During the keynote al Computex 2022among the numerous information released on the new generation of CPUs, AMD spent a few seconds on the new technology called Smart Access Storage (SAS). This is a solution similar to Smart Access Memory, but aimed at data storage systems, or SSDs, designed for the video games.
For some time there have been rumors of the arrival of this new technology from AMD, but now we have the confirmation that it not only exists but is also about to make its debut. Unfortunately, however, the company led by Lisa Su has not given any particular details. The technology will be based on Microsoft’s DirectStorage API with the aim of significantly reducing loading time in games by providing a smoother experience.
To do this, DirectStorage partially bypasses the CPU and completely bypasses the RAM by putting the storage unit in direct communication with the GPU. This reduces the workload on the processor and, at the same time, the greater bandwidth of the interface is exploited PCIe. Speeding up the streaming of textures and entrusting the decompression of the data to the video card, loading times are significantly reduced.
We had a first taste of the solution developed by Microsoft already had in March when the first results obtained on Forspoken, the first game to implement DirectStorage, were shared. The improvements shown are not a miracle, but according to the developers Luminous Production there is still a lot of room for progress, especially since at the time decompression of assets via the GPU had not yet been implemented.
Clearly, where Microsoft’s technology will be accessible to all, Smart Access Storage will be the way it will land on board PCs totally composed of hardware AMD. It will be interesting to understand, therefore, if there will be any differences with respect to the RTX IO implementation envisaged by NVIDIA. All that remains is to wait for the next few months, when AMD will release more information on the new solution. It is not excluded that the company will investigate SAS on the occasion of the presentation of the new GPUs based on RDNA 3, expected within the year (in the autumn, the period which coincides with the release of Forspoken).