CompTIA Tech+ (FC0-U71)InfrastructureMedium
A technician is installing an internal storage drive and wants the fastest possible speed by using the PCIe interface directly, rather than the older SATA interface. Which storage form factor and protocol combination should the technician select?
- AM.2 NVMe SSD
- B3.5-inch HDD
- CM.2 SATA SSD
- D2.5-inch SATA SSD
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: A. M.2 NVMe SSD
An M.2 NVMe SSD connects directly to the PCIe bus, bypassing the SATA controller's speed limitations and providing much higher throughput than SATA-based drives, whether M.2 or 2.5-inch form factor.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. A 3.5-inch HDD is a mechanical drive with the slowest speeds of the options.
- C. M.2 SATA SSDs use the M.2 form factor but still communicate over the slower SATA protocol.
- D. A 2.5-inch SATA SSD is limited by the SATA interface's speed cap (~6 Gbps).
M.2 NVMe SSD
A small form-factor solid-state drive that uses the NVMe protocol over the PCIe bus for very high-speed data transfer.
- Much faster than SATA SSDs due to direct PCIe connection
- Common in thin laptops and modern desktops
- M.2 slots can support either SATA or NVMe protocols, so compatibility must be checked
Memory trick: NVMe = 'No Vast Middleman here' — data goes straight to PCIe.