I'm trying to grasp how Windows 11 KB5063878 causes SSDs to shut down.
I'm trying to grasp how Windows 11 KB5063878 causes SSDs to shut down.
I've been looking into the Windows 11 update and its supposed impact on SSDs (KB5063878). I'm trying to grasp the problem more clearly, as I haven't encountered any issues yet on my systems. From what I understand, SSDs that use Phison controllers might be at risk, even though some reports mention other brands using this controller. Moving large data volumes—some claim over 50GB, though I'm unsure if it's continuous or a single file transfer—can lead to problems like data loss or drive failure, possibly due to overheating. Drives that are more than 60% full seem particularly vulnerable.
I installed KB5063878 around August 12, 2025, and so far haven't faced any issues. However, I'm using Samsung SSDs (970 Evo and 860 Evo NVME drives) along with a few external T5 and T7 SSDs. It appears Samsung doesn't rely on the Phison controller but instead uses their own internal solution.
Currently, I back up my important data regularly to HDDs just in case of a crash. All my critical information is stored across multiple locations and formats. Could you help clarify what exactly could go wrong and whether this is something I should worry about? My concern is that while heavy file transfers aren't hitting 50GB at once, they are spread out, so I'm not under pressure to back up immediately.
I plan to reinstall Windows 11 on my SP8, which will require replacing the SSD. I'll look for a bootable Windows media that doesn't include KB5063878 and hope to avoid installing it during the process. The tablet is an exception—I previously used a different brand SSD because I couldn't find any 2TB Samsung units in the 2230 NVMe form factor.
What are your thoughts? Are the points I mentioned accurate, and should I be concerned?
Exactly.
The vast majority of people won't.
Articles are written as if everyone on the planet is having the same disastrous result.
Don't.
1. You can't avoid updates forever.
2. The next update, there will be some other small issue. People will panic again. Wash rinse repeat.
What you CAN do is keep good backups. This should be done in anyway.
In the small case of this particular update doing something bad....your data is backed up and can be recovered.
It appears to be a minor concern. Reports suggest it was a single instance, possibly from Japan, on just one PC. The media seized on that isolated case and expanded the story. The main reason for interest seems to be the Microsoft error. Both Microsoft and Phison have performed thorough tests without success. The original user eventually stopped sharing details.
It seems like a random event might have happened, but one of my WD SSDs vanished without reason and returned after rebooting. I'm not sure if the update caused it, so I removed that update and paused them temporarily, but it hasn't happened again. I also added a USB flash drive to manage music plugin licenses, and it was after that that the SSD disappeared. It could have been a Windows issue with drive letters or conflicts. I plan to restart updates and do a backup tonight for peace of mind.
The issue appears to stem from a pre-release engineer's sample firmware, unrelated to the update being discussed.
Jayz encounters the problem because he receives the drives directly from manufacturers, unaware that the firmware on them is causing the issues.