A Solid State Drive (SSD) is a type of non-volatile storage. It utilizes flash memory to store data, which does not require power to maintain the information. This characteristic allows it to retain all stored data, including the operating system, applications, and user files, even after the computer is shut down. This is in direct contrast to volatile memory, which loses its contents when power is removed.

B. Optical drive: An optical drive is the hardware that reads and writes to optical media (e.g., CDs, DVDs). While the media itself is non-volatile, the drive is the mechanism, not the storage itself.

C. Virtual memory: This is a memory management technique that uses a portion of a non-volatile storage device to extend RAM. It is a process, not a physical type of storage hardware.

D. Random access memory (RAM): RAM is volatile memory. It requires a constant power supply to retain data; all information stored in RAM is lost when the computer is powered off.

1. Patterson

D. A.

& Hennessy

J. L. (2013). Computer Organization and Design: The Hardware/Software Interface (5th ed.). Morgan Kaufmann. In Section 1.4

"Under the Covers

" the text describes flash memory

the technology in SSDs

as a nonvolatile memory technology that retains data when power is off (p. 21). Conversely

DRAM (the basis for RAM) is defined as volatile memory (p. 14).

2. MIT OpenCourseWare. (2009). 6.004 Computation Structures

Lecture 15: Memory Technologies. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Slide 11

"Non-Volatile Read/Write Memories

" explicitly lists Flash memory (used in SSDs) as a non-volatile technology. Slide 5

"Dynamic RAM (DRAM)

" categorizes it as volatile.

3. Arpaci-Dusseau

R. H.

& Arpaci-Dusseau

A. C. (2018). Operating Systems: Three Easy Pieces. Arpaci-Dusseau Books. In the introduction to Part III: Persistence

Chapter 36

"I/O Devices

" distinguishes between volatile main memory (RAM) and persistent storage devices like hard drives and SSDs

which hold data across power cycles.