Hey Frank!

dd status=progress if=/dev/zero of=/dev/nvme1n1p2 bs=1M
31922847744 bytes (32 GB, 30 GiB) copied, 5 s, 6.4 GB/s
dd: error writing '/dev/nvme1n1p2': No space left on device
32769+0 records in
32768+0 records out
34359738368 bytes (34 GB, 32 GiB) copied, 6.83432 s, 5.0 GB/s

Awesome.

Дуже груви,
Maurice

-o o- o- -o -o -o o- -o o- o- -o -o
(\ /) /) (\ (\ (\ /) (\ /) /) (\ (\
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
... Sceal æghwylc mon alætan lændagas.
Every man will have to relinquish the days loaned to him.
--- GNU bash, version 5.3.9(1)-release (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu)
* Origin: Little Mikey's Brain - Ladysmith BC, Canada (1:153/7001)

Hi Maurice,

On 2026-02-16 23:46:33, you wrote to Frank Zappa:

dd status=progress if=/dev/zero of=/dev/nvme1n1p2 bs=1M

Why are you unnecessarily wearing down your SSD cells with such a command?

There are commands to tell your nvme drive to (securely) "erase" blocks without wearing them down.

Awesome.

No, awful! ;-)


Bye, Wilfred.

--- FMail-lnx64 2.3.2.6-B20251227
* Origin: FMail development HQ (2:280/464)

Hej Wilfred!

Why are you unnecessarily wearing down your SSD cells with such a
command?

I don't that often. At the moment I wanted a comparable command to the slackware-current write to the usb pendrives without actually writing slackware-current to the disk. I am and have been aware of wear levelling. I have yet to have any SSD fail on me. I have one (sata) that has been in use for 20 years now and shows no sign of giving up. I also have older ones that lack a proper interface since their host machines have long outlived their usefullness. 40 and 44 pin ide jobbers. If I remember correctly they had "flash-ttyinux of the 21st century" embbeded on them. That would make them ~25 years old now. Also have many bootable compact flash disks that go back to the late 1990's. I have no idea if they would still boot. Last time I checked they did.

No, awful! ;-)

Works for me. :-)

Anyhow I am all done testing ... for now. Just about to reboot the europoint on a secondary nvme. That was the disk in question that dd showed the 5 GB/s transfer speed and it is still awesome despite dd zeroing what is now the root partition.

Het leven is goed,
Maurice

-o o- -o -o -o -o o- o- o- o- o- o- o- o- -o o-
(\ /) (\ (\ (\ (\ /) /) /) /) /) /) /) /) (\ /)
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
... Nafað ænig mann freonda to fela.
No one can have too many friends.
--- GNU bash, version 5.3.9(1)-release (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu)
* Origin: Little Mikey's EuroPoint @ (2:280/464.113)

Hi Maurice,

On 2026-02-17 09:30:42, you wrote to me:

Also have many bootable compact flash disks that go back to the late 1990's. I have no idea if they would still boot. Last time I checked they did.

That would be interesting to find out! I have had bad results with (not properly stored) CD/DVD's. And even old HDD's that no longer work at all, or show lots of read errors...


Bye, Wilfred.

--- FMail-lnx64 2.3.2.6-B20251227
* Origin: FMail development HQ (2:280/464)

Hej Wilfred!

Also have many bootable compact flash disks

That would be interesting to find out!

Heh, heh. I see a kernel panic in my minds eye. With a proper usb adapter they might be mountable and hopefully readable. I am sure they are ext2 formatted and all my currently running kernels can handle it. Boot? That would require older hardware that doesn't exist here. Mind you neither does the usb adapter for compact flash. I have a bunch of waterproof totes in storage and maybe one of these days when I get curious enough I'll dig through and see if I can find them. Probably in the same tote with 5.25" and 3.5" floppies as well as CDs, DVDs, and other assorted obsolete media such as tapes. I was known the 9 track tape guru way back in the VAX/VMS days.

And even old HDD's that no longer work at all, or show lots of
read errors...

Them too. I am still using 4 3.5" sata drives on one of my machines. I've even booted one of them recently. Their warranties have long expired.

Het leven is goed,
Maurice

o- o- o- o- o- -o o- -o o- -o o- -o -o -o -o o-
/) /) /) /) /) (\ /) (\ /) (\ /) (\ (\ (\ (\ /)
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
... Til sceal on eðle domes wyrcean.
A good man should earn glory in his homeland.
--- GNU bash, version 5.3.9(1)-release (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu)
* Origin: Little Mikey's EuroPoint @ (2:280/464.113)

Hi Maurice,

On 2026-02-17 11:59:00, you wrote to me:

Also have many bootable compact flash disks

That would be interesting to find out!

Heh, heh. I see a kernel panic in my minds eye. With a proper usb adapter
they might be mountable and hopefully readable.

That would be the interesting part: If they are still readable.

I am sure they are ext2 formatted and all my currently running kernels
can handle it. Boot? That would require older hardware that doesn't
exist here.

Being able to boot is less interesting, for me at least. ;-)

Mind you neither does the usb adapter for compact flash.

They are probably easy to find and cheap. I have 2 sitting on my desk here.

I have a bunch of waterproof totes in storage and maybe one of these
days when I get curious enough I'll dig through and see if I can find them. Probably in the same tote with 5.25" and 3.5" floppies as well
as CDs, DVDs, and other assorted obsolete media such as tapes. I was known the 9 track tape guru way back in the VAX/VMS days.

That's from before my time! ;-)

And equipment to read from those tapes would probably impossible to find. Maybe in a museum? ;-)

And even old HDD's that no longer work at all, or show lots of
read errors...

Them too. I am still using 4 3.5" sata drives on one of my machines. I've
even booted one of them recently. Their warranties have long expired.

I recently tried reading from 2 PATA drives from my Amiga 4000, that hadn't been turned on for like 25 years. I couldn't get anything from them. Which might have been more of an electronics problem then a magnetic problem on the disks...

Bye, Wilfred.

--- FMail-lnx64 2.3.2.6-B20251227
* Origin: FMail development HQ (2:280/464)

Hej Wilfred!

That would be the interesting part: If they are still readable.

I am guessing they still are but won't bet the farm on it. To find out for sure I'd need to find a proper adapter. The only card reader I currently have within arms reach is a usb microSD.

I have 2 sitting on my desk here.

Cool. If/when I find the compact flash disks I may have to locate one of those. I haven't seen one in decades now.

And equipment to read from those tapes would probably impossible to
find. Maybe in a museum? ;-)

Probably but I have heard rumours that they are still in use. If it mattered at all I know where I'd start looking. I think I might have a HP DAT drive in one of the totes which is a vastly shrunken down tape drive. Not nearly the same other than the media being magnetic tape. Also the 9-track tape drives require far more power then what I care to give them as well as the tapes being really expensive.

Of course it is totally different when it is somebody else's dime.

Het leven is goed,
Maurice

o- -o o- -o o- o- -o o- -o -o o- o- -o -o -o -o
/) (\ /) (\ /) /) (\ /) (\ (\ /) /) (\ (\ (\ (\
^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^
... Oft sceall eorl monig anes willan wræc adreogan.
Often must many a warrior suffer misery because of the will of one person. --- GNU bash, version 5.3.9(1)-release (x86_64-pc-linux-gnu)
* Origin: Little Mikey's EuroPoint @ (2:280/464.113)