Controllers SandForce 2000-D series, which are used in a large number of solid-state drives have a congenital defect that prevents proper operation of encryption algorithms AES-256. The problem is the hardware and can not be corrected with the release of new firmware.
Intel, which uses SandForce controllers in a series of drives 520 is working on the problem. Details of the defect are not disclosed, but it is known that the controllers can easily work with 128-bit encryption key.
In turn, Intel has launched a series of drive 520, which were acquired prior to July 1, 2012. The Company will return to the buyer the full purchase price, while the product fully supports AES-256 algorithm, there will be only a few months later. The program will run until October 1, 2012.
Kigston company is also ready to replace the drive with new controller after the last become available. To avoid confusion, Kingston will make adjustments to the official documentation and the mention of AES-256 will be removed to resolve the problem.
Note that this is not the first problem with SandForce controllers . However, in this case, the problem is significant for a limited number of users of solid-state drives, as most unlikely to use data encryption, and AES-256 algorithms are relevant only for the super-secret organizations.