Resolved Problems with SSD

[mrt209]

Been having issues with my mac lately, think the SSD is failing but want to make sure before I buy a new one.

My issue is that every now and then, when I try to open a new app the icon just keeps on bouncing but nothing happens. Any current programs that I have running work fine, but can't open any new ones.

Have to restart my mac and then it works fine again for a few hours (sometimes a day or two), before having the same issue again.

Disk utility says my boot drive's SMART status is verified, but if I look at iStat Menu I can see that it failed.

http://cl.ly/2s2J2C0j0w0P

Thanks for your help

 

[h9826790]

Been having issues with my mac lately, think the SSD is failing but want to make sure before I buy a new one.

My issue is that every now and then, when I try to open a new app the icon just keeps on bouncing but nothing happens. Any current programs that I have running work fine, but can't open any new ones.

Have to restart my mac and then it works fine again for a few hours (sometimes a day or two), before having the same issue again.

Disk utility says my boot drive's SMART status is verified, but if I look at iStat Menu I can see that it failed.

http://cl.ly/2s2J2C0j0w0P

Thanks for your help

Your iStat also shows the SSD is good.

 

[JedNZ]

Your boot drive doesn't have much free space. Can you free up some space? How much ram do you have, and have you checked it has no faults? Is your system paging out a lot of writes? Do you have Trim enabled?

 

[mrt209]

OK thought the drop in the graph meant SMART status couldn't be verified.

Have 12gb ram, no issues, all show as ok. About 40,000 page outs. I do remember enabling TRIM using a third party app a few years ago, but showing "TRIM Support: No" in system info.

 

[Squuiid]

Are you on the latest release of Sierra, 10.12.6? I suggest you upgrade if not.

Personally, I'd enable TRIM by running the following command in Terminal:
sudo trimforce enable

However do make sure you have a backup before doing so. I've never come across any problems but better safe than sorry.

Have you made any hardware changes at all? Did this issue start when you upgraded the RAM for example? Bad RAM is a common cause of this problem.

Another common cause is poor quality SSDs.
Please list the model of SSD it is and which firmware version it is running.
For example, if it's a Samsung 840 or Samsung 840 EVO then that'll be the issue.
Most Sandforce based SSDs are also pretty bad, OCZ in particular.
Finally I've found some Crucial SSDs, MX100 in particular, to be garbage also.

We need more info from you in order to help

 

[mrt209]

It's a SAMSUNG SSD 830 Pro. How do I check the firmware on mac? Got rid of bootcamp a while ago.

 

[Squuiid]

It's a SAMSUNG SSD 830 Pro. How do I check the firmware on mac? Got rid of bootcamp a while ago.

I don't believe Samsung ever made an 830 Pro. Can you check again?
About this Mac and then System Profiler.

 

[mrt209]

I don't believe Samsung ever made an 830 Pro. Can you check again?
About this Mac and then System Profiler.

Oops, don't know why I typed pro. Its a Samsung 830

 

[Squuiid]

Oops, don't know why I typed pro. Its a Samsung 830

Old drive now but known to be pretty reliable.

 

[h9826790]

It's a SAMSUNG SSD 830 Pro. How do I check the firmware on mac? Got rid of bootcamp a while ago.

Firmware version is here.

 

[kschendel]

The next time it happens, after rebooting, dig around in the system logs (apps -> utilities -> console) to see if you can find anything pertinent. Without some indication as to why you can't open new apps, it's hard to suggest anything useful.

If open apps work fine, including saving files, opening new ones, etc then I'm not sure I see how this would be a failing SSD. (Failing HDD, maybe, but it would seem to be an unusual failure mode for SSD.) My initial guesses would be something heat related, or bad memory. Try opening it up after shutting it down hot. Blow out any dust, make sure all fans turn easily by hand, remove and re-seat all memory.

 

[Squuiid]

Firmware version is here.
View attachment 709717

And here's where you'd download an update.
http://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/minisite/ssd/download/tools.html
The latest version for the 830 is:
CXM03B1Q

If you have anything other than that exact firmware then I highly recommend that you update it.

 

[mrt209]

And here's where you'd download an update.
http://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/minisite/ssd/download/tools.html
The latest version for the 830 is:
CXM03B1Q

If you have anything other than that exact firmware then I highly recommend that you update it.

Thank you, I already have revision CXM03B1Q.


The problem ended up being with safari causing a memory leak. I closed all tabs, reset safari, and since then everything has been running fine.

Thanks for all the hlep