Standard Windows and Linux drivers for PCI Express SSDs released by NVM Express Workgroup

SAN JOSE, USA: The NVM Express Work Group announced the completion of several key ecosystem components: a standard Windows driver, a Linux driver and an NVM Express Test Suite. These components enable broad adoption of PCI Express (PCIe)-based solid-state drives (SSDs) that support the NVM Express specification. The NVM Express specification defines an optimized register interface, command set and feature set for PCIe-based SSDs utilized in both enterprise and client systems.

The NVM Express specification was developed cooperatively by more than 80 companies from across the industry and was released on March 1, 2011 by the NVM Express Work Group. The goal is to enable the broad adoption of SSDs using the PCI Express (PCIe) interface. NVMe efforts are directed by the NVM Express Promoter Group consisting of Cisco, Dell, EMC, IDT, Intel, Micron, NetApp, Oracle, SandForce and STEC.

The Windows driver was developed by IDT, Intel, and LSI’s Flash Components Division (formerly SandForce) and is available under BSD open source license terms. This driver supports all of the mandatory features of the NVM Express 1.0 specification. Driver integration testing has been completed and the driver has been transferred to a new work group in the OpenFabrics Alliance (OFA). The OFA and NVMe will collaboratively maintain the NVMe driver and coordinate future enhancements.

The Linux driver was released in March 2011 and is available under the terms of the GNU General Public License. It offers significant performance improvements over existing storage drivers. The NVMe Linux driver is expected to be included in the next version of the main Linux kernel, and will be integrated into major Linux distributions, providing users with an optimal out-of-box experience.