File Copying Olympics: How File Size Impacts the Race for Performance Gold

The article discusses the performance of the Oyen U34 Bolt storage device, highlighting its impressive sustained throughput of 3.1GB/s while remaining cool and silent. It emphasizes the differences between interface performance, device performance, filesystem performance, and software performance, explaining why users may not achieve peak speeds during file transfers. The author illustrates that copying smaller files takes significantly longer than larger files, despite both sets being the same total size, due to the increased number of filesystem transactions required. The article also critiques the Black Magic Speed Test, noting its relevance for large file transfers but not for smaller files. It concludes by advising users to consider the speed of data restoration rather than just backup speed when purchasing storage solutions, as faster disks can significantly reduce restore times. For instance, restoring 120GB from the U34 Bolt took 44 seconds compared to 387 seconds from a Samsung T7.

- The Oyen U34 Bolt achieves a sustained throughput of 3.1GB/s.

- Smaller files take longer to copy than larger files due to increased filesystem transactions.

- The Black Magic Speed Test is more relevant for large file transfers.

- Faster backup disks can significantly reduce data restoration times.

- Users should prioritize restore speed over backup speed when selecting storage solutions.