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Thunderbolt External enclosure for NVMe SSD

TakerTX
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Posted
On 6/25/2018 at 4:35 AM, totalfrenzy said:

I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread...

 

I didn't realise this was an issue until after purchasing an NVMe SSD.

 

I've just purchased this, so I'll try to remember to report back when I get it.

Please report back, curious as well! 

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Posted
On 6/25/2018 at 9:35 PM, totalfrenzy said:

I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread...

 

I didn't realise this was an issue until after purchasing an NVMe SSD.

 

I've just purchased this, so I'll try to remember to report back when I get it.

I can confirm it works. The case is kinda crap, but the board is functional!

I suppose unsurprisingly the disk had to be formatted, and certainly didn't work for a bitlocker encrypted drive.

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Posted

Not sure if this fits right in with the discussion, yet I came across this item while looking for the same thing.  I ordered it to test and hope it will do the job.

 

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA6V87KE3807

 

According to the description, it is what I'm looking for: 

Compatible List (NVMe only):
Samsung SM951- NVMe, PM951-NVMe, 950 Pro NVMe SSD, SM961, PM961, 960 EVO, 960 Pro, 970 EVO, 970 Pro.
INTEL 600P.
Liteon T10.
And other PCIE M.2 NVMe SSD.

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Posted

It sounds like Intel requires that all bus-powered thunderbolt 3 enclosure include an SSD drive. 

 

I'm thinking of doing a Group Buy of the Win-Star Thunderbolt 3 Enclosure + Samsung 960/970 EVO SSD.

 

Anyone interested? 

 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 5 weeks later...
Posted

I'm interested in the NVME to TB3 enclosure too.

@AnalogJ im out of Germany, but I would invest in the enclosure as well.

But I already own a M.2 SSD, I only need the enclosure.

I contacted WAVLINK if its possible to get their enclosure without an SSD inside.
 

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Posted
On ‎4‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 6:55 AM, TakerTX said:

Hi people of the Linus Land!

 

I was wondering if anyone has any idea how to use NVMe SSDs  as a portable, external solution around here? 

 

I have searched all corners of the internet and from the looks of things so far there are only M.2 external enclosures available from manufacturers and no viable solutions for the NVMe SSDs so far.

 

I have two NVMe SSDs that I would very much like to be able to use externally on the go and with a proper connection, Thunderbolt 3.0 preferably, that allows for the near full saturation off the intended drive bandwidth.

 

Any help is much appreciated. 

 

 

Hello TakerTX,

 

Samsung released a NVMe external drive with Thunderbolt™ 3 (40Gbps) Interface. I think you may be interested in this one, follow the details: https://news.samsung.com/global/samsung-electronics-advances-external-storage-innovation-with-new-portable-ssd-x5

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Posted (edited)

*My bad sorry, it saved my comment several times! :$

 

Edited by seagate_surfer

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Posted (edited)

*My bad sorry, it saved my comment several times! :$

Edited by seagate_surfer

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Posted
5 hours ago, togetit said:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G4B394X/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A4QPAS2DOEWMV&psc=1

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07G4B394X/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=A4QPAS2DOEWMV&psc=1

 

Was planning to use one of these for my 970 2TB evo....Any suggestions...

What's the difference? I see both are the same links and redirect me to the same amazon page...

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Posted

I also checked both the transfer rates for PCIe x4 lanes for the 970 evo and the transfer rates for USB 3.1 and I don't think this is business for nobody, I will paste the link for the PCI and quote the following from the Gen 3 segment: PCI Express 3.0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PCI_Express#PCI_Express_3.0

 

"PCI Express 3.0's 8 GT/s bit rate effectively delivers 985 MB/s per lane, nearly doubling the lane bandwidth relative to PCI Express 2.0.[31]"

 

So, in theory 4 lanes of PCIe Gen 3 should be able to deliver about max 3940 MB/s (985 x 4), this number in gigabytes is 3.94 GB. Now I will paste the following about the transfer rates of USB 3.1, the same interface than the M.2 PCI-e to USB3.1 adapter/enclosure you interested on has: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB#USB_3.x

 

"USB 3.1, released in July 2013, preserves the existing SuperSpeed transfer rate under a new label USB 3.1 Gen 1,[27][28] and introduces a new SuperSpeed+ transfer mode, USB 3.1 Gen 2 with the maximum data signaling rate to 10 Gbit/s (1250 MB/s, twice the rate of USB 3.0)"

 

This tells us that the interface of the 970 evo PCIe gen 3 x4 can reach 3940 MB/s, that's about 4 Gigabytes! And that the USB 3.1 can transfer 1250 MB/s, that's a little more than 1 Gigabyte! So, you will never reach that maximum amount of transfer rates that the PCIe Gen 3 x4 lanes can offer due to the limitations of a connection based on USB 3.1 standard than runs less than half of what can be reached with a NVMe PCIe SSD Gen3 x4. It would be reliable to get one adapter that had a connection based on a Thunderbolt 3 standard instead, I will paste a link to the SATA and I know it doesn't have anything to do yet but this link redirects you to a table where they compare several interfaces, one being the USB and the other the Thunderbolt, check it out and you will see there is a huge difference between both of them, Thunderbolt 3 is very similar in transfer rates to what the Evo 970 can offer and would definitely help you take advantage of its max potential:

USB 3 Gen 1 (5Gb/s), USB 3 Gen 2 (3.1, 10 Gb/s) and Thunderbolt 3 (40 Gb/s): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA

Image result for nvme speeds

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Posted
2 hours ago, seagate_surfer said:

What's the difference? I see both are the same links and redirect me to the same amazon page...

Oops,  my bad, i have re-edited the post...

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Posted

Same than before, the second option you added is still USB 3.1 Gen 2. You will limit the speeds of PCIe to speeds of USB 3.1! I found another one by googling "Thunderbolt 3 enclosure", this is just an example but it can transfer to the speeds that one PCIe M.2 SSD can deliver, this docking/enclosures with Thunderbolt 3 are usually expensive because of the standards that they use, so if you can find a good offer for one of those go for it:

 

https://www.ssi.com.tw/product/si-1112tb3-thunderbolt3-enclosure

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Posted

More than welcome! Just one thing I for got to add, your computer needs to have the thunderbolt 3 port, if it only has the port type USB-C without the thunder then it is just a regular USB 3.1 port, meaning that it runs at the speeds of USB. But if you want to reach PCI speeds make sure that the USB-C port has the thunder next to it.

 

THUNDERBOLT 3:

800px-Thunderbolt_3_interface_USB-C_port

 

 

USB 3.1 (NO THUNDER NEXT TO IT):

See the source image

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Posted
Just now, seagate_surfer said:

More than welcome! Just one thing I for got to add, your computer needs to have the thunderbolt 3 port, if it only has the port type USB-C without the thunder then it is just a regular USB 3.1 port, meaning that it runs at the speeds of USB. But if you want to reach PCI speeds make sure that the USB-C port has the thunder next to it.

 

THUNDERBOLT 3:

800px-Thunderbolt_3_interface_USB-C_port

 

 

USB 3.1 (NO THUNDER NEXT TO IT):

See the source image

Yes i have an mac book pr 15 inch 2017 ...

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Posted

Alright B|! We are only missing that docking/enclosure you want so much, good luck in your hunt!!

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  • 1 month later...
Posted

 

Hello everyone,

I am also looking for a Thundelbolt 3 NVMe PCIe SSDs external enclosure.

Your topic of discussion has been the basis of my research, so I decide to share the result of my research.

Here is interesting list of all external enclosures certified by Intel (Thunderbolt 3 for SSD NVMe PCIe)    https://thunderbolttechnology.net/sites/default/files/thunderbolt_3_product_showcase_2018_Q4.pdf

 

Manufacturer link : http://www.win-star.com/eshop/goods.php?id=225

 

Here is the external enclosure sold without ssd that i found at the best price
https://french.alibaba.com/product-detail/Winstars-Patent-design-Aluminum-Type-C-60779539843.html  (50 to 64 USD, minimum 5 pieces to order)

 

Personally, it's just for the BackUp, the support is clearly overkill. But as I have a Samsung 970 EVO 1TB SSD stock, which I do not use, and as my laptop to a port Thunderbolt 3 (ThinkPad T480S), as much fun (as far as the price is reasonable)

 

Thanks to all,

 

 

ext.jpg

 

Model that seems almost identical
 

https://www.wavlink.com/en_us/product/UTE01.html
 

UTE01_scale_5.jpg

 

UTE01_3.jpg


UTE01_scale_4.jpg

 

UTE01_4.jpg

 

Thanks to all,

 

 

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Posted

Thanks for sharing and you are welcome! I am still missing some pictures thou... So I guess it works his way:

Related image

And what about functionality, how does it behave and what do you use it for?

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Posted

 

I would recommend Sabrent https://geeklah.com/best-hard-drive-docking-station.html#one. I bought it for my Evo 850 and it works well. Additionally, I use this SSD as bootable external drive. Speed of the drive in enclosure is very close to original speed.
Also my friend has this one from Cable Matters https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Docking-Station-Support/dp/B0099TX7O4. Quite good.

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Posted

I came across this post from a different angle. I wanted a large capacity drive with speeds that match my internal SSD in my iMac and save as much money as possible while doing so! The parameters of my search were based upon the performance and price of this Samsung X5 Portable SSD - 1TB - Thunderbolt 3 External SSD (MU-PB1T0B/AM) Gray/Red @ $449.99!

 

Pondering this solution…

 

Like @AnalogJ, I came across this site of accredited Thunderbolt manufacturers. On it, I found the Winstars SSD drive. A visit to their site eventually led me to their enclosure manufacturer which AnalogJ references.

 

Out of frustration, I revisited the Thunderbolt Manufacturers' site and found this product the Archgon X70 Portable SSD - Thunderbolt 3 is a series of drives with the smallest being 120gb [Archgon website]. The drive looks well built and is also quite stylish.  I also comes with a carrying case – I'll be using mine as a desktop!

 

Amazon sells this entire line!  The 120gb drive is only $119 + $6 shipping! I will also get at least a 1TB SSD to swap and I'll still save a fortune!

 

 

I will be considering this a $125 Thunderbolt 3 M.2 PCIe Gen 3 x2 SSD enclosure with a bonus 120gb M2 SSD!

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

Finding a Thunderbolt SSD is difficult, due to the market and standard rates of different interfaces, but this one is good:

https://www.amazon.com/LaCie-Rugged-Thunderbolt-Portable-STFS2000800/dp/B071NFVXBH/ref=sr_1_5?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1550856186&sr=1-5&keywords=thunderbolt+ssd

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