The NVM Express Workgroup announced that they have hit a milestone; a Microsoft Windows driver, Linux Driver, and an NVMe Test Suite. The NVMe specification is being used on many next-generation PCIe SSDs, from manufacturers such as OCZ. Last November, OCZ stated they would begin sampling devices with NVMe support this year, hinting towards a next-generation product that we now know is the OCZ Z-Drive R5 shown off at CES 2012.
The NVM Express Workgroup announced that they have hit a milestone; a Microsoft Windows driver, Linux Driver, and an NVMe Test Suite. The NVMe specification is being used on many next-generation PCIe SSDs, from manufacturers such as OCZ. Last November, OCZ stated they would begin sampling devices with NVMe support this year, hinting towards a next-generation product that we now know is the OCZ Z-Drive R5 shown off at CES 2012.
The Windows driver was developed through a partnership of IDT, Intel, and LSI’s Flash Components Division (SandForce before the merger) and is an open-source project. Companies promoting this new specification include Cisco, Dell, EMC, IDT, Intel, Micron, NetApp, Oracle, SandForce, and STEC. The main driving force being this project is to develop an common standard, similar to SATA, which would improve compatibility of new PCIe SSD solutions without compromising performance. With current standards such as SATA and SAS already limiting the speed of next-generation flash products, a new open standard was needed to promote growth in the market. The main milestone of this announcement though is the Windows driver, since Windows still represents a huge market for flash-based products.
