This might be a really stupid noob question, but I am looking to move to Linux from Windows/Mac, and am about to install an SSD into my very old test machine for Linux distros.

You might have seen my recent post asking for recommends: it has the hardware specs of my test box, and I’ve updated it with the list of distros I intend to try.

My test box still has a working HDD in it, so no action is required immediately.

But my question is: once I decide on a distro and start moving machines over to Linux, what kind of manual care do I have to put in to maintain my SSD drives, if any?

For each box with a SSD drive and Linux as the OS, do I need to do TRIM manually, do I need to turn it on for a “set and forget” type scenario, or are recent and regularly upgraded distros able to spot a SSD and do the necessary without my intervention?

I guess what I’m really asking is: is SSD TRIM support pretty much standard now across distros, or is it something I need to investigate individually for each distro I install?

I recognize I may just need to ask this again once I settle on a distro, but since I’m trying so many – and may fully install more than one – I thought I’d get a jump on it.


EDITED TO ADD: Many thanks to all who took the time to answer. Now I know exactly what to read up on, and if necessary, look up how to do manually for whatever distro(s) I settle on. I -really- appreciate the help. Thank you!

  • ChunkMcHorkle@lemmy.worldOP
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    1 year ago

    Excellent question, and for people who have SSDs it’s worth knowing the answer.

    Very simply, SSDs store data differently than HDDs, and when a file is removed, sectors on SSDs have to be explicitly cleared instead of simply waiting to be overwritten like on HDDs. Not doing so on a regular basis decreases the lifespan of the SSD. Crucial (a SSD manufacturer) explains it here much better than I can:

    https://www.crucial.com/articles/about-ssd/what-is-trim

    • pm_me_some_serotonin@lemmy.zip
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      1 year ago

      I have never read much about trim before. Now I’m curious about something: if an ssd was trimmed, is all deleted data lost? Is filling an ssd with random data unnecessary if we want so safely delete something?