cynan wrote:First of all, TRIM function with some of the newer SSD controllers isn't exactly mandatory as they feature pretty aggressive garbage collection. Worst case scenario, if you do notice performance degradation, it's not that much of an issue to simply secure erase the drives (reset all the sectors to "0"), which basically resets performance. Particularly if you are making regular image backups of your RAID array anyway (recommended). I've done this myself with the onbaord X79 Intel storage controller using a Linux bootable version of Parted Magic (free) and Windows 7 backup image with a pair of Corsair Performance Pros in RAID 0 and it takes about half an hour. The process goes something like:
1) Make sure you have your recent RAID 0 array image backed up to a known location (ie, secondary mechanical drive) using Windows Backup
2) Reboot into BIOS and change Intel RAID mode to IDE
3) Save BIOS settings and reboot with Parted Magic boot disk/USB
4)Secure erase drives with Parted Magic (takes a couple of minutes tops). Sometimes there are issues with the SSDs being locked. The easiest way around this is if you have a secondary SATA controller. Connecting the drives to this controller for the secure erase will get around this. There are also other workarounds if you encounter this.
5)Reboot into BIOS, change storage controller back to RAID mode.
6)Reconfigure RAID 0 array to exact same size that it was initially.
7) Boot into Windows Recovery. (Load RAID controller if you need it - ie, X79 chipset). Reload Windows Backup image.
Sure TRIM is easier, but you shouldn't have to do this very often, if at all, with the newer SSD controllers (like once, maaaybe twice a year with heavier usage and perhaps even less frequently). It doesn't take too long, and you can do it with freely available software. I wasn't noticing performance degradation with my array, but I ended up having to reload my backed up image anyway so I thought I'd give it a try.
Thanks this is extremely helpful.