New Latitude / Precision Intel Matrix Storage Driver / Manager

[John Ratsey]

Matrix Storage Driver 8.7.0.1007
Matrix Storage Manager 8.7.0.1007

Level of Importance: Urgent
Dell highly recommends applying this update as soon as possible. The update contains changes to improve the reliability and availability of your Dell system.

Compatibility
Systems Operating systems
Latitude E4200
Latitude E4300
Latitude E6400
Latitude E6400 ATG
Latitude E6500
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M2400
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M4400
Dell Precision Mobile WorkStation M6400
Microsoft Windows Vista 32-bit
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit
Microsoft Windows XP
Microsoft Windows XP x64

Fixes and Enhancements
- Changes made to reduce power consumption improving battery performance.
- Corrects random issues related to not being able read/write to and from CD/DVD optical drives.

Matrix Storage Manager 8.7.0.1007

It's been a long time coming - first update of this software since August.

I will be giving it a try.

John

[LPTP-LVR]

This is kinda weird...Dell never released the 8.6 update which has been on Intel's site for some time and now they have 8.7 which i can't find on the Intel site.
8.6 has been running fine and i'll update to 8.7 too

[John Ratsey]

I've tried it, and dpc latency checker doesn't like the outcome with latency firmly stuck in the red zone. However, I'm also playing some music in Winamp and can't hear any of the clicking which people blame on latency problems. Maybe my hearing is bad.

So I'm in the process of removing this latest matrix storage software. However, I've attached a file which then popped up. It's the Intel guide on how to get from AHCI to ATA without the BSOD.

John

PS: The easiest way to get back to the previous driver is to do the driver roll back in the Device Manager. The latency goes back to where it should be. I've allowed the latest version of the whole software package to stay. I don't know whether any of the enhancements still carry through.

[Nully]

@ John: The deep red dpc zone reminds me of version 8.6. I had no probs with playing music in winamp, but with playing music via ASIO driver & Firewire multichannel Audio interface in my DJ program Traktor 3. My latency with 8.5 now is up to 1000.

[Pirx]

Originally Posted by John Ratsey

I've tried it, and dpc latency checker doesn't like the outcome with latency firmly stuck in the red zone.

Excellent tool, John! Rep to you!

I just ran this on my M90, and it is fine overall, except for some occasional red "bursts". Sure enough, I do get occasional drop-outs in WinAmp.

I wonder, do you have any advice as to how to isolate the culprit? I have some idea as to how to use Vista's built-in performance analysis tools, but I wonder if you have a better idea.

P.S.: I just tried the checker on my Covet, and it has regular red peaks in 10-second intervals, otherwise nice and green. So, same question as above, I wonder what may be causing the regular droips in latency. This is a clean install, with only Dell drivers and Connection Point software added. Intel Matrix Manager version 8.6.

P.P.S.: Judging from the Task Manager output, the drops in latency do not seem to be correlated with significant CPU activity; I am at an almost constant 0% CPU load, with occasional 1% "spikes", but these are not correlated with the latency drops.

[John Ratsey]

Audio latency and performance are best discussed in this thread. It may say E6500 in the title but is relevant to the whole family. Various people have found various tweaks helped with audio quality but there's no systematic pattern to help nail down the real culprit(s).

I had also noticed that there wasn't significant CPU activity associated with the high latency since I wondered whether it was part of the new driver getting stuck in a loop.

John

[Pirx]

Originally Posted by John Ratsey

Audio latency and performance are best discussed in this thread.

Fascinating read, thanks!

So, in conclusion: There is a fundamental problem with that particular series of Dell laptops, and it very much looks like this is a hardware/firmware (BIOS) issue. I am going to call Gold Support to open a case for this, just to get them off their haunches, hopefully...

I happen to just have talked to a support technician earlier this morning about the strange problems I have with my current Covet (much worse than audio skipping; intermittent series of CI.dll bluescreens on reboot), which is going back for these reasons. When I asked him if he had heard of any similar issues before, he said that they do not really have a database of known issues for this machine yet, since "it's only a couple of months old".

My feeling, from the kind of behavior I have seen from my machine is that there is a BIOS issue somewhere. Of course, it could be that I just got a lemon, but reading the stuff in the thread you linked to makes me wonder.

[John Ratsey]

Originally Posted by Pirx

My feeling, from the kind of behavior I have seen from my machine is that there is a BIOS issue somewhere. Of course, it could be that I just got a lemon, but reading the stuff in the thread you linked to makes me wonder.

It could will be BIOS + certain hardware combinations. I think all these new Latitudes and precisions have the same basic BIOS. In theory this should simplify maintenance but creates a lot more options to be handled.

John

[Doc2Be]

A newb question for you but what is the difference between the Driver and the Manager? When I went to install the update there are two driver updates listed on Dell's site: the Intel Application and the Intel Driver. I was able to install the Intel Application fine with no problems but I downloaded the Intel Driver and I can't seem to get it to run. The file just opens up with a bunch of files that I can't run (no .exe files).

[John Ratsey]

As i understand it, the drivers are built into the main manager package so if you have installed that then there's no need to install the separate drivers.

The separate drivers are intended for those who want to update their basic drivers without all the storage manager software. You can install those drivers by going into Device Manager, selecting the SATA controller and then manually updating the driver by pointing to you c:\dell\drivers\R207268\ folder.

John