Your SSD is hiding extra speed. Unlock it with these 5 tweaks

Keep the capacity to less than 80 percent full

SSDs tend to slow down considerably when more than 80 percent capacity is used up. For that reason, you’re going to want to keep capacity below that limit. For example, if you have a 1TB SSD don’t have more than 800GB of files loaded on it.

Adjust the power plan in Windows

Adjusting your PC’s power plan prevents the SSD from going to sleep, removing the wait time for it to wake up.

Part 1:

• Type choose a power plan into the search box and click Enter. Select the top result.
• Now choose Change plan settings on the right. In the next window select Change advanced power settings.
• Now change Turn off hard disk after to 0.

Dominic Bayley / Foundry

Part 2:

This prevents the PCIe bus from downclocking, which slightly affects the SSD performance.

• Under PCI Express> Link State Power Management change the setting from Maximum Power Management to Off.

Dominic Bayley / Foundry

Install the latest firmware update

Firmware updates for SSD frequently deal with bugs and can also provide performance updates. The classic example of this is the 5B2QGXA7 firmware for Samsung 980 Pro SSDs. This update stopped a problem where the 980’s health status deteriorated to the point where the SSD was unusable.

Make sure you know what utilities to use to download the latest firmware updates. For Samsung SSDs you can use the Samsung Magician app.

Enable TRIM in the command prompt

TRIM helps the SSD clean junk files regularly. A clean SSD naturally runs faster. To check if the TRIM is on type cmd in the Search Bar and press Enter to open it. Now type: fsutil behavior query DisableDeleteNotify and click Enter. If the result is 0, TRIM is enabled. If the result is 1, TRIM is disabled, and you’ll want to turn it on.

You can manually turn on TRIM by running the following command in the Command Prompt window: fsutil behavior set DisableDeleteNotify 0.

Conversely, to disable TRIM on SSD, enter the command: fsutil behavior set DisableDeleteNotify 1.

Dominic Bayley / Foundry

Add a heatsink

If your SSD doesn’t have a heatsink, you should get one, especially if you’re running a PCIe Gen 4 or PCIe Gen 5 SSD. A heatsink can siphon heat off the SSD and keep it cooler. If your SSD is running hot, that will allow it to once again operate in its standard temperature range for optimal performance.

It’s possible to find a name brand heatsink for just $20; or opt for a lesser-known brand and get a simpler option for $10.