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IT Support & Hardware · Foundational

Spindle Speed

The rotational speed of a hard drive's platters in revolutions per minute (RPM).

Definition

Higher RPM reduces rotational latency and increases throughput: 5400 RPM drives are quiet and power-efficient, 7200 RPM is standard for desktops, and 10K/15K RPM drives were used in servers. SSDs have no spindle speed because they have no moving parts.

Example

A 15,000 RPM SAS drive delivers lower latency than a 5400 RPM laptop drive.

Exam tip

When asked to improve HDD performance without switching to SSD, choose a higher RPM drive.

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