NVMe overheating via USB-C

dulcificum · 23 Jan 2024 at 23:51

I have a 2TB Crucial P5 NVMe SSD which I want to image my OS onto and replace my existing smaller NVMe.

I'm using a cheap USB-C enclosure to attach the target SSD to the host machine. However, after abut 20-30 mins copying, the temp of the SSD being written to spikes to >80C and it keeps dropping the USB connection and failing the clone.

Is there something wrong with my SSD? Should it be getting this hot? And should I be worried that it keeps cutting off over USB?

On Holiday · 23 Jan 2024 at 23:58

dulcificum · 24 Jan 2024 at 00:35

On Holiday said:
NVMe's really aren't designed to be used at sustained load without "some" degree of cooling. If it's only temporary then get a desk fan pointing at it or something if you can, otherwise buy an enclosure with a fan.

The drive is going to put in my laptop as the main OS drive, that's why I'm concerned about the overheating.

Grim5 · 24 Jan 2024 at 01:22

Did you happen to look at some reviews?

Tom's hardware gave the drive a bad review specifically because it got up to 103c during their testing. Critically however, their drive only throttled, it did not shut down at this temperature, unlike your drive which sounds like it's trying to die instead of throttling to manage the heat. But they didn't test it in a USB enclosure and it's possible the real temp on other sensors is even higher than the 80c you seen

I can't understand why it's so hot though, it's only using 4 watts of power during sequential load.

If you can't swap it for an other drive then it probably needs some cooling

Crucial P5 M.2 NVMe SSD Review: Premium Design Runs Hot (Updated)

With robust hardware and security, Crucial’s P5 is engineered for gamers and professional workflows.

www.tomshardware.com

CaNsA · 24 Jan 2024 at 02:35

What enclosure are you using?

I have a UGREEN one which uses the metal casing as a heatsink provided I use the thermal pads etc on the nvme.

dulcificum · 24 Jan 2024 at 10:34

CaNsA said:
What enclosure are you using?

I have a UGREEN one which uses the metal casing as a heatsink provided I use the thermal pads etc on the nvme.

Cheap crappy £10 one from Ebay. Do you think the drive will be okay in a laptop?

CaNsA · 24 Jan 2024 at 10:53

dulcificum said:
Cheap crappy £10 one from Ebay. Do you think the drive will be okay in a laptop?

Dunno.

Tetras · 24 Jan 2024 at 11:06

Not ideal for a laptop, for sure, but once the laptop is running, you're not going to be copying for 20-30 minutes, I assume (i.e. it should be fine under normal usage).

dulcificum said:
Is there something wrong with my SSD? Should it be getting this hot? And should I be worried that it keeps cutting off over USB?

For the record, even though the SSD is very hot, it could be the enclosure that's overheating.

Orcvader · 24 Jan 2024 at 13:24

dulcificum said:
Cheap crappy £10 one from Ebay. Do you think the drive will be okay in a laptop?

Depends if the laptop provides cooling for the m.2 drive. Some laptops I notice a thermal pad that goes between the drive and the chassis. Others don't have them at all.

dulcificum · 24 Jan 2024 at 13:45

Tetras said:
Not ideal for a laptop, for sure, but once the laptop is running, you're not going to be copying for 20-30 minutes, I assume (i.e. it should be fine under normal usage).

For the record, even though the SSD is very hot, it could be the enclosure that's overheating.

I took the cover off the enclosure when I saw the temps to allow more airflow.

Orcvader said:
Depends if the laptop provides cooling for the m.2 drive. Some laptops I notice a thermal pad that goes between the drive and the chassis. Others don't have them at all.

No thermal pads on this one, just a sticker that doesn't seem to do anything.

ATIorNvidia · 24 Jan 2024 at 14:37

It's most likely the enclosures controller overheating and dropping connection. Regular throttling from the SSD should just drop the transfer speed.

I think enclosures with the rtl9210b chipset are the ones you want, preferrably with a metal case + thermal pad that actually makes contact with the outer case.

dulcificum · 24 Jan 2024 at 19:54

ATIorNvidia said:
It's most likely the enclosures controller overheating and dropping connection. Regular throttling from the SSD should just drop the transfer speed.

I think enclosures with the rtl9210b chipset are the ones you want, preferrably with a metal case + thermal pad that actually makes contact with the outer case.

Thanks.

I'll take a punt and assume it's a ****** controller on the enclosure and it will be fine when I pry the back off.