NVMdurance software monitors and optimizes NAND flash health in real time by adjusting operating parameters. This extends flash endurance by 20 times, allowing the use of lower-cost flash in consumer products. Machine learning techniques determine optimal register values before production and dynamic optimization is done after shipping via NVMdurance Navigator. This significantly reduces costs while increasing flash lifespan.

1. NVMdurance software implements a set
of NAND flash optimization techniques
that constantly monitors the health of the
NAND flash and autonomically adjusts the
operating parameters in real time. Our
software optimizes NAND flash designed
for the mass market to YOUR application
requirements.
NVMdurance also enables the use of
lower cost, lower endurance flash in
consumer product categories (e.g.
phones, tablets, cameras), which normally
require a higher grade of flash to meet
the minimum endurance requirements of
the category.
We apply our technology in concert with
our customers’ existing technology to
compound or multiply its effect, achieving
an overall endurance extension in the
order of 20 times the rated endurance.
The NVMdurance flash endurance
extension is achieved with no impact on
manufacturing process or architecture.
How does it work?
Before the memory product (e.g. an
SSD) goes into production NVMdurance
Pathfinder, a custom built suite of
machine learning techniques, determines
multiple viable sets of flash register
values. Then on the controller of the live
memory product NVMdurance Navigator
chooses which of these predetermined
sets to use for each stage of life to ensure
that the flash lasts as long as possible.
Major financial savings can be made in
final product bill of materials cost because
smaller geometry reduced endurance,
lower cost flash can be used.
NVMdurance benefits
20-fold EXTENDED intrinsic
endurance of flash devices
From 10% to 50% FASTER PE
cycle times
NO IMPACT on manufacturing
process or architecture
Enables use of LOWER COST,
lower endurance, flash in products
normally requiring higher-grade or
enterprise flash
SUPPLY of flash devices can
be better secured by shifting
requirement to the more widely
available lower-endurance flash
Compounds the ENDURANCE
GAIN currently being achieved by
other means (e.g. ECC or over-
provisioning)
Our software is proven to make solid state disks last more than 20 TIMES LONGER by extending
the endurance of the flash. This has now been proven on 1x nm chips from multiple manufacturers.
10 5 1510 20 25
92
90
94
P/ECycleTimeas%ofDefault
WriteStressas%ofDefault
P/E Cycle Count as Multiple of Default/Rating
P/E Cycle Time
Write Stress
Extended endurance with NVMduranceNormal end of life
96
98
100
102
20
0
40
60
80
100
120
NVMdurance – 20-fold flash endurance
P/E Cycle Time & Write Stress Vs P/E Cycles

2. Why NVMdurance
No factory determined operating
parameters are ideally suited to your
application nor are they tracking the
condition of the flash as it degrades
through use.
The power behind NVMdurance is
the use of off-line machine learning
software that automatically learns the
optimal parameter settings for the
NAND device. It provides either:
• A static set of parameters, which
are set at the start of life for the
device, or for optimal endurance,
• A dynamic set, which will periodically
optimize the parameters over time
as the device ages
The parameters provided are all
relative to the manufacturers’
specified parameters so they work
even though individual chips/batches
have slight variations in their absolute
performance.
The actual extension of endurance
depends on the particular use-case
and the information available to the
NVMdurance Navigator autonomic
system.
The NAND flash market size
2014 is expected to be $28
billion with CAGR of 18.8%
over the period 2013-2018
NVMdurance
NVMdurance was founded in Ireland
in 2013 when the ADAPT research
group and the test equipment maker
Evolvability Ltd were brought together
at the National Digital Research Centre
in Ireland. The technology is the result
of 14 years’ foundry work on flash
memory endurance optimization by the
founding team.
The endurance (wear-out) issue is a
major factor retarding the capacity
growth of the $28bn flash industry
that is growing at 13% per annum.
NVMdurance has the leading
technology for extending the intrinsic
endurance of NAND flash. The company
has offices in Limerick, Ireland and San
Jose, California.
Contact
Ireland
Limerick
Tel: + 353 87 223 5462
joe.sullivan@NVMdurance.com
USA
San Jose
Tel: + 1 408 641 3884
pearse.coyle@NVMdurance.com
HEALTH
CYCLES
8 0 0 0 0
NVMdurance Pathfinder finds the optimum sets of flash register values.
Once the device has been shipped, NVMdurance Navigator chooses which
sets to use to ensure the flash lasts as long as possible.
NVMdurance Navigator dynamically changes
the operating characteristics of SSD drives
- even after shipping
© NVMdurance 2014 www.nvmdurance.com Tel: 408 641 3884