Universal Flash Storage Explained

Universal Flash Storage (UFS) is a flash storage specification for digital cameras, mobile phones and consumer electronic devices.[1] [2] It was designed to bring higher data transfer speed and increased reliability to flash memory storage, while reducing market confusion and removing the need for different adapters for different types of cards.[3] The standard encompasses both packages permanently embedded (via ball grid array package) within a device, and removable UFS memory cards.

Overview

UFS uses NAND flash. It may use multiple stacked 3D TLC NAND flash dies (integrated circuits) with an integrated controller.[4]

The proposed flash memory specification is supported by consumer electronics companies such as Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Texas Instruments, STMicroelectronics, Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynix.[5] UFS is positioned as a replacement for and SD cards. The electrical interface for UFS uses the M-PHY,[6] developed by the MIPI Alliance, a high-speed serial interface targeting 2.9 Gbit/s per lane with up-scalability to 5.8 Gbit/s per lane.[7] [8] UFS implements a full-duplex serial LVDS interface that scales better to higher bandwidths than the 8-lane parallel and half-duplex interface of . Unlike eMMC, Universal Flash Storage is based on the SCSI architectural model and supports SCSI Tagged Command Queuing.[9] The standard is developed by, and available from, the JEDEC Solid State Technology Association.

Software support

The Linux kernel supports UFS.[10] OpenBSD 7.3 and later support UFS.[11]

History

In 2010, the Universal Flash Storage Association (UFSA) was founded as an open trade association to promote the UFS standard.

In September 2013, JEDEC published JESD220B UFS 2.0 (update to UFS v1.1 standard published in June 2012). JESD220B Universal Flash Storage v2.0 offers increased link bandwidth for performance improvement, a security features extension and additional power saving features over the UFS v1.1.

On 30 January 2018 JEDEC published version 3.0 of the UFS standard, with a higher 11.6 Gbit/s data rate per lane (1450 MB/s) with the use of MIPI M-PHY v4.1 and UniProSM v1.8. At the MWC 2018, Samsung unveiled embedded UFS v3.0 and uMCP (UFS-based multi-chip package) solutions.[12] [13] [14]

On 30 January 2020 JEDEC published version 3.1 of the UFS standard.[15] UFS 3.1 introduces Write Booster, Deep Sleep, Performance Throttling Notification and Host Performance Booster for faster, more power efficient and cheaper UFS solutions. The Host Performance Booster feature is optional.[16]

In 2022 Samsung announced version 4.0 doubling from 11.6 Gbit/s to 23.2 Gbit/s with the use of MIPI M-PHY v5.0 and UniPro v2.0. UFS 4.0 introduces File Based Optimization.[17]

As of Q2 2024, Zoned UFS (ZUFS) is in developing by SK hynix.[18]

Notable devices

In February 2013, semiconductor company Toshiba Memory (now Kioxia) started shipping samples of a 64 GB NAND flash chip, the first chip to support the then new UFS standard.[19]

In April 2015, Samsung's Galaxy S6 family was the first phone to ship with storage using the UFS 2.0 standard.[20]

On 7 July 2016, Samsung announced its first UFS cards, in 32, 64, 128, and 256 GB storage capacities.[21] The cards were based on the UFS 1.0 Card Extension Standard. The 256 GB version was reported to offer sequential read performance up to 530 MB/s and sequential write performance up to 170 MB/s and random performance of 40,000 read IOPS and 35,000 write IOPS. However, they were apparently not actually released to the public.

On 17 November 2016, Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon 835 SoC with support for UFS 2.1.[22]

On 14 May 2019, OnePlus introduced the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro, the first phones to feature built-in 3.0 (The Galaxy Fold, originally planned to be the first smartphone to feature UFS 3.0 was ultimately delayed after the OnePlus 7's launch).[23]

The first UFS cards began to be publicly sold in early 2020. According to a Universal Flash Storage Association press release, Samsung planned to transition its products to UFS cards during 2020.[24] Several consumer devices with UFS card slots have been released in 2020.

On 08 December 2022, IQOO announced the IQOO 11 which was the first phone to come with UFS 4.0 Storage. After that other android OEMs started using this storage solution on their flagship to upper mid-range category smartphones.[25]

Version comparison

UFS

UFSIntroducedBandwidth per laneMax. number of lanesMax. total bandwidthM-PHY versionUniPro version
1.02011-02-24[26] 300 MB/s1300 MB/s
1.12012-06-25[27]
2.02013-09-18[28] 600 MB/s21200 MB/s3.01.6
2.12016-04-04[29]
2.22020-08[30]
3.02018-01-30[31] 1450 MB/s2900 MB/s4.11.8
3.12020-01-30
4.02022-08-17[32] 2900 MB/s5800 MB/s5.02.0

UFS Card

UFS CardIntroducedBandwidth per laneMax. number of lanesMax. total bandwidthM-PHY versionUniPro version
1.02016-03-30[33] 600 MB/s1600 MB/s3.01.6
1.12018-01-30
3.02020-12-08[34] 1200 MB/s1200 MB/s4.11.8

Implementation

Complementary UFS standards

On 30 March 2016, JEDEC published version 1.0 of the UFS Card Extension Standard (JESD220-2), which offered many of the features and much of the same functionality as the existing UFS 2.0 embedded device standard, but with additions and modifications for removable cards.[45]

Also in March 2016, JEDEC published version 1.1 of the UFS Unified Memory Extension (JESD220-1A),[46] version 2.1 of the UFS Host Controller Interface (UFSHCI) standard (JESD223C),[47] and version 1.1A of the UFSHCI Unified Memory Extension standard (JESD223-1A).[48]

On January 30, 2018, the UFS Card Extension standard was updated to version 1.1 (JESD220-2A),[49] and the UFSHCI standard was updated to version 3.0 (JESD223D), to align with UFS version 3.0.[50]

Rewrite cycle life

A UFS drive's rewrite life cycle affects its lifespan. There is a limit to how many write/erase cycles a flash block can accept before it produces errors or fails altogether. Each write/erase cycle causes a flash memory cell's oxide layer to deteriorate. The reliability of a drive is based on three factors: the age of the drive, total terabytes written over time and drive writes per day.[51] This is typical of flash memory in general.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Nokia, Others Back Mobile Memory Standard. https://web.archive.org/web/20080209210001/http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,137200-c,unresolvedtechstandards/article.html . 9 February 2008 . PC World .
  2. Web site: JEDEC Announces Publication of Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Standard | JEDEC. www.jedec.org.
  3. News: Malykhina. Elena. Mobile Tech Companies Work On Flash Memory Standard. dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120912190317/http://www.informationweek.com/mobile-tech-companies-work-on-flash-memo/201806565 . 12 September 2012. 19 September 2012. Information Week. 14 September 2007.
  4. Web site: Toshiba Begins to Sample UFS 3.0 Drives: 96L 3D TLC NAND, Up to 2.9 GB/s . Anandtech . 2019-01-23 . 2020-08-18.
  5. News: Modine. Austin. Flash memory makers propose common card. 19 September 2012. The Channel. 14 September 2007.
  6. Web site: JEDEC Solid State Technology Association | MIPI Alliance . 15 August 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110928215748/http://www.mipi.org/about-mipi/industry-associations/jedec-solid-state-technology-association . 28 September 2011 . dead . dmy-all .
  7. Web site: MIPI. MIPI.
  8. Web site: Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Eco-System | TOSHIBA Semiconductor & Storage Products Company | Europe(EMEA) . 26 October 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151222124341/http://toshiba.semicon-storage.com/eu/application/ufs.html . 22 December 2015 . dead .
  9. Web site: Universal Flash Storage: Mobilize Your Data . Design Reuse . 2020-08-18.
  10. Web site: Universal Flash Storage . The Linux Kernel Archives . 2022-11-13.
  11. Web site: ufshci(4) - OpenBSD manual pages . 2024-04-15 . man.openbsd.org.
  12. Web site: Evolving Mobile Solutions: Samsung at MWC 2018 Samsung Semiconductor Global Website. www.samsung.com. en.
  13. Web site: eUFS Samsung Semiconductor Global Website. www.samsung.com. en.
  14. Web site: Samsung Starts Producing First 512-Gigabyte Universal Flash Storage for Next-Generation Mobile Devices Samsung Semiconductor Global Website. www.samsung.com. en.
  15. Web site: JEDEC Publishes Update to Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Standard JEDEC. www.jedec.org. en. 2020-01-31.
  16. Web site: Faster, Cheaper, Power Efficient UFS Storage: UFS 3.1 Spec Published. Shilov. Anton. www.anandtech.com. 2020-02-01.
  17. Web site: Herreria . Anne . 2022-09-07 . FBO Delivers Sustained Mobile Phone Performance . 2024-07-24 . Western Digital Corporate Blog . en-US.
  18. Web site: Чорновий . Михайло . 2024-08-14 . SK Hynix released a new UFS 4.1 and ZUFS 4.0 memory. It is optimized for AI and will be in the Galaxy S25 . 2024-08-17 . hi-Tech.ua . en.
  19. Web site: Toshiba ships first NAND flash chips with faster transfer standard . PC World . 2013-02-08 . 2020-08-18.
  20. Web site: The Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 edge Review . Anandtech . 2015-04-17 . 2020-08-18.
  21. Web site: Samsung Rolls Out Its First UFS Cards: SSD Performance in Card Form-Factor. Shilov. Anton. 2016-07-07.
  22. Web site: Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 to sport LPDDR5X RAM, UFS 3.0, will come in 2 variants: Report . First Post . 2019-06-18 . 2020-08-18.
  23. Web site: OnePlus 7 Pro confirmed to feature UFS 3.0 flash storage . Android Central . 2019-05-06 . 2020-08-18.
  24. Web site: Universal Flash Storage Association . UFSA Widens UFS Ecosystem, Adding Vendors of Removable Mobile Cards and Related Technology . Business Wire . 22 November 2020 . Austin, Texas . en . 2020-01-03 . “UFS Cards will play a critical role[...]” said Hangu Sohn, vice president of NAND Memory Planning at Samsung Electronics. “Moreover, with a royalty-free form factor and open standard design, we expect to see a rapid transition to these cards in 2020.”.
  25. Web site: 2023-07-06 . UFS 4.0 Specifications, Speed Test, UFS 4.0 vs UFS 3.1 . 2024-02-28 . en-US.
  26. Web site: JEDEC Announces Publication of Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Standard JEDEC. www.jedec.org. en. 2017-05-08.
  27. Web site: JEDEC Updates Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Standard JEDEC. www.jedec.org. en. 2017-05-08.
  28. Web site: JEDEC Publishes Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Standard v2.0 JEDEC. www.jedec.org. en. 2017-05-08.
  29. Web site: JEDEC Updates Universal Flash Storage (UFS) and Related Standards JEDEC. www.jedec.org. en. 2017-05-08.
  30. Web site: UNIVERSAL FLASH STORAGE, UFS 2.2. www.jedec.org. en. 2021-07-31.
  31. Web site: JEDEC Publishes Universal Flash Storage (UFS & UFSHCI) Version 3.0 and UFS Card Extension Version 1.1. www.jedec.org. en. 2018-01-31.
  32. Web site: JEDEC Updates Universal Flash Storage (UFS) and Supporting Memory Interface Standard. www.jedec.org. en. 2022-09-18.
  33. Web site: JEDEC Publishes Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Removable Card Standard JEDEC. www.jedec.org. en. 2017-10-30.
  34. Web site: JEDEC Advances Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Removable Card Standard 3.0. www.jedec.org . en . 2021-07-31.
  35. Web site: Exynos 9609 Mobile Processor: Specs, Features Samsung Exynos. Samsung Semiconductor. en. 2020-01-26.
  36. Web site: Exynos 9610 Processor: Specs, Features Samsung Exynos. Samsung Semiconductor. en. 2020-01-26.
  37. Web site: Exynos 9611 Mobile Processor: Specs, Features Samsung Exynos. Samsung Semiconductor. en. 2020-01-26.
  38. Web site: Exynos 980 5G Mobile Processor: Specs, Features Samsung Exynos. Samsung Semiconductor. en. 2020-01-26.
  39. Web site: Exynos 9 Series 9820 Processor: Specs, Features Samsung Exynos. Samsung Semiconductor. en. 2018-11-14.
  40. Web site: Huawei Announces Kirin 990 and Kirin 990 5G: Dual SoC Approach, Integrated 5G Modem. Cutress. Ian. September 6, 2019. AnandTech. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20190906140013/https://www.anandtech.com/show/14851/huawei-announces-kirin-990-and-kirin-990-5g-dual-soc-approach-integrated-5g-modem. September 6, 2019.
  41. Web site: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888: specs and benchmarks. 2021-02-22. NanoReview.net. en.
  42. Web site: Exynos 2100 5G Mobile Processor: Specs, Features. 2021-06-27. Samsung.com. en.
  43. Web site: Exynos 2200 Processor Samsung Semiconductor. www.samsung.com.
  44. Web site: Snapdragon-8-Gen-2-Product-Brief.pdf . Qualcomm . 19 November 2022.
  45. Web site: JEDEC Publishes Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Removable Card Standard JEDEC. www.jedec.org. 2016-07-07.
  46. Web site: Standards & Documents Search | JEDEC. www.jedec.org.
  47. Web site: Standards & Documents Search | JEDEC. www.jedec.org.
  48. Web site: Standards & Documents Search | JEDEC. www.jedec.org.
  49. Web site: UNIVERSAL FLASH STORAGE (UFS) CARD EXTENSION, Version 3.0 | JEDEC. www.jedec.org.
  50. Web site: UFS (Universal Flash Storage) | JEDEC. www.jedec.org.
  51. Web site: SSD Lifespan: How Long Will Your SSD Work? . Enterprise Storage Forum . 2019-03-01 . 2020-08-18.

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