What storage types are negatively affected by write amplification?

Write amplification is a phenomenon that occurs primarily in solid-state drives (SSDs) and flash drives due to the way data is written and managed in NAND flash memory. In these storage types, when data is written to the drive, the actual amount of data written to the flash memory can exceed the original data due to the architecture of how flash storage operates.

When an SSD performs writes, it cannot overwrite existing data directly. Instead, it must write new data to a new location and eventually erase the old data during garbage collection. This process can result in more data being written than what was originally intended, leading to increased wear on the memory cells and reduced performance over time. Hence, SSDs are significantly impacted by write amplification.

While HDDs and tape drives can experience different types of inefficiencies, they do not exhibit write amplification in the same manner since their storage mechanisms involve magnetic writing and are not constrained by the limitations inherent in NAND flash technology. As a result, the write amplification effect is a unique concern associated with SSDs and, to some extent, flash drives, but the term is most closely linked to SSDs.