Thermal Shutdown Management in Data Storage Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Data storage devices like SSDs face performance issues due to thermal throttling, leading to unplanned shutdowns and increased recovery time, as they struggle to manage excess heat generated during high-performance operations, resulting in reduced performance and potential data loss.
Innovation Solution
A data storage device with a non-volatile memory (NVM) that includes a thermal shutdown temperature threshold, where a processor determines if the temperature exceeds this threshold, starts a timer, and powers off the NVM after a preselected duration if the temperature remains high, while maintaining power to other components, allowing for controlled shutdown and reduced ungraceful shutdowns.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If the SSD operates at high performance to meet host demands, then productivity is improved, but temperature increases causing thermal shutdown
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the SSD into two independent power domains: the NVM (non-volatile memory) and the controller/other components. When thermal shutdown is triggered, only the NVM is powered off while the controller remains powered on. This segmentation allows the controller to continue managing the shutdown process, maintain system state, and prepare for recovery without requiring a complete system shutdown, thereby resolving the contradiction between maintaining performance and managing temperature.
2Reliability
If the SSD shuts off to prevent damage at critical temperature, then reliability is improved, but performance decreases during recovery
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary actions before complete shutdown by maintaining controller power during NVM thermal shutdown. The controller continues to execute recovery procedures, manage data integrity, and prepare the system for rapid restart. This preliminary maintenance of controller operation enables faster recovery and reduces the performance impact compared to a complete system shutdown, while still providing the necessary thermal protection to the NVM.
3Temperature
If the SSD performs ungraceful shutdown due to thermal constraints, then temperature is controlled, but loss of time increases due to extended mount time
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the power shutdown to affect only the NVM while keeping the controller powered, the patent enables the controller to continue executing critical recovery tasks and maintain system state. This avoids the extended mount time associated with complete system shutdowns, as the controller can rapidly reinitialize the NVM without needing to perform full system recovery procedures, thus reducing the time loss while still managing thermal constraints.
4Temperature
If the SSD powers off completely during thermal shutdown, then temperature is reduced, but loss of information increases due to ungraceful shutdown
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the power shutdown to isolate only the NVM from power while maintaining controller operation. This allows the controller to continue executing data protection procedures, manage file system state, and ensure graceful data unmounting before the NVM powers down. By keeping the controller powered, the system can perform these information-protection tasks that would otherwise be lost in a complete ungraceful shutdown, thus reducing information loss while still achieving thermal management.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and apparatus for management of thermal shutdown in data storage devices are provided. One such data storage device includes a non-volatile memory (NVM) including a thermal shutdown temperature indicative of a maximum temperature at which the NVM will retain data stored therein; and a processor coupled to the NVM, the processor configured to: determine whether a temperature at the NVM exceeds the thermal shutdown temperature; start, responsive to the determination that the temperature at the NVM exceeds the thermal shutdown temperature, a timer; determine, responsive to the timer reaching a preselected duration, whether the temperature at the NVM still exceeds the thermal shutdown temperature; cause, responsive to the determination that the temperature at the NVM still exceeds the thermal shutdown temperature, the NVM to be powered off; and maintain power to components of the data storage device other than the NVM.