Abstract: A data storage device includes a hard disk drive coupled to a printed circuit board (PCB), a volatile memory device coupled to the PCB, a non-volatile memory device coupled to the PCB, and a controller coupled to the PCB, such that the controller is in communication with the hard disk drive, the volatile memory device, and the non-volatile memory device. The controller is configured to identify patterns and/or structures of metadata for the hard disk drive, perform one or more of the following to the metadata to tailor the metadata: data shaping, content aware decoding, adaptive data trimming, and/or adaptive metablock sizing, and write the tailored metadata to the non-volatile memory device. The metadata is at least one of repeatable run out metadata, positioning error signal metadata, adjacent track interference metadata, and/or emergency power off metadata.

Abstract: A data storage device includes a hard disk drive coupled to a printed circuit board (PCB), a volatile memory device coupled to the PCB, a non-volatile memory device coupled to the PCB, and a controller coupled to the PCB, such that the controller is in communication with the hard disk drive, the volatile memory device, and the non-volatile memory device. The controller is configured to identify patterns and/or structures of metadata for the hard disk drive, perform one or more of the following to the metadata to tailor the metadata: data shaping, content aware decoding, adaptive data trimming, and/or adaptive metablock sizing, and write the tailored metadata to the non-volatile memory device. The metadata is at least one of repeatable run out metadata, positioning error signal metadata, adjacent track interference metadata, and/or emergency power off metadata.

Abstract: A data storage device may include non-volatile storage media that includes a long-term storage region divided into a plurality of physical regions and a temporary storage region that includes at least two first tier bins. Each logical block address (LBA) span of a plurality of LBA spans may be associated with at least one physical region. Each first tier bin may be associated with a respective LBA subset of the plurality of LBA spans that includes at least two LBA spans and less than all LBA spans. The data storage device may also include a processor configured to receive first data having an LBA from a first LBA subset and second data having an LBA from a second LBA subset, and writing the first data to a first bin associated with the first LBA subset and writing the second data to a second bin associated with the second LBA subset.

Abstract: A data storage device may include non-volatile storage media that includes a long-term storage region divided into a plurality of physical regions and a temporary storage region that includes at least two first tier bins. Each logical block address (LBA) span of a plurality of LBA spans may be associated with at least one physical region. Each first tier bin may be associated with a respective LBA subset of the plurality of LBA spans that includes at least two LBA spans and less than all LBA spans. The data storage device may also include a processor configured to receive first data having an LBA from a first LBA subset and second data having an LBA from a second LBA subset, and writing the first data to a first bin associated with the first LBA subset and writing the second data to a second bin associated with the second LBA subset.

Abstract: In general, techniques are described for logical defragmenting of a storage device. A controller of a storage device groups sequential logical block addresses of a logical span into a plurality of groups. Each group includes a same number of logical block addresses, and each logical block address references a physical location of a physical block on the storage device. For each group, the controller determines whether at least one logical block address references a physical location of a physical block that includes valid data. Responsive to the at least one logical block address referencing valid data, the controller stores a first value to a field of a bit-level indirection table. The bit-level indirection table includes a number of fields equal to a number of groups of sequential logical block addresses. Responsive none of the logical block addresses referencing valid data, the controller stores a second value to the field.

Abstract: In general, techniques are described for compressing an indirection table. A device comprising a processor and a memory may be configured to perform the techniques. The processor may be configured to form a plurality of physical containers, each of the plurality of physical containers representative of a plurality of physical block addresses, wherein each of the plurality of physical containers corresponds to one or more logical block address. The memory may be configured to store an indirection table that maps the logical block addresses to the plurality of physical containers. The processor may be further configured to perform run-length encoding of the plurality of physical containers to compress the indirection table.

Abstract: In general, techniques are described for logical defragmenting of a storage device. A controller of a storage device groups sequential logical block addresses of a logical span into a plurality of groups. Each group includes a same number of logical block addresses, and each logical block address references a physical location of a physical block on the storage device. For each group, the controller determines whether at least one logical block address references a physical location of a physical block that includes valid data. Responsive to the at least one logical block address referencing valid data, the controller stores a first value to a field of a bit-level indirection table. The bit-level indirection table includes a number of fields equal to a number of groups of sequential logical block addresses. Responsive none of the logical block addresses referencing valid data, the controller stores a second value to the field.

Abstract: In general, techniques are described for compressing an indirection table. A device comprising a processor and a memory may be configured to perform the techniques. The processor may be configured to form a plurality of physical containers, each of the plurality of physical containers representative of a plurality of physical block addresses, wherein each of the plurality of physical containers corresponds to one or more logical block address. The memory may be configured to store an indirection table that maps the logical block addresses to the plurality of physical containers. The processor may be further configured to perform run-length encoding of the plurality of physical containers to compress the indirection table.

Abstract: Methods for deciding whether to store data in a non-volatile semiconductor memory (NVSM) storage portion of a hybrid drive including the NVSM storage portion and a disk storage portion are provided. One such method involves generating a queue for storing candidate addresses and a priority level for each of the candidate addresses, receiving a read command and a range of addresses for the disk storage portion, determining a relative distance between reads of a first address corresponding with a second address within the range of addresses, storing, when the relative distance is less than a relative distance threshold, a first candidate address, corresponding to the second address, and a respective priority level in the queue, and storing, when the priority level of the first candidate address is greater than a priority level threshold, data corresponding to the first candidate address in the NVSM storage portion.

Abstract: Methods for deciding whether to store data in a non-volatile memory (NVM) storage portion of a hybrid drive including the NVM storage portion and a disk storage portion are provided. One such method involves generating a queue for storing candidate addresses and a priority level for each of the candidate addresses, receiving a read command and a range of addresses for the disk storage portion, determining a relative distance between reads of a first address corresponding with a second address within the range of addresses, storing, when the relative distance is less than a relative distance threshold, a first candidate address, corresponding to the second address, and a respective priority level in the queue, and storing, when the priority level of the first candidate address is greater than a priority level threshold, data corresponding to the first candidate address in the NVM storage portion.

Abstract: Methods for deciding whether to store data in a non-volatile memory (NVM) storage portion of a hybrid drive including the NVM storage portion and a disk storage portion are provided. One such method involves generating a queue for storing candidate addresses and a priority level for each of the candidate addresses, receiving a read command and a range of addresses for the disk storage portion, determining a relative distance between reads of a first address corresponding with a second address within the range of addresses, storing, when the relative distance is less than a relative distance threshold, a first candidate address, corresponding to the second address, and a respective priority level in the queue, and storing, when the priority level of the first candidate address is greater than a priority level threshold, data corresponding to the first candidate address in the NVM storage portion.

Abstract: A disk drive includes a controller and at least one disk, which may include a first I-region, a second I-region, and an E-region. The first and second I-region may have a first final logical block address (LBA) and a second final LBA, respectively. The controller may be configured to cause information to be written to the first I-region and the second I-region using a first type and a second type of magnetic recording, respectively. The controller also may be configured to set at least one of the first final LBA or the second final LBA to a final LBA value higher than the at least one of the first final LBA or the second final LBA, respectively, after writing user data to at least a portion of the first I-region or the second I-region and without removing the user data.

Abstract: A technique implemented by a processor may include controlling a write head to write data to at least one partition of a data track of a magnetic data storage medium. The data track may include a plurality of partitions. The technique also may include determining, for each partition of the at least one partition, whether the partition has been previously written to by inspecting a partition overlap register associated with the data track. The partition overlap register stores a respective entry for each partition indicating whether the partition has been previously written to. The technique also may include, in response to determining that at least one respective partition of the at least one partition has been previously written to, incrementing a damage counter of at least one adjacent track and resetting each entry of the partition overlap register to indicate that each respective partition has not been previously written to.

Abstract: A method is disclosed for improved operation of a data storage device such as a hard disk drive, wherein the overhead for data rewriting is reduced or eliminated by the grouping of logical zones in proximity to other zones with similar writing frequencies. Thus cold zones are written near other cold zones, and hot zones near other hot zones, within a multiplicity of realms on the data storage surface. Substantial reductions in FTI writes are achievable in comparison with previous FTI mitigation algorithms.

Abstract: A computer system includes a host and a disk drive apparatus communicatively coupled to the host. The disk drive includes at least one disk having two major surfaces divided into a plurality of regions. A region includes a start logical block address and a maximum logical block address and an end/final logical block address. After the host writes to the end/final logical block address, it queries the disk drive to see if a region has more capacity. If the disk drive returns a new end/final logical block address, the host frees the allocation up to the new final/end logical block address.

Abstract: A magnetic storage system includes a magnetic storage medium, a random-access memory (RAM), and a controller. The controller interfaces with both the magnetic storage medium and the RAM, and implements a refresh algorithm that determines when a data track on the magnetic storage medium should be refreshed. The controller maintains in the magnetic storage medium a plurality of finer-granularity damage count tables, each table having finer-granularity damage counts each representing damage to one or more sectors within each of the plurality of tracks associated with the table. The controller maintains in RAM a plurality of track-level damage count values, each associated with one of the plurality of data tracks and representing estimated damage to one of the plurality of data tracks. Based on data written to the plurality of data tracks, the controller utilizes finer-granularity damage count tables stored in the magnetic media to update the track-level damage.

Abstract: A disk drive includes an environmental monitor, a controller and a writing mechanism. The controller acts in response to an output from the environmental monitor to determine if the data capacity of a disk drive could be increased from a first value to a second value. The controller determines the second increased value. The writing mechanism, controlled by the controller, writes data to the disk to realize the increased data capacity of the disk drive. A method for increasing the data capacity of a disk drive from the factory settings for data capacity includes determining if the disk drive is in a favorable or stable environment, writing data to at least one portion of the disk drive at a higher capacity than the factory setting for the at least one portion of the disk drive, and resetting the capacity for at least one portion of the disk drive.

Abstract: A disk drive having at least one disk with a major disk surface that includes a first region including a plurality of tracks and a second region including a plurality of tracks. The first and second region are separated by a guard band. The track or tracks near the guard band have a track width that is greater than the track widths of the tracks more distant from the guard band, such as those in the middle of the first and second regions as this reduces the occurrence of far track interference.

Abstract: Shingled magnetic recording (SMR) devices according to embodiments of the invention include unshingled cache regions that can be used for storage of data. The unshingled cache regions can be used in a variety of flexible ways including in an implementation of write-twice caching or for opportunistic temporary storage to improve performance. The cache regions can be offset between top and bottom surfaces of the disk and staggered between disks to provide shorter seek times to the nearest cache region. Embodiments of the invention are adapted for use with symmetric or asymmetric heads.

Abstract: A method for writing information to a magnetizable disk surface on a disk drive includes designating a plurality of regions on a disk where information is to be stored, writing information representing data to a first track in at least one of the plurality of regions, writing information representing data to a second track in the at least one of the plurality of regions, the information written to the second track overwriting a portion of the first track, and determining an amount of the first track that is overwritten based on a performance factor. Determining an amount of the first track that is overwritten is done or accomplished on the fly. The amount to overwrite the track is done in the field rather than in a factory or manufacturing facility.