I'm experiencing input/output errors when trying to create an ext4 file system on my M.2 NVMe drive, which makes the drive inaccessible. This issue happens both during installation and when using tools like GParted. To get around the problem, I created partitions using FAT32 EFI and Btrfs, which allowed me to complete the installation. However, I read that using Btrfs on an NVMe drive isn't recommended. Before making the file system change, I ran Badblocks and chkdsk on a Windows setup; Badblocks found no errors while chkdsk took only 12 minutes to check and repair the 500 GB drive. I've turned off all power-saving states and toggled security features in the BIOS, but I don't see an option for RAID. The USB is fine, and I can install Linux on other drives without issues. I'm trying to install the latest version of Linux Mint without dual booting. My hardware specs are i3-10100, GTX 1660 Super, 16 GB RAM, running Cinnamon 6.6.6, and kernel 6.14.0-37-generic. Any suggestions?
2 Answers
Make sure to check the SMART status of your NVMe drive. If the SMART data shows no errors, that's a good sign. I had the same issue, but my drive was fine; it was just the ext4 creation that caused problems.
It sounds like your drive might be failing. Have you checked the kernel logs when you try to format it? You can save the logs by running `sudo journalctl -k > ./kernel.log` to see if there are any error messages that can provide insight. Also, just so you know, the claim that Btrfs doesn't work well on NVMe drives is actually a myth; it performs quite well on flash memory!
I've had a similar experience recently. I ended up needing to RMA the drive after encountering constant errors.
I never saved the logs when the error occurred, but I confirmed that the drive shows 100% available spare and no errors in the SMART status. I'm hesitant to put more stress on it without clearer indications.
Interestingly, mine shows no errors either, and I can install and run Windows on it without any problems. It's just the ext4 that's causing headaches.