What is the TRIM command on an SSD, and why do we need to check the TRIM command status on an SSD? Those using SSDs should definitely refer to this information for better understanding and usage.
Those who own SSDs know that they are the optimal type of drive, offering speeds up to 10 times faster than traditional HDDs. Furthermore, they offer better storage capacity and energy efficiency. The only major drawback of SSDs is their significantly higher price compared to HDDs, making them inaccessible to many.
Checking your SSD is something you should do regularly, and if you've read this article, you're almost certainly doing it incorrectly . This article will guide you through the detailed steps to check your SSD and the TRIM command status.
How to check the TRIM command status on an SSD
What is the TRIM command?
TRIM, simply put, is the name of a technology that improves data read and write speeds on SSDs. SSDs that support TRIM will have significantly better read and write speeds, and are especially much faster than traditional drives.
Why is TRIM necessary?
After prolonged use, the performance of an SSD will gradually degrade because NAND Flash memory cannot overwrite data. This means that to write to that memory cell, the controller chip must erase the data already written to that cell, and when writing new data, the controller chip also simultaneously erases the data it wants to erase—a process called "gathering discarded data".
And the TRIM command here will proactively inform the SSD which data blocks are considered unusable and can be deleted from within.
Check the status of the TRIM command on the SSD.
Step 1: To check the status of the TRIM command on your SSD, first open the Start Menu, type "CMD," and open Command Prompt in Administrator mode.
Step 2: When the Command Prompt opens, type the following command to check the status of the TRIM command on the SSD.
fsutil behavior query DisableDeleteNotify
And if the result shows NTFS DisableDeleteNotify = 0, it means your SSD has TRIM enabled; if it's = 1, it's not enabled.
It's difficult to explain this because Windows automatically recognizes SSDs and activates TRIM. It's rare for Windows not to activate it, unless the SSD has very low capacity or is too old, causing Windows to refuse to start the TRIM command. Therefore, if you check the TRIM command status on your SSD and it's not activated, you should check your SSD because there's likely a problem.
Check the RETRIM process.
RETRIM is the automatic optimization process for SSDs that Windows sets up regularly and periodically; however, you can also configure this process yourself to ensure even better SSD optimization.
Step 1: First, open the Start Menu , type " Defragment ," and access the hard drive optimization and defragmentation settings under "Defragment and Optimize Drivers ."
For HDDs, this is defragmentation, while for SSDs, it's about optimizing speed.
Step 2: In the Optimize Drivers section , access the Change Settings to modify the settings.
Step 3: Here you just need to set up Run on a Schedule (recommended) and then check the Choose box .
Step 4: Next, select the SSD you want to schedule and press OK to confirm. Here, TipsMake uses drive C as the SSD and uses it to RETRIM the SSD.
Above, TipsMake has guided you on how to check the TRIM command status of your SSD and how to RETRIM it, helping you better understand your hard drive and how to handle and protect its health. Using your SSD correctly and properly, as advised in TipsMake's articles, is the only way to ensure your SSD lasts a long time and protects its lifespan.
In previous articles, Tamienphi introduced you to how to use PowerShell to TRIM SSDs. If you don't know how to do it, please refer to the guide on using PowerShell to TRIM SSDs here.