signs of ssd failure

[ayres]

Hi all, I have some questions regarding the erratic free space that my computer has been indicating to me... I have an early 2015 13-inch mba, running latest software.

For several weeks now, at the bottom of the finder window, the available storage reading changes quite frequently; this, despite not adding or deleting anything. In fact, today, it went from 8gb when it woke, up to 9gb, then 10gb, then to 12 something, and now it's settled back down to 11.99gb.

I restarted and ran diagnostics (hold d at startup), and no problems were detected.

I haven't yet restored the operating system; is that the next thing I should try? Is is possible that the diagnostic tool isn't detecting ssd issues?

Thanks in advance!

 

[HDFan]

Programs create temporary files as they execute. Swap files may be created if you run short of memory. [Don't know if they automatically resize themselves]. If you go into activity monitor and sample a process you can see some of the open files. In the case of Safari there may be hundreds of files opened. Most of these will not using disk space, as they are system libraries or are shared libraries, but some are.

If you just boot the system, don't run any programs (including those in your user login items) do you see any variations?

 

[BrianBaughn]

...and Time Machine snapshots if applicable.

As an aside I would note that 12GB of free space isn't enough even on a 128GB hard drive.

 

[Fishrrman]

I doubt this has ANYthing to do with the "health" of your SSD.
It has much more to do with how the OS is running.

Important questions:

Do you have Time Machine turned on?
It could be "local backups" clogging up the drive.
Solution: DISABLE TM and use a different backup (such as CarbonCopyCloner or SuperDuper)

Do you have hibernation mode active?
It could be the "sleep image" filling up free space.
Solution: DISABLE hibernation mode and DELETE the sleep image.

It could be "temp files" (such as virtual memory swap files) which the OS uses to keep things going.

Personal note about VM:
I have a 2012 Mac Mini with 10gb of RAM (8+2).
I have TURNED OFF VM "disk swapping". No more "page ins" and "page outs" to RAM.
This isn't for everyone.
But, I don't keep lots of apps open or browsers with 20 tabs, as others do.
My Mini runs fine with disk swapping disabled -- no memory-related crashes at all.
YMMV...

 

[ayres]

Thank you all for your replies. To answer some of your questions...

The space variation I noted in my first post was with nothing open. But generally, I have safari open with maybe a dozen tabs.

I have time machine turned off.

If by hibernation mode, you mean power nap, I do not have it enabled.

I'll continue to keep an eye on it. I agree that it is likely an OS thing, not an ssd problem.

 

[Fishrrman]

"If by hibernation mode, you mean power nap, I do not have it enabled."

No, hibernation mode writes something called a "sleep image" to the drive. It's a "copy" of what was running just before the Mac went to sleep, and it can take up drive space.

You can "turn off" hibernation and delete the sleep image.
This has been my standard operating procedure for years now, no ill effects at all.
One less thing to cause problems.

 

[Mikael H]

Hi all, I have some questions regarding the erratic free space that my computer has been indicating to me... I have an early 2015 13-inch mba, running latest software.

For several weeks now, at the bottom of the finder window, the available storage reading changes quite frequently; this, despite not adding or deleting anything. In fact, today, it went from 8gb when it woke, up to 9gb, then 10gb, then to 12 something, and now it's settled back down to 11.99gb.

I restarted and ran diagnostics (hold d at startup), and no problems were detected.

I haven't yet restored the operating system; is that the next thing I should try? Is is possible that the diagnostic tool isn't detecting ssd issues?

Thanks in advance!

Generally speaking it's a good idea from a performance perspective not to fill a drive over around 80%. That may be easier said than done with a small drive, though. Unless you do copious amounts of writing, going above those 80% of disk usage shouldn't affect the drive's longevity to any noticeable degree.

My experience with SSDs is that they work until they don't, and if you're lucky what stops working is writing data to them, not reading it. Keep backups (Time Machine is free and comes with the system, but there are other products out there), and use your computer without worrying too much..

 

[BrianBaughn]

I had a Samsung EVO 850 that started getting bad blocks after just over a year. There were no indications that anything was wrong and Disk Utility didn't find any errors but Samsung's own disk checking software (Windows), TechTool and DiskWarrior all found the problems.