Intel prepares 320 Series SSD bug fix

Intel is preparing to release a firmware update for its 320 Series solid-state drives, in a bid to fix a bug that causes some of the SSDs to crash and appear to have only 8MB in capacity.

In a forum post on Sunday, Alan Frost of Intel's Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) product group said the company had been investigating the 'Bad Context 13x Error' problem that had affected some 320 Series SSDs, and had managed to replicate it "utilising strenuous testing methods".

"This 'Bad Context 13x Error' can be addressed via a firmware update and Intel is in the process of validating the firmware update," Frost wrote. "A future update will define the schedule to deliver the firmware fix."

The problem was first reported at the start of June, but was only acknowledged by Intel on 12 July. A small subset of 320 Series SSD users saw their drives experience unexpected power loss, only to show up as 8MB drives upon restart. The drives' actual capacity ranges from 40GB to 600GB, depending on the model.

The SSDs, representing Intel's third generation of such drives, were launched in March. In May, Intel extended the warranties for the devices from three to five years, because it was so confident in their reliability.