Directory opening slow - occasionally. Even on SSD

Hi,

Occasionally I get some slower than expected opening of directories in Dopus (working graphic with abort button). I did think too much of it because it typically happens on folders that aren't used on a regular basis.

But, since I first saw it I've installed a SSD of 32Gb.
I've gotten the same slow down problem opening it's root - but not every time. The root only has 13 folders and 2 files(xls, htm) in it.

Why would a slowdown like this be occurring in these circumstances? Drive latency/sleeping shouldn't be an issue with an SSD.

Strangest part is you're never sure when it's going to happen.
This is on a 4gb system where it's commonly using close to 2GB for system chache.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks,
Rob

Which make/model of SSD is it?

Latency/sleeping is a problem with many SSD drives. Many of them use an awful controller chip which locks-up for several seconds at a time, not processing any requests from the OS, while it re-arranges its data caches. I know because I bought one, which now sits unused on my shelf.

Some models are unaffected and very fast all the time (e.g. the much more expensive Intel ones). Some newer models from the other vendors (e.g. OCZ) are finally switching to better controllers and/or getting better at hiding the problem (e.g. by using two of the awful controller chips so that one can process requests while the other is busy).

It may not be the SSD, of course. There are two FAQs which will help you find the cause of slow-downs when reading particular directories:

[Crash, exit or high CPU when viewing certain directories)
[General slowdown or instability investigation steps)

Thanks for the reply.

I don't have the model right in front of me, but it was one that got good reviews on Newegg for not having that issue. I think a 16mb buffer was part of it's benefit.

I'll check out the threads you noted. I tried looking previously and didn't seem to find anything that applied directly.

I guess the strangest part about it is that it seems to halt all other DOPUS activities. Typically clicking off to another tab or other action works fine in Dopus, but this blocks that kind of activity.