NVMe SSD Classification | SNIA

updated April 2025

NVM Express® technology is driving the next generation of SSDs for data centers. NVMe™ SSD are not limited by legacy form factors or protocols, and they can better address the needs of servers and storage in enterprise and hyperscale data centers. Each of these use cases has distinct requirements and application environments, and they are outlined in the table below. There will always be exceptions to these guidelines, but these are generally fit profiles for NVMe SSD classification.

More details on each of the classification use cases are provided in a revised NVMe SSD Classification White Paper which describes how NVMe SSDs are used in enterprise servers, enterprise storage, low latency SSD, data center/hyperscale servers, and data center/hyperscale storage environments. This classification may also apply to SATA and SAS SSDs.

NVMe SSD Classification	Enterprise Server	Enterprise Storage	Low Latency SSD	Data Center / Hyperscale Server	Data Center / Hyperscale Storage
Applications / Use Cases	Traditional DAS/RAID CRM/ERM/collaborative/ HCI	AFA Primary Array Storage	Read/Write Cache Tier 0 between DRAM and TLC SSD Write-intensive workloads Write logging (metadata) Low latency SSD plus QLC -lower TCO than TLC	Boot Cloud data storage Server data storage	Durable storage RAID EC JBOD/JBOF
Form Factors (Form Factor details)	M.2->E1.S 2.5-inch (U.2) E3.S E3.L AIC	M.2->E1.S 2.5-inch (U.2) E3.S E3.L	2.5-inch (U.2) AIC AIC	.2->E1.S 2.5-inch (U.2) (7 &15 mm-Z)	2.5-inch (U.2) E1.L E1.S
Power	8.25-11W (M.2) 12-25W 2.5-inch (U.2) 25-40W (E1.S, E1.L)	8.25-11W (M.2) 12-25W 2.5-inch (U.2) 25-40W (E1.S, E1.L)	20-25W 2.5-inch (U.2) 9W (AIC)	8.25-11W (M.2) 12-25W (E1.S) 12-25W 2.5-inch (U.2)	12-25W (E1.S) 25W (E1.L)
Performance	High performance, read intensive and mixed workload class drives, and best in class performance	High performance, mixed workload, and best in class performance	High performance, write heavy workloads, and best in class performance	IOPS/TB scaling, mixed workloads	Read bandwidth, seq write (ZNS)
Latency	Care about average latency Better than SAS/SATA	Mixed workload QoS	1/10 to 1/3 the latency of TLC SSDs	Read QoS, tail latencies	Read priority
Endurance- Drive Writes per Day (DWPD)	1 DWPD (Read-Intensive) 3 DWPD (Mixed Use) 5-10 DWPD (Write-Intensive)	1 DWPD (Read-Intensive) 3 DWPD (Mixed Use)	30, 60, 100DWPD	<=1 DWPD	<1 DWPD
Capacity	1-8TB	2-30TB	375GB - 3200GB	1-2TB > 4TB	4-8TB TLC, >8TB QLC
Management	NVMe-MI SNIA Swordfish™ (NVMe-oF™)	NVMe-MI SNIA Swordfish (NVMe-oF)	NVMe-MI SNIA Swordfish (NVMe-oF)	NVMe CLI (IB via SW) NVMe-MI basic for temp only (BMC)	NVMe CLI (IB via SW)
Features	Security Manageability Single-port RAI	Dual-port (2.5-inch form factor) X8/16 PCIe AIC Higher prices (greater than SANs) Capacities up to 30TB	Dual-port (2.5-inch (U.2)) Predictable Low Latency Very high endurance	Single-port QoS Sets / IODLatency TRIM performance Multi-tenancy	ZNS SDS
SSD Vendor Examples	Enterprise Server	Enterprise Storage	Low Latency SSD	Data Center / Hyperscale Server	Data Center / Hyperscale Storage
KIOXIA	CM7 Series	CM7 Series	FL6 Series	XD7P Series, CD8P Series	XD7P Series, CD8P Series
Intel	P4510 (3.0), P5500 (4.0)	D4510 (3.0)	P5800	P4510 (3.0)	P4326 (QLC, 3.0)
Micron	9550 PRO, MAX 7450/7500 PRO, MAX	9550 MAX 7450/7500 MAX	N/A	7450/7500 PRO 9550 PRO	7450/7500 PRO 6500 ION
Samsung	PM1733/5, SZ1735	PM1733/5, SZ1735	SZ985	PM9A3	PM9A3