Latest SSD driver is 14 years old from microsoft ?! (Sk hynix PC401)

[stefano8]

Hi, I have an Hp which has been replaced the SSD because the first one stopped working after only 8 months of little use (Sk Hynix BC501); Now they have mounted a SK Hynix PC401 HFS256GD9TNG-62A0A (256 Gb) and I would like to know if it is normal that the drivers are unavaible and now works with the standard Microsoft drivers that are 14 years old. Can this also be the reason why the first ssd broke after a short time? (Sorry for my english).

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

It is completely normal.

If you look through the device manager, you will find several devices that have very old generic drivers.

My SSD has the exact same driver version and date as yours.

If you have a DVD drive, take a look at the driver version and date of that one.

Same driver, same date.

[stefano8]

Hi Paul, I on the contrary think it is not normal: Why then the other brands that produce ssd have own firmware and update it at least once a year with fixes and optimizations? Is SK Hynix the best and doesn't need these things? I think Sk Hynix is a low cost brand and for this reason it does not even have its own firmware and relies on a 14 year olds default firmware. (However I think the drivers for the DVD player are not comparable to those for an SSD).

Does anyone know if (after the warranty has expired) I can replace this SK Hynix with something better known such as Samsung, kingston, SanDisk (even 512Gb)? Because I heard that some HP notebooks have a lock in the Bios that does not allow the installation of other brands ssd.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

It is normal, and you can put any SSD in there that you want, and do all the firmware updates that you want, which have nothing to do with the actual hard drive driver that windows installs, and you will still see the same old 14 year old driver every time.

My SSD's (Intel, Samdisk) have had a couple of firmware updates, and the driver you see listed in your screenshot is still the same one after the firmware update.

Firmware updates to SSD's or hard drives have absolutely nothing to do with that driver you see.

Go to the device manager, click to expand the system devices category, and see how many devices have drivers from 2006.

For example: the PCI Root Complex.

You will be surprised.

[stefano8]

Ok Paul, and where i should go, to watch what version of firmware have my SK Hynix? And the firmware updates where they are? 

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Hi:

You would find the firmware updates at the link below, under the firmware section.

I don't see any listed currently for the drive your notebook has.

https://support.hp.com/us-en/drivers/selfservice/hp-15-db0000-laptop-pc/20395843

[stefano8]

Exactly, only for Sk Hynix there has never been an update, while for the other brands it has. Does anyone know if sk hynix has software to know the status of the SSD or if there are firmware updates (like all other SSD brands have)? I think that there are nothing about these things.

[Paul_Tikkanen]

Dell has an update for it, but I'm in no position to say if it would work on your drive or not.

https://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04/drivers/driversdetails?driverid=mcxm8

You can also see if their direct website has any updates, or contact them for further assistance.

https://www.skhynix.com/eng/support/technicalSupport.jsp

[stefano8]

I have searched in the SK Hynix site for hours but have not been able to find a driver for ssd, and when try to install the driver for Dell gives me an error: 

[AlfredBM]

Hi, I have the same ssd as you the sk hynix pc401 256GB in my laptop and as well as you I have the same problem when I try to install the firmware from Dell, have you solved yet the problem of installing the firmware? I would appreciate any help, thanks.