An MCP Server for the Eyes on Flash Data
Eyes on Flash now has a public, read-only MCP server: what it serves, how to connect, which sources it leaves out, and how it runs on Cloudflare's Free plan.
Beyond the Bits
Blog
Field notes on flash, firmware, validation, and the work around the work.
How I validate SSDs, how the tools on this site were built, stories from the test bench, and personal reflections. The series and guides that teach a topic, including Benchmarking 101, are on the guides page.
Under the hood
How I test and build
How I run SSD validation so every run can be repeated, and how the interactive parts of this site were built, including the SI guide that runs inside a free-plan budget.
How I Put Cloudflare's Clef in Front of My SI Chatbot
How I used Cloudflare's Clef decision model to screen off-topic and jailbreak questions for a handful of neurons before Cell's model answers.
How I Made SSD Validation Repeatable
How I turned SSD validation into a repeatable process: fixed phases, write saturation with idle recovery, power capture, and a report each run had to fill in.
How Cell Runs on Cloudflare's Free Plan
How I added an SI guide to my site without a paid plan: a budget that fails closed, a Durable Object for the heavy work, and an edge Worker near 1ms of CPU.
How I Built the SSD Atlas, a 3D M.2 Map
The design decisions, bugs and honesty rules behind an interactive 3D reference for an M.2 NVMe SSD, from the board down to a single NAND cell.
From the test bench
Lab notes
Validation stories, launch weeks and failures that only showed up under real load.
The Visionary of PCIe 5.0
A reflection on PCIe Gen5 validation, where cooling, sustained workloads, and controller limits complicate the promise of higher bandwidth.
T‑Minus 72 Hours
Inside the 72 hours before a major SSD launch: a Friday delivery, a Monday embargo, repeatable measurements, and the work behind a defensible review.
Field Practicalities
What happened when Crucial swapped the P2’s flash without changing its name, and why one review is only a snapshot of one sample.
The Quarch Chronicles
Why I measure power alongside performance, and what the numbers show about a drive that speed charts hide.
The SSD Guru’s Midnight Benchmark
A late-night account of benchmark reruns, thermal questions, and the pressure to turn a new SSD into a clear review before an embargo lifts.
The “Torture Test” Architect
How I test sustained writes, cache recovery and heat, and why a short benchmark can hide what a long one shows.
The “All-at-Once” Failure
A 24-drive RAID 0 experiment exposes a synchronized failure that individual-drive tests missed, and challenges what validation should cover.
Behind the work
Reflections
The people, places and habits that shaped how I test.
Why Eyes on Flash Now Writes SI
Eyes on Flash now writes SI, not AI, after Executive Order 14434: what the order says, what it leaves alone, and how the site applies it.
From Guru to Guide
How my forum guides turned into Flash Foundations, SSD Benchmarking 101 and the tools on this site.
Full Circle
A personal essay on how lost saves, college and years at the bench shaped my care for reliability in storage.
The Lens and the Logic
How photography, a failed memory card, and the demands of creative work shaped an approach to storage testing and technical communication.
The Origin of Purpose
How a teenage repair business, competitive gaming, forum guides and years of reviewing led me to test storage the way I do.
The Wild West of Storage
A reflection on the trade shows, benchmarks, mentors, and moments that shaped a career in storage journalism.
Continue on this site