FC-Test - continued

Next, File Copy Test combines read and write tasks in some, er, copy tests.

The ANS-9010 returns to glory in FC-Test's suite of copy tests, although it takes RAID to outrun the X25-E Extreme with the ISO test pattern, which is made up of a small number of very large files. Note that the gap between the RAM disk's single-drive and RAID configs is significant with some test patterns. The ANS-9010 is also notably faster than the i-RAM across the board.

Next, we turn our attention to FC-Test's partition copy tests, which copy data between partitions on each drive. The i-RAM's 4GB maximum capacity precludes it from running these tests, so you won't find Gigabyte's RAM disk listed in the graphs below.

The partition copy tests shake out much like the first wave of copy tests, except this time the single-drive ANS-9010 sweeps the X25-E Extreme across all five test patterns. Keep in mind that the Extreme is Intel's most expensive SLC-based solid-state drive. The X25-M uses less expensive MLC flash memory, whose comparatively slow write speeds really hurt the drive's performance here.