[NanoPC-T4] M.2 SSD not recognized

[jmoudy]

I installed a WD Blue 500G SSD in the M.2 slot. I do not see any indication that it has been recognized. Per the Wiki... which only shows the onboard MMC. This is the FriendlyDesktop, rk3399-eflasher-friendlydesktop-bionic-4.4-arm64-20180921.img

Thank you for any ideas.

Code: Select all

root@NanoPC-T4:~# cat /proc/partitions
major minor  #blocks  name

   1        0       4096 ram0
 179        0   15267840 mmcblk1
 179        1       4096 mmcblk1p1
 179        2       4096 mmcblk1p2
 179        3       4096 mmcblk1p3
 179        4      12288 mmcblk1p4
 179        5      32768 mmcblk1p5
 179        6      32768 mmcblk1p6
 179        7   15165440 mmcblk1p7
 179       96       4096 mmcblk1rpmb
 179       64       4096 mmcblk1boot1
 179       32       4096 mmcblk1boot0

[0xpit]

WD Green SSDs also won't work. They might be SATA?

You need to get a NVME disk.

[Troy1989]

It refers to the technology used in the module that can connect to the NanoPC-T4.

NVMe stands for NVM Express. NVM stands for Non-volatile memory. This is what's used in these modules that connect to the PCIe bus.

Other modules can be SATA and still look the same. Different controllers are used for SATA and NVMe modules. They are not interchangeable. SATA SSD drives will not work on a T4.

NVMe modules are much faster than SATA modules, depending on what you plug them into. It depends on the number of PCIe lanes that are made available to the module. The more lanes, the faster the data travels. The T4 provides 4 lanes for the M.2 slot. The PCIe version is 2.1, which means each lane provides 500 MB/s. So, 4 lanes would allow 2 GB/s of bandwidth. Module speed and bandwidth determine the maximum performance that a module can reach.

Another factor is the connector. The NanoPC-T4 has an M.2 connector. It used to be known as NGFF. M.2 connectors can be "keyed" differently. There's "M" and "B+M" keying. I believe the T4 is "M" keyed.

Another factor is the size of the module. The T4 is 2280. This means 22mm wide and 80mm long. There are also 2242 and 2260 sizes. Longer ones can't fit into smaller spaces but smaller ones may work in longer spaces with adapters. 2280 is the most typical size you find these days.

An older technology is mSATA, which are smaller modules and won't fit/work on the T4.

The above is my understanding and may contain errors. Best thing is to read up on Google or Wikipedia or something similar/reputable.