarantee boot files will stay in the cache, though "frequency of use" is the factor that does the deciding.
And yes, usually when the machine bluescreens/crashes the L2 will be marked dirty, and probably flushed. I've seen scenarios where it isn't, but I've seen more where it is. Having a stable machine is key to keeping a persistent cache.