Tag Archives: Serial ATA

V-Link Data 2X Support From The Tech ARP BIOS Guide!

Leave a reply

V-Link Data 2X Support

Common Options : Enabled, Disabled

 

V-Link Data 2X Support : A Quick Review

In VIA chipsets, the IDE / SATA controller (known as the VIA DriveStation) is linked to the south bridge chip using a dedicated V-Link bus that offers twice as much bandwidth as the PCI bus.

However, there are occasions where it may cause data corruption as well as boot failures with some storage disk drives. This is where V-Link Data 2X Support comes in.

The V-Link Data 2X Support BIOS feature controls the operation of the V-Link bus between the VIA DriveStation and the south bridge chip.

It is slaved to the Serial ATA Controller BIOS feature. If the Serial ATA Controller BIOS feature is disabled, this BIOS feature will be grayed out.

When enabled, the V-Link bus connecting the VIA DriveStation to the south bridge chip will run at full speed, delivering 266 MB/s of bandwidth.

When disabled, the V-Link bus connecting the VIA DriveStation to the south bridge chip will run at half speed, delivering 133 MB/s of bandwidth.

It is recommended that you enable this BIOS feature for maximum performance from storage devices attached to the VIA DriveStation. However, if you experience data corruption or boot problems, disable this BIOS feature.

 

V-Link Data 2X Support : The Full Details

In VIA chipsets, the IDE / SATA controller (known as the VIA DriveStation) no longer runs off the PCI bus. To ensure maximum performance, it is linked to the south bridge chip using a dedicated 8-bit, quad-pumped V-Link bus running at 66 MHz.

This V-Link bus offers twice as much bandwidth as the PCI bus, allowing data transfers of up to 266 MB/s.

In addition, the IDE/SATA controller does not need share this bandwidth with any other device, as it would have to, if it was on the PCI bus.

However, all is not peachy with the use of the faster V-Link bus.

There are occasions where it may cause data corruption as well as boot failures with some storage drives.

This issue only affects storage drives connected to the VIA DriveStation. It does not affect drives connected to third-party IDE/SATA controllers because they use the PCI bus.

This is where V-Link Data 2X Support comes in. It controls the operation of the V-Link bus between the VIA DriveStation and the south bridge chip.

It is slaved to the Serial ATA Controller BIOS feature. If the Serial ATA Controller BIOS feature is disabled, this BIOS feature will be grayed out.

When enabled, the V-Link bus connecting the VIA DriveStation to the south bridge chip will run at full speed, delivering 266 MB/s of bandwidth.

When disabled, the V-Link bus connecting the VIA DriveStation to the south bridge chip will run at half speed, delivering 133 MB/s of bandwidth.

It is recommended that you enable this BIOS feature for maximum performance from storage devices attached to the VIA DriveStation. However, if you experience data corruption or boot problems, disable this BIOS feature.

 

Recommended Reading

Go Back To > Tech ARP BIOS Guide | Computer | Home

 

Support Tech ARP!

If you like our work, you can help support our work by visiting our sponsors, participating in the Tech ARP Forums, or even donating to our fund. Any help you can render is greatly appreciated!


DRDY Timing – The BIOS Optimization Guide

Leave a reply

DRDY Timing

Common Options : Slowest, Default, Optimize

 

Quick Review

The DRDY Timing BIOS feature determines how quickly IDE or Serial ATA devices in the system can be readied for their next command, after executing a read or write command.

When set to Default, the IDE or Serial ATA device will retain its default DRDY timing.

When set to Slowest, the IDE or Serial ATA device will use a slower DRDY timing. This increases the time for the device to be ready for the next command, after it completes its task.

When set to Optimize, the IDE or Serial ATA device will use a faster DRDY timing. This decreases the time for the device to be ready for the next command, after it completes its task.

For maximum performance, you should set this BIOS feature to Optimize. This allows for faster access to the IDE and Serial ATA devices, improving their performance.

However, if this results in crashes or data corruption, you should revert to the Default setting. You should only set this BIOS feature to Slowest in rare occasions where the IDE or Serial ATA device actually requires a longer time to be ready.

 

Details

When an IDE or Serial ATA device executes a read or write command from the host controller, it sets the BSY (Busy) status bit so that the host controller knows that it is busy and cannot accept another command. Once the device has completed its task, it will set the BSY bit to 0, signalling that it is no longer busy.

However, the host controller cannot send the subsequent command to the IDE or Serial ATA device until that device sets the DRDY (Drive Ready) bit. The time from when the drive ceases to be “busy” until it becomes “ready” is known as the DRDY timing. The shorter the DRDY timing, the faster the drive is available for further commands, improving its performance.

[adrotate banner=”4″]

The DRDY Timing BIOS feature determines how quickly IDE or Serial ATA devices in the system can be readied for their next command, after executing a read or write command.

When set to Default, the IDE or Serial ATA device will retain its default DRDY timing.

When set to Slowest, the IDE or Serial ATA device will use a slower DRDY timing. This increases the time for the device to be ready for the next command, after it completes its task.

When set to Optimize, the IDE or Serial ATA device will use a faster DRDY timing. This decreases the time for the device to be ready for the next command, after it completes its task.

For maximum performance, you should set this BIOS feature to Optimize. This allows for faster access to the IDE and Serial ATA devices, improving their performance.

However, if this results in crashes or data corruption, you should revert to the Default setting. You should only set this BIOS feature to Slowest in rare occasions where the IDE or Serial ATA device actually requires a longer time to be ready.

 

Support Tech ARP!

If you like our work, you can help support our work by visiting our sponsors, participating in the Tech ARP Forums, or even donating to our fund. Any help you can render is greatly appreciated!