Intel Solid-State Drive Toolbox Installation Guide

User Drivers » Intel SSD Toolbox 3.1.8

This guide describes how to install the Intel® Solid-State Drive Toolbox (Intel® SSD Toolbox).

Requirements

Intel SSD Toolbox 3.1.x requires the following:

Supported operating system:

  • Microsoft Windows 8
  • Microsoft Windows 7
  • Windows XP
  • Windows Vista

Microsoft .NET Framework version 3.0

.NET Framework version 3.0 is included with Windows 8, Windows 7 and Windows Vista.

If your system is running Windows XP, or does not have version 3.0 of .NET Framework installed, Intel SSD Toolbox directs you to the appropriate place to obtain it during the installation.

At least 60 megabytes (MB) of available space.

To determine whether the drive has enough available space:

  • Double-click My Computer
  • Right-click the drive you want to check and click Properties to display the amount of free space

Known Limitations

Review the following limitations before installing Intel SSD Toolbox.

RAID, Dynamic Disk or Storage Space Configurations

Intel SSD Toolbox works with single SSDs, SSDs in a simple Dynamic Disk configuration, and SSDs that are part of Intel® Matrix Storage Manager or Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) RAID configurations.

Intel SSD Toolbox provides limited functionality for SSDs that are part of RAID, Dynamic Disk or Windows 8 Storage Space configurations with multiple partitions: Intel SSD Optimizer and Secure Erase are not supported in these configurations.

Systems with Virtualization

Intel SSD Toolbox 3.1.5 does not work on systems running in a virtualized environment as it cannot detect the SSDs.

SSD Formatted with FAT32 File System

Intel SSD Optimizer does not work on SSDs formatted with file allocation system FAT32. New Technology File System (NTFS) is required to run Intel SSD Optimizer.

Systems in IDE Mode

Intel SSD Toolbox 3.1.5 cannot update firmware on certain Intel SSDs in IDE mode.

These include:

  • Intel® Solid-State Drive DC S3700 Series
  • Intel® Solid-State Drive 335 Series
  • Intel® Solid-State Drive 311 Series
  • Intel® Solid-State Drive 310 Series
  • Intel® X25-M/X18-M Solid-State Drives
  • Intel® X25-V Solid-State Drive

Firmware Updates on Intel SSDs

Intel SSD Toolbox 3.1.5 supports firmware updates on all Intel SSDs except for the following:

  • Intel® Solid-State Drive 510 Series
  • Intel® X25-E Solid-State Drive and Intel® X25-M/X18-M Solid-State Drives (50nm)

Use the Intel® SATA Solid-State Drive Firmware Update Tool to update firmware on these SSDs.

To identify your Intel SSD, view the model number on the Intel SSD Toolbox home screen. To identify if the Intel SSD is 50nm:

  1. Select the Intel SSD on the Intel SSD Toolbox home screen.
  2. Click Drive Details.
  3. View the Model Number (Word 27-46). If the number contains G1, the Intel SSD is 50nm.

Firmware Updates on Intel SSDs

Intel SSD Toolbox System Tuner can configure Device Initiated Power Management (DIPM) settings for the following configurations only:

  • Intel® Rapid Storage Technology (Intel® RST) driver
  • Microsoft AHCI driver in Windows 7 or Windows 8

Known Issues

Cannot run Intel SSD Optimizer on RAID configurations

Description: Some systems without a RAID configuration display the following error message when running Intel SSD Optimizer: "Cannot run the Intel SSD Optimizer on RAID Configurations." There is currently no workaround for this issue.

Known Systems Affected: Dell Inspiron Mini 10 netbook

Not all drives in a RAID configuration are recognized by Intel SSD Toolbox

Not all drives in a RAID configuration are recognized by Intel SSD Toolbox

Not all drives in a RAID configuration are recognized by Intel SSD Toolbox. Drive details and SMART information may be obtained with another program.

Known systems affected: HP Compaq dc7800 Convertible Minitower PC, HP Compaq dc7800 Small Form Factor PC, HP Compaq dc7800 Ultra Slim Desktop PC

Intel SSD Toolbox does not communicate with drives on some systems

On some systems, Intel SSD Toolbox does communicate with drives and all functionality is disabled. There is no workaround for this issue.

Known systems affected: Supermicro H8DAi-2, TYAN Thunder N3600M motherboard - NVIDIA nForce Pro 3600

RAID Volume may display extended serial number

When a RAID volume is selected on the home screen, the serial number may contain an extended number of characters. There is no workaround for this issue.

Known system affected: GIGABYTE GA-790FXTA-UD5

SSD may report "BAD_CONTEXT" if Secure Erase operation is interrupted

During a Secure Erase operation, if the SSD loses power or if the SSD is removed from the system once the Secure Erase operation is 40% or more complete, the SSD may report "BAD_CONTEXT" in the Serial Number field. There is no workaround for this issue.

Known drive affected: Intel® X25-E Solid-State Drive

Installation and Start Up

Install Intel SSD Toolbox

  1. Double-click the downloaded .exe file to start the Intel SSD Toolbox setup wizard (skip if you chose Run from step 2 above)
  2. Click Next on the Welcome screen
  3. Review the Intel Software License Agreement, and click Yes to continue
  4. Click Yes, if you wish to install the Intel Update Manager (IUM), or No to continue
    Note: If you wish to install the Intel Update Manager, please be sure to carefully read and agree to the privacy statement before proceeding.
  5. You will see a list of files as they are installed on your computer
  6. Click Next to proceed
  7. Choose No if you don't want to run the Intel SSD Toolbox right away, then click Finish when the Installation Complete dialog box appears
    The Intel SSD Toolbox installs at the following default location:
    Program Files (x86)\Intel\Intel(R) SSD Toolbox\

Start Intel SSD Toolbox

Start Intel SSD Toolbox one of two ways:

  • Double-click the Intel SSD Toolbox icon on your desktop.
  • Open the Windows Start menu > Intel SSD Toolbox.