Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods for password protection of defined spaces in a memory device. The method includes receiving a data block from a host. The data block includes a user-defined current password, a user-defined new password, a password length of the current password, a password length of the new password, and a user-defined address range field including start and end addresses of a defined space in the memory device. The method further includes matching password lengths of the user-defined current password and a current password length of a current password for the defined space already stored in the memory device. The method also includes comparing the user-defined current password and the current password of the defined space. The method further includes replacing or resetting the current password of the defined space with the user-defined new password based on a result of the matching and a result of the comparing.

Abstract: A data storage device includes a controller coupled to one or more memory devices. The controller is configured to determine one or more first wordlines within the memory device that needs more than one pulse for programming and one or more second wordlines within the memory device that needs one pulse and no program verify. The locations of the one or more first wordlines and the one or more second wordlines are stored in a data structure of the memory device. During program operations, the controller utilizes the data structure to determine whether the one or more wordlines being programmed requires only one pulse and no program verify or a multi-loop program. The data structure is updated after an EPWR and/or XOR parity operation.

Abstract: Aspects of a storage device including a controller are provided which identifies a bad, open block that causes subsequent erase operations to fail in closed blocks due to charge leakage following a previous program operation in the open block. Each time the controller programs an open block, the controller attempts to erase a plurality of closed blocks following each programming of the open block. When the closed blocks fail to erase, the controller determines whether a number of consecutive erase failures after programming the open block meets a threshold, after which the controller re-attempts to erase the closed blocks. After a successful re-attempt, the controller stores a list of open blocks in memory. In response to repeating these steps a number or plurality of times, the controller stores multiple lists of open blocks in memory, and identifies the single common open block between the multiple lists as a bad block.

Abstract: Aspects of a storage device including a memory and a controller are provided which reduces or eliminates garbage collection in zoned namespace (ZNS) architectures by mapping zones to sub-blocks of blocks of the memory. Each zone includes a plurality of logical addresses. The controller determines a number of open zones, and maps the open zones to the sub-blocks in response to the number of open zones meeting a threshold. Thus, larger numbers of open blocks typically present in ZNS may be reduced, and increased block sizes due to scaling may be accommodated in ZNS. In some aspects, the controller receives a request from a host device to write data associated with the zones in sub-blocks, and maps each of the zones to at least one of the sub-blocks in response to the request. The request may indicate zones are partially unused. Thus, out of zone conditions may also be avoided.

Abstract: A data storage device includes a controller coupled to one or more memory devices. The controller is configured to determine one or more first wordlines within the memory device that needs more than one pulse for programming and one or more second wordlines within the memory device that needs one pulse and no program verify. The locations of the one or more first wordlines and the one or more second wordlines are stored in a data structure of the memory device. During program operations, the controller utilizes the data structure to determine whether the one or more wordlines being programmed requires only one pulse and no program verify or a multi-loop program. The data structure is updated after an EPWR and/or XOR parity operation.

Abstract: Aspects of a storage device including a memory and a controller are provided which reduces or eliminates garbage collection in zoned namespace (ZNS) architectures by mapping zones to sub-blocks of blocks of the memory. Each zone includes a plurality of logical addresses. The controller determines a number of open zones, and maps the open zones to the sub-blocks in response to the number of open zones meeting a threshold. Thus, larger numbers of open blocks typically present in ZNS may be reduced, and increased block sizes due to scaling may be accommodated in ZNS. In some aspects, the controller receives a request from a host device to write data associated with the zones in sub-blocks, and maps each of the zones to at least one of the sub-blocks in response to the request. The request may indicate zones are partially unused. Thus, out of zone conditions may also be avoided.

Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods for password protection of defined spaces in a memory device. The method includes receiving a data block from a host. The data block includes a user-defined current password, a user-defined new password, a password length of the current password, a password length of the new password, and a user-defined address range field including start and end addresses of a defined space in the memory device. The method further includes matching password lengths of the user-defined current password and a current password length of a current password for the defined space already stored in the memory device. The method also includes comparing the user-defined current password and the current password of the defined space. The method further includes replacing or resetting the current password of the defined space with the user-defined new password based on a result of the matching and a result of the comparing.

Abstract: Aspects of a storage device including a controller are provided which identifies a bad, open block that causes subsequent erase operations to fail in closed blocks due to charge leakage following a previous program operation in the open block. Each time the controller programs an open block, the controller attempts to erase a plurality of closed blocks following each programming of the open block. When the closed blocks fail to erase, the controller determines whether a number of consecutive erase failures after programming the open block meets a threshold, after which the controller re-attempts to erase the closed blocks. After a successful re-attempt, the controller stores a list of open blocks in memory. In response to repeating these steps a number or plurality of times, the controller stores multiple lists of open blocks in memory, and identifies the single common open block between the multiple lists as a bad block.

Abstract: Aspects of a storage device including a controller are provided which recovers misidentified bad blocks that fail to erase due to charge leakage from a previously programmed open block. The controller programs an open block, and attempts to erase a plurality of closed blocks following the programming of the open block. When the closed blocks fail to erase, the controller marks the closed blocks as bad blocks. The controller then determines whether a number of consecutive erase failures after programming the open block meets a threshold, in response to which the controller resets a die including the closed blocks and reattempts to erase the closed blocks. The controller then unmarks as bad blocks the closed blocks which successfully erased in response to the re-attempt.