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Tag: cache

  • Optimizing Virtualization On Single Architecture: Dell Announces ISCSI SAN Storage Arrays


    Dell has announced that as part of its data center strategy it will focus on combining servers, storage and services optimized for virtualization in a single architecture.

    As a step in this direction Dell has come out with a new series of EqualLogic iSCSI SAN with fast processors, more cache, additional Ethernet ports and support for solid state disc drives, writes Samantha Sai for storage.biz-news.

    The series of storage arrays is named PS6000 and will be available in five models – PS6000E, PS6500E, PS6000X, PS6000XV and PS6000S.
    This product is distinguished by its speed.

    The redesigned controllers, faster processors and a fourth Gigabit Ethernet port for connectivity is expected to be 9.1 per cent faster than its predecessors for sequential write workloads and 29 per cent faster for sequential read workloads.

    The arrays can be scaled up to 16 TB.

    Dedicated controllers for SSD drives for PS6000S have been added to scale the performance linearly.

    The SSD is 50 GB and is available in 400GB and 800 GB dual controller configurations. The array is designed for low latency, high IOPS applications.

    The expanded management software suite that has been unveiled along with this hardware complements the PS6000 launch.

    This software supports RAID6, Microsoft Hyper-V Smart Copysnapshots and enhanced integration for Microsoft Exchange, SQL Server, VMware and Citrix XenCenter.

    The technology aims to use storage resources efficiently in a networked environment.

    It effectively exploits hypervisor resources in virtual machines.

    The SAN headquaters is a centralized dashboard that helps administrators monitor performance and events of dozens of PS Series groups.

    This technology is available free of cost and under warranty or service agreement.

    The arrays are priced at USD $17000, while the SSDs are priced at USD $25000.

    The series is available from Dell and its PartnerDirect, Channel partner.

    An IDC report says that Dell EqualLogic holds 31% of the iSCSI San Market as on date.

  • DataCore San Software Boosts Server Virtualization Support







    The latest versions of DataCore’s SANmelody 3.0 and SANsymphony 7.0 storage virtualization software were under preview at the recent VMWorld Europe 2009.

    The products are due to be shipped later this month with 64 bit software architecture and various new features for virtual servers, writes Samantha Sai for storage-biz.news.

    The company says SANSymphony is geared at enterprises aiming to virtualize their storage area networks, while SANmelody is for small Fiber Channel and iSCSI SANs of up to 32 TB.

    The virtual disk pooling, synchronized mirroring for high availability, load balancing, thin provisioning and other advanced features are exciting and will be welcomed by enterprises using the software.

    The 64 bit controller software supports large cache on the physical server up to a theoretical limit of 1 TB as against the earlier versions which supported only 20 GB cache.

    Jack Fegreus, CEO of Southborough, Mass.-based OpenBench Labs, points out that a terabyte of cache is "at the far edge of reality for most normal sites today", but given Moore’s Law, "1TB of cache may well be average".

    Today many organizations use as much as 256 GB of cache on average.

    This increased cache implies that there will be a denser consolidation of servers into virtual machines and performance of VM backups may improve by minimizing I/O to disk.

    The Transporter Option that comes with SANmelody and SANsymphony can also perform conversions between physical and virtual servers.

    This feature is significant as a server can be converted from a physical Windows box to a Microsoft Corp.Hyper V Image and then to a VMware ESX image.

    It can then be converted back to a logical unit Number (LUN) mapped to a physical server. This feature could be an advantage to people who are running multiple virtual servers with different operating systems.

    Themis Tokkaris, systems engineer with Arizona-based pest control company Truly Nolen, says that "it is also an open idea", adding: "If I’m not happy with ESX in the future, I’m not stuck with it."

    DataCore SAN offers its users the option of using a new free plug-in for VMWare Inc’s Virtual Infrastructure Client.

    James Price, vice president of product and channel marketing at DataCore SAN, claims that it will offer "cleaner visibility and easier to understand mappings and paths".

    He further points out that the upgrades will provide a way to reclaim free capacity on volumes using thin provisioning.

    DataCore SAN is not alone in this storage virtualization space.

    Many of the features offered by DataCore, such as 64 bit support, thin provisioning and so on, have been included in the packages of other vendors.

    Symantec Corp, Double-Take Software Inc and others offer 64 bit support for the data protection space.

    Compellent Technologies Inc also offered free space recovery for thin provisioning about a year ago. DataCore SAN’s offer, however, combines these features into a server-centric approach and appears to have set the trend for the future of networked storage solutions.

    However, Fegreus says DataCore’s combining these features into a server-centric approach looks like the wave of the future for networked storage as integration increases between SANs and servers.