Seagate has released a new firmware update for its FireCuda 530 series of NVMe SSDs that adds DirectStorage support. Seagate is to our knowledge only the second company to release a firmware with DirectStorage support for its SSDs, but we're expecting more to follow. The FireCuda 530 is based on Phison's E18 controller, which is commonly found in a range of NVMe M.2 SSDs from several major and minor SSD brands, with Sabrent being the first company to have announced a DirectStorage firmware update for its drives based on the same controller.

To update to the new firmware, you need the serial number of your FireCuda 530 drive, which you then have to enter on Segate's support site to be able to download the update. The company didn't specify how the firmware update is done, but it seems to be a standalone installer, rather than using some kind of SSD tool, which most SSD makers provide for their drives these days. The new firmware is said to be "reducing CPU overhead and I/O latency, load times and asset streaming are streamlined—allowing for improved multitasking and optimized PC gaming with DirectStorage compatible games." This is assuming the game in question supports DirectStorage of course.