Seagate® FireCuda® 520 SSD
100857985, Rev D
August 2020
Product Manual
Standard
User Capacity
500 GB ZP500GM30002
1000 GB ZP1000GM30002
2000 GB ZP2000GM30002
M.2 2280-D2-M
Models
Revision History
Version and Date Description of Changes
Rev D, August 2020 Formatting updates throughout.
Rev C, November 2019 Updated Section 6.1.8, Thermal Throttling.
Rev B, October 2019 Updated the following sections:
Section 1, Introduction
Section 1.1, Reference Documents
Section 2.3, Power Consumption
Section 2.4, Environmental Conditions
Section 2.5, Reliability/Endurance
Rev A, September 2019 First document release.
© 2020, Seagate Technology LLC All rights reserved. Publication number: 100857985, Rev D, Augu st 2020
Seagate Technology reserves the right to make changes to the product(s) or information disclosed herein at any time without notice.
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No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without written permission of Seagate Technology LLC. Call 877-PUB-TEK1(877-782-8351) to request permission.
The NVMe word mark and/or NVMExpress design mark are trademarks of NVMExpress, Inc. The PCIe word mark and/or PCIExpress desi gn mark are registered trademarks and/or service marks of PCI-SIG.
When referring to drive capacity, one gigabyte, or GB, equals one billion bytes and one terabyte, or TB, equals one trillion bytes. Your computer’s operating system may use a different standard of measurement and report
a lower capacity. In addition, some of the listed capacity is used for formatt ing and other func tions, and thus wil l not be available for data storage. Actual quantities will vary based on various factors, including file size, file
format, features and application software. Actual data rates may vary depending on operating environment and other factors. The export or re-export of hardware or software containing encryption may be regulated by
the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (for more information, visit www.bis.doc.gov), and controlled for import and use outside of the U.S. Seagate reserves the right to change, without notice,
product offerings or specifications.
Contents
Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.1 Reference Documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2. Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.1 Models and Capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.2 Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.3 Power Consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.4 Environmental Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.5 Reliability/Endurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3. Mechanical Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
4. Pin and Signal Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
5. SMART Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
5.1 SMART Attributes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
6. Feature Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1 Flash Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1.1 Error Correction Code (ECC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1.2 Wear Leveling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1.3 Bad Block Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1.4 TRIM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1.5 SMART . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.1.6 Over Provisioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
6.1.7 Firmware Upgrade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
6.1.8 Thermal Throttling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
6.2 Advanced Device Security Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.2.1 NVMe format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.2.2 Physical Presence SID (PSID) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.2.3 Manufacturer’s Secure ID (MSID) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.2.4 Sanitize Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
6.3 SSD Lifetime Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.3.1 Total Bytes Written (TBW) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.3.2 Media Wear Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.3.3 Read Only Mode (End of Life) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
6.4 An Adaptive Approach to Performance Tuning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
6.4.1 Throughput . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
6.4.2 Predict & Fetch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
6.4.3 SLC Caching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
7. Safety, Standards, and Compliance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
7.1 Regulatory Model Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 3
Support
For Internal SSD Support, visit: https://www.seagate.com/support/products/
For Firmware Download and Tools Download for Secure Erase, visit: https://www.seagate.com/support/downloads/
For information regarding online support and services, visit: http://www.seagate.com/contacts/
For information regarding Warranty Support, visit: http://www.seagate.com/support/warranty-and-replacements/
For information regarding data recovery services, visit:
http://www.seagate.com/services-software/seagate-recovery-services/recover/
For Seagate OEM and Distribution partner and Seagate reseller portal, visit: http://www.seagate.com/partners
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 4
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1. Introduction
The Seagate® FireCuda® 520 SSD is a versatile NVMe SSD with PCIe Gen4 x4 interface. It is up to 9x faster than SATA
SSDs and delivers Ultra-fast performance and enhanced endurance for long term use.
Table 1 The FireCuda 520 SSD Features
Feature Description
Capacity
(User)
Certifications,
Eco-Compliance
Dimensions
Form Factor
Weight
Endurance
Interface
Compliance
NAND
Operating
Systems
Performance
Random
Performance
Sequential
Power
Consumption
Power
Management
Security
Reliability
500 GB, 1000 GB, 2000 GB
CE, UL, FCC, BSMI, KCC, Microsoft WHQL, VCCI, CB
RoHS
Length, Max (mm/in): 80.15 mm/3.156 in
Width, Max (mm/in): 22.15 mm/0.872 in
Height, Max (mm/in): 3.58 mm/0.141 in
M.2 2280-D2-M
500 GB 8.0g, 1000 GB 8.5g, 2000 GB: 8.7g
Total Bytes Written
500 GB: 850 TB
1000 GB: 1800 TB
2000 GB: 3600 TB
NVMe 1.3
PCI Express Base 4.0, PCIe Gen 4 x 4 lane, and backward compatible to PCIe Gen3, Gen 2, and Gen 1
3D TLC
Windows 10 (64 bit)
Ubuntu 16.04, 18.04
CentOS 6, 7
Read: Up to 760,000 IOPS
Write: Up to 700,000 IOPS
See Section 2.5, Reliability/Endurance.
Actual performance might vary depending on
use conditions and environment.
See Section 2.2, Performance.
Read: Up to 5000MB/s
Write: Up to 4400MB/s
Actual performance might vary depending on
the capacity, use conditions and environment.
See Section 2.2, Performance.
Active Power, Average: <6.0 W
Idle Power PS3, Average: <25 mW
Low Power L1.2 mode: < 2 mW
Supports ActiveStatePower Management (ASPM)
Supports Autonomous Power StateTransition (APST)
Supports L1.2
TCG Pyrite
End-to-end data path protection
MTBF: 1.8 million hours
UBER: 1 error in 10
16
bits read
See Section 2.3, Power Consumption.
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Table 1 The FireCuda 520 SSD Features (continued)
Feature Description
Shock and
Vibration
Shock
Non-Operating: 1,500 G, at 0.5 ms
Vibration
Non-Operating: 1.52 G
Frequency)
Temperature
Range
Volta ge
Warran ty
Operating: 0°C to 70°C
Non-operating: -40°C to 85°C
Min = 3.14V±5%
Max = 3.47V±5%
Five years, or when the device reaches Host TBW, whichever happens first. Endurance rating valid for SSD
Life Remaining > 1%.
1.1 Reference Documents
In case of conflict between this document and the following reference documents, this document takes precedence.
PCIe Specifications
— PCIe - PCI Express Electromechanical specification, revision 4.0
— NVMe - Non Volatile Memory Express specification 1.3
— PCIe CEM - PCI Express Card Electromechanical specification, revision 1.1
— PCI Express M.2 Specification, revision 1.1
Trusted Computing Group (TCG) Documents
— Storage Work Group Security Subsystem Class: Opal, Version 2.00
Seagate Documentation
— SeaTools™ SSD GUI User Guide - Publication Number: 100837824
— SeaChest for SSD User Guide - Publication Number: 100847684
, (20 to 80 Hz,
RMS
See Section 2.4, Environmental
Conditions.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 6
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2. Specifications
2.1 Models and Capacity
Table 2 Models and Capacity
User Capacity
500 GB ZP1000GM30002
1000 GB ZP2000GM30002
2000 GB ZP2000GM30002
NOTE About capacity:
2.2 Performance
Table 3 Random and Sequential Read and Write Performance
Parameter 500 GB 1000 GB 2000 GB
Sequential Read (Max, MB/s), 128KB 5000 5000 5000
Sequential Write (Max, MB/s), 128KB 2500 4400 4400
Random Read (Max, IOPS), 4KB QD32 T8 430,000 760,000 750,000
Random Write (Max, IOPS), 4KB QD32 T8 630,000 700,000 700,000
Standard
M.2 2280-D2-M Models
Sector Size: 512 Bytes
User-addressable LBA count = (97696368) + (1953504 x (Desired Capacity
in Gb-50.0)) From International Disk Drive Equipment and Materials
Association (IDEMA) (LBA1-03_standard.doc)
NOTE About performance:
Fresh out of box (FOB) performance obtained on newly formatted drive.
Performance may vary based on the SSD’s firmware version, system
hardware, and configuration.
Performance based on Windows 10 host with PCIe Gen4 motherboard.
CrystalDiskMark 6.0.2, 1GB range, QD=32, Thread=1, 1GB range, QD=32,
Thread=8 (random)
Sequential Read/Write is measured while testing 1000 MB five times by
CrystalDiskMark.
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2.3 Power Consumption
Table 4 Power Consumption
Parameter 500 GB 1000 GB 2000 GB
Max. Average Read (mW) 5210 6000 6000
Max. Average Write (mW) 4630 5700 6000
Idle PS3 (mW) 12 15 25
L1.2 (mW) 2 2 2
NOTE About power consumption:
The average value of power consumption is based on 100% conversion
efficiency.
The measured power voltage is 3.3 V.
Measured under ambient temperature.
Power Consumption can differ according to flash configuration and
platform.
Power consumption is measured during the sequential read and write
(128KB) operations performed by Linux FIO3.7
2.4 Environmental Conditions
Table 5 Temperature, Humidity, Shock
Specification Value
Temperature
Operating (case temperature at specific airflow)
Non-operating
Humidity
Operating
Non-operating (storage)
Shock
Non-operating
Vibration
Non-operating
NOTE Temperature is measured without condensation. Operating mode
temperature is measured by temperature sensor, SMART Attribute.
0°C to 70°C
-40°C to 85°C
1,500 G, duration 0.5 ms
1.52 G
(20Hz to 80Hz, Frequency)
RMS,
90%
93%
Airflow is suggested. Airflow allows the device to be operated at the
appropriate temperature for each component during heavy workloads
environments.
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Shock and vibration results assume that the SSD is mounted securely with
the input vibration applied to the SSD mounting. These specifications do not
cover connection issues that may result from testing at this level. The
measured specification is in root mean square (RMS) form.
Non-operating Shock. The limits of non-operating shock applies to all
conditions of handling and transportation. This includes both isolated
SSD and integrated SSDs. Shock may be applied in the X, Y, or Z-axis.
Non-Operating Vibration. The limits of non-operating vibration shall
apply to all conditions of handling and transportation. This includes both
isolated SSD and integrated SSDs. Vibration may be applied in the X, Y, or
Z-axis.
2.5 Reliability/Endurance
Table 6 Reliability/Endurance
Specification Value
Mean time between failures (MTBF) 1.8 million hours
Bit Error Rate
Endurance Total Bytes Written
1 error in 10
500 GB: 850 TB
1000 GB: 1800 TB
2000 GB: 3600 TB
16
bits read
NOTE About endurance:
The SSD achieves the specified MTBF in an operational environment that
complies with the operational temperature range specified in this manual.
Operating temperatures are measured by temperature sensor.
Endurance rating valid for SSD Life Remaining > 1%.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 9
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3. Mechanical Information
Weight: 8.0 g (500 GB) 8.5 g (1000 GB), 8.7 g (2000 GB)
Height: 3.5 mm±0.08 mm
Width: 22 mm±0.15 mm
Length: 80 mm±0.15 mm
Figure 1 FireCuda 520 SSD Top Side View
Figure 2 FireCuda 520 SSD Bottom Side View
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 10
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Figure 3 FireCuda 520 SSD Side View
Notes
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4. Pin and Signal Descriptions
Table 7 Pin Descriptions
Pin No. PCIe Pin Description
1GND
23.3V
3GND
43.3V
5PETn3
6N/C
7PETp3
8N/C
9GND
10 LED1#
CONFIG_3 = GND
3.3V source
Ground
3.3V source
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
Ground
Open drain, active low signal. These signals are used to allow the add- in card to provide status
indicators via LED devices that will be provided by the system.
11 PERn3
12 3.3V
13 PERp3
14 3.3V
15 GND
16 3.3V
17 PETn2
18 3.3V
19 PETp2
20 N/C
21 GND
22 N/C
23 PERn2
24 N/C
25 PERp2
26 N/C
27 GND
28 N/C
29 PETn1
30 N/C
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
3.3V source
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
3.3V source
Ground
3.3V source
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
3.3V source
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
Ground
No connect
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
Ground
No connect
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
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Table 7 Pin Descriptions (continued)
Pin No. PCIe Pin Description
31 PETp1
32 N/C
33 GND
34 N/C
35 PERn1
36 N/C
37 PERp1
38 N/C
39 GND
40 SMB_CLK (I/O)(0/1.8V)
41 PETn0
42 SMB_DATA (I/O)(0/1.8V)
43 PETp0
44 ALERT#(O) (0/1.8V)
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
Ground
No connect
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
Ground
SMBus Clock; Open Drain with pull-up on platform
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
SMBus Data; Open Drain with pull-up on platform.
PCIe TX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
Alert notification to master; Open Drain with pull-up on platform;
Active low.
45 GND
46 N/C
47 PERn0
48 N/C
49 PERp0
50 PERST#(I)(0/3.3V)
51 GND
52 CLKREQ#(I/O)(0/3.3V)
53 REFCLKn
54 PEWAKE#(I/O)(0/3.3V)
55 REFCLKp
56 Reserved for MFG DATA
Ground
No connect
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
No connect
PCIe RX Differential signal defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec
PE-Reset is a functional reset to the card as defined by the PCIe Mini
CEM specification.
Ground
Clock Request is a reference clock request signal as defined by the
PCIe Mini CEM specification; Also used by L1 PM Sub-states.
PCIe Reference Clock signals (100 MHz)
defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec.
PCIe PME Wake.
Open Drain with pull up on platform; Active Low.
PCIe Reference Clock signals (100 MHz)
defined by the PCI Express M.2 spec.
Manufacturing Data line. Used for SSD manufacturing only.
Not used in normal operation.
Pins should be left N/C in platform Socket.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 13
www.seagate.com
Table 7 Pin Descriptions (continued)
Pin No. PCIe Pin Description
57 GND
Ground
58 Reserved for MFG
CLOCK
59 Module Key M
60 Module Key M
61 Module Key M
62 Module Key M
63 Module Key M
64 Module Key M
65 Module Key M
66 Module Key M
67 N/C
68
69 N/C
70 3.3V
71 GND
72 3.3V
73 GND
74 3.3V
75 GND
SUSCLK(32KHz)
(I)(0/3.3V)
Manufacturing Clock line. Used for SSD manufacturing only.
Not used in normal operation.
Pins should be left N/C in platform Socket.
Module Key
No connect
32.768 kHz clock supply input that is provided by the platform chipset to reduce power and cost
for the module.
PEDET (NC-PCIe)
3.3V source
Ground
3.3V source
Ground
3.3V source
Ground
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 14
www.seagate.com
5. SMART Support
The FireCuda 520 SSD supports the SMART command set.
5.1 SMART Attributes
The following table lists SMART Attributes and Descriptions.
Table 8 SMART Attributes (Log Identifier 02h)
Bytes Index Bytes Description
[0] 1
[2:1] 2
[3] 1
[4] 1
[5] 1
[31:6] 26
[47:32] 16
[63:48] 16
[79:64] 16
[95:80] 16
[111:96] 16
[127:112] 16
[143:128] 16
[159:144] 16
[175:160] 16
[191:176] 16
[195:192] 4
[199:196] 4
Critical Warning
Composite Temperature
Available Spare
Available Spare Threshold
Percentage Used
Reserved
Data Units Read
Data Units Written
Host Read Commands
Host Write Commands
Controller Busy Time
Power Cycles
Power On Hours
Unsafe Shutdowns
Media and Data Integrity Errors
Number of Error Information Log Entries
Warning Composite Temperature Time
Critical Composite Temperature Time
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 15
www.seagate.com
6. Feature Details
6.1 Flash Management
6.1.1 Error Correction Code (ECC)
Flash memory cells will deteriorate with use, which might generate random bit errors in the stored data. Thus,
FireCuda 520 SSD applies the fourth generation LDPC(Low Density Parity Check) of ECC algorithm, which can detect
and correct errors that occur during read process, ensure data has been read correctly, as well as protect data from
corruption.
6.1.2 Wear Leveling
NAND flash devices can only undergo a limited number of program/erase cycles, and in most cases, the flash media
are not used evenly. If some areas get updated more frequently than others, the lifetime of the device would be
reduced significantly. Thus, Wear Leveling is applied to extend the lifespan of NAND Flash by evenly distributing write
and erase cycles across the media.
Seagate provides advanced Wear Leveling algorithm, which can efficiently spread out the flash usage through the
whole flash media area. Moreover, by implementing both dynamic and static Wear Leveling algorithms, the life
expectancy of the NAND flash is greatly improved.
6.1.3 Bad Block Management
Bad blocks are blocks that do not function properly or contain more invalid bits causing stored data to become
unstable, and their reliability is not guaranteed. Blocks that are identified and marked as bad by the manufacturer are
referred to as “Early Bad Blocks”. Bad blocks that are developed during the lifespan of the flash are named “Later Bad
Blocks”. Seagate implements an efficient bad block management algorithm to detect the factory- produced bad
blocks and manages bad blocks that appear with use. This practice prevents data being stored into bad blocks and
further improves the data reliability.
6.1.4 TRIM
TRIM is a feature which helps improve the read/write performance and speed of solid-state drives (SSD). Unlike hard
disk drives (HDD), SSDs are not able to overwrite existing data, so the available space gradually becomes smaller with
each use. With the TRIM command, the operating system can inform the SSD which blocks of data are no longer in use
and can be removed permanently. Thus, the SSD will perform the erase action, which prevents unused data from
occupying blocks all the time.
6.1.5 SMART
SMART, an acronym for Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology, is an open standard that allows a hard
disk drive to automatically detect its health and report potential failures. When a failure is recorded by SMART, users
can choose to replace the drive to prevent unexpected outage or data loss. Moreover, SMART can inform users of
impending failures while there is still time to perform proactive actions, such as copy data to another device.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 16
www.seagate.com
6.1.6 Over Provisioning
Over Provisioning refers to the inclusion of extra NAND capacity in a SSD, which is not visible and cannot be used by
users. With Over Provisioning, the performance and IOPS (Input/output Operations per Second) are improved by
providing the controller additional space to manage P/E cycles, which enhances the reliability and endurance as well.
Moreover, the write amplification of the SSD becomes lower when the controller writes data to the flash.
6.1.7 Firmware Upgrade
Firmware can be considered as a set of instructions on how the device communicates with the host. Firmware will be
upgraded when new features are added, compatibility issues are fixed, or read/write performance gets improved.
6.1.8 Thermal Throttling
The purpose of thermal throttling is to prevent any components in a SSD from over-heating during read and write
operations. The device is designed with an on-die and an on-board thermal sensor, and with its accuracy, firmware can
apply different levels of throttling to achieve the purpose of protection efficiently and proactively via SMART reading.
Table 9 Current version: Thermal Throttling 2.0
Item Content
Smart reporting temperature Flash normalized case temperature
Reference of temp. reading On-board thermal sensor, Controller on-die thermal sensor
tmt1 threshold
tmt2 threshold
Protect threshold
Protect controller threshold
Fatal threshold
Resume performance threshold
Temperature polling frequency Every 1 sec
TMT1_state impact -10% CE
TMT2_state impact -20% CE
82°C per Smart reported
85°C per Smart reported
95
°C per Smart reported
110°C from on-die thermal sensor
120°C from on-die thermal sensor
78
°C per Smart reported
NOTE For optimal performance:
Provide sufficient airflow and cooling.
Use a motherboard-integrated heat sink and cooling system.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 17
www.seagate.com
6.2 Advanced Device Security Features
6.2.1 NVMe format
Secure Erase is a standard NVMe format command and it writes all “0xFF” to fully wipe all the data on the SSDs. When
this command is issued, the SSD controller erases its storage blocks and returns the drive to its factory default settings.
6.2.2 Physical Presence SID (PSID)
The Physical Presence SID (PSID) is defined by TCG Pyrite as a 32-character string and its purpose is to revert the SSD
back to its manufacturing setting when the drive is set via TCG Pyrite (non-SED). The PSID code is printed on the SSD’s
label. All user data will be erased when reverting the drive back to manufacturing settings.
6.2.3 Manufacturer’s Secure ID (MSID)
The Manufacturer’s Secure ID (MSID) is defined by TCG Pyrite as a 32-character string and is assigned during the
manufacturing process, which is a password that cannot be changed by the host system. MSID can be obtained
electronically from the drive across the interface. On acquiring the SSD, the user must set a new password. If a new
password is not set the SSD might be potentially taken control by anyone who can reset the MSID. Such an attack on
the drive is known as Denial of Service (DoS) since the rightful owner has been locked out.
6.2.4 Sanitize Operation
The Sanitize feature is an alternative to the existing secure erase capabilities through the Format NVM command and
makes a robust data security by ensuring the user data from the drive's media, caches and the Controller Memory
Buffer are all wiped by the block erase operations, overwriting or destroying the encryption key. The following table
illustrates the types of Sanitize Operations supported.
Table 10 Supported Sanitize Operations
Drive Security Type
Non-SED (TCG Pyrite) Yes Yes No Yes No
NOTE Sanitize Overwrite command completion takes at least one hour per terabyte
per pass. The number of passes is drive-selectable. The NVMe spec default is 16
passes. Contact Seagate Support for more detailed information.
Sanitize Operation TCG Commands
Overwrite Block Erase
Crypto
Erase
PSID Revert
Process
Instant Security
Erase
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 18
www.seagate.com
6.3 SSD Lifetime Management
6.3.1 Total Bytes Written (TBW)
TBW (total bytes written) is a measurement of the SSDs’ expected lifespan, which represents the amount of data
written to the device. To calculate the TBW of a SSD, the following equation is applied:
TBW = [(NAND Endurance) x (SSD Capacity)] / WAF
NAND Endurance: NAND endurance refers to the P/E (Program/Erase) cycle of a NAND flash. SSD Capacity: The SSD
capacity is the specific capacity in total of a SSD.
WAF: Write Amplification Factor (WAF) is a numerical value representing the ratio between the amount of data that a
SSD controller needs to write and the amount of data that the host’s flash controller writes. A better WAF, which is near
1, guarantees better endurance and lower frequency of data written to flash memory.
6.3.2 Media Wear Indicator
Actual life indicator reported by SMART Attribute byte index [5], Percentage Used, recommends User to replace drive
when reaching to 100%.
6.3.3 Read Only Mode (End of Life)
When drive is aged by cumulated program/erase cycles, media worn- out may cause increasing numbers of later bad
block. When the number of available spare is less the threshold(5%, SMART attribute log ID 02h Byte4), the drive will
notify Host through AER event and Critical Warning to enter Read Only Mode to prevent further data corruption. User
should start to replace the drive with another one immediately.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 19
www.seagate.com
6.4 An Adaptive Approach to Performance Tuning
6.4.1 Throughput
Based on the available space of the disk, the drive will regulate the read/write speed and manage the performance of
throughput. When there still remains a lot of space, the firmware will continuously perform read/write action. There is
still no need to implement garbage collection to allocate and release memory, which will accelerate the read/write
processing to improve the performance. Contrarily, when the space is being used up, the drive will slow down the
read/write processing, and implement garbage collection to release memory. Hence, read/write performance will
become slower.
6.4.2 Predict & Fetch
Normally, when the Host tries to read data from the PCIe SSD, the PCIe SSD will only perform one read action after
receiving one command. However, the drive applies Predict & Fetch to improve the read speed. When the host issues
sequential read commands to the PCIe SSD, the PCIe SSD will automatically expect that the following will also be read
commands. Thus, before receiving the next command, flash has already prepared the data. Accordingly, this
accelerates the data processing time, and the host does not need to wait so long to receive data.
6.4.3 SLC Caching
The firmware design of the device currently adopts dynamic caching to deliver better performance for better
endurance and consumer user experience. The SLC caching size is up to 1/3 of free capacity of the SSD.
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 20
www.seagate.com
7. Safety, Standards, and Compliance
Each Hard Drive and Solid State Drive ("device") has a product label that includes certifications that apply to that
specific drive. The following information provides an overview of requirements that may apply to the drive.
NOTE The most up to date information on Safety, Standards, and Compliance for
this product is available in the Seagate HDD and SSD Regulatory Compliance
and Safety document. You can find this document here:
https://www.seagate.com/files/www-content/forms/compliance/regulatory-complian
ce-and-safety-100838899-A.pdf
7.1 Regulatory Model Numbers
The following regulatory model number represents all features and configurations in the series:
STA020
Seagate FireCuda 520 SSD Product Manual, Rev D 21
Seagate Technology LLC
AMERICAS Seagate Technology LLC 47488 Kato Road, Fremont, California 94538, United States, 510-661-1000
ASIA/PACIFIC Seagate Singapore International Headquarters Pte. Ltd. 90 Woodlands Avenue 7, Singapore 737911, 65-6412-3666
EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA Seagate Technology (Netherlands) B.V. Koolhovenlaan 1, 1119 NB Schiphol-Rijk, Netherlands, 31-20-316-7300
Publication Number: 100857985, Rev D
August 2020
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