Storage Nation » computing

Choosing Between Monolithic and Modular Architectures – Part II

admin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 16:37:02 +0000

This is a series of post discussing storage array architectures. Previous posts: Choosing Between Monolithic and Modular Architectures – Part I In the first post, I discussed the shared storage model architectures typified by what we sometimes think of as Enterprise arrays, but I’ve called monolithic. This term harks back to the mainframe days of large single computers (see Wikipedia definition ), hence it’s use to describe storage arrays with a large single cache. In the last 10 years we have seen a move away from the single shared cache to a distributed cache architecture built from multiple storage engines or nodes, each with independent processing capability but sharing a fast network interconnect. Probably the most well known implementations of this technology have come from 3Par (InServ), IBM (XIV) and EMC (VMAX). Let’s have a look at these architectures in more detail. EMC VMAX The VMAX architecture consists of one to eight VMAX engines (storage nodes) connected together by what is described as the Virtual Matrix Architecture. Each engine acts as a storage array in its own right, with front-end host port connectivity, back-end disk directors, cache (which presumably is mirrored internally) and processors. The VMAX engines connect together using the Matrix Interface Board Enclosure (MIBE), which are duplicated for redundancy. The virtual matrix enables inter-engine memory access, which is required to provide connectivity when the host access port isn’t on the same engine as the data. There are two diagrams in the gallery at the end of this post, one showing the logical view of the interconnected engines and the second showing how back-end disk enclosures are dedicated to each engine. What’s not clear from the documentation is how the virtual matrix architecture operates, other than being based on the RapidIO. I’m not sure if VMAX engines have direct access to the cache in other engines or whether the processor of connected engines is required. In addition, can an engine access cache in another engine purely to manage throughput of the local host and disk connections? I’m not entirely sure.

Here is the original:
Choosing Between Monolithic and Modular Architectures – Part II

HP Challenges Dell for 3Par

admin — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 11:57:54 +0000

So there we have it. A week after Dell announce their intention to acquire 3Par, HP put their cards on the table and trump the Dell bid with an updated offer of $24 a share. This represents a 1/3 increase over the Dell $18/share offer. HP have been pretty acquisitive in the storage arena over the last few years, acquiring LeftHand, Ibrix and others. Why now would they want to acquire 3Par

See more here:
HP Challenges Dell for 3Par

IBM to Acquire StorWize

admin — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:14:08 +0000

I read with interest yesterday’s announcement from IBM that they are to acquire Storwize, a vendor of NAS compression technology. Maybe I don’t understand enough about the technology, however I don’t see much benefit in installing an application in front of my NAS environment to only achieve between 50-90% reduction in storage. What’s more surprising is that IBM would want to acquire this technology. Firstly, let’s summarise the benefits of the Storwize offering: Better Storage Utilisation Lowers Capital and Operational Costs Better Energy Efficiency These bullet points are taken directly from the Storwize website and are then expanded into more detail. Whilst implementing compression may save some storage space in the short term, it doesn’t address the overall reasons for growth within an organisation and at some stage capacity will reach previous levels, regardless of the ability to compress that data. I’d also agree that compression reduces some capital costs – but these will be via cost avoidance rather than the ability to remove existing hardware. This implies that the savings can only be made if significant growth exists in the environment in the first place.

Hardware Review: Promise SmartStor NS4600 – Part II

admin — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 11:00:34 +0000

This is a series of posts on the Promise SmartStor NS4600 home storage server. Previous posts: Hardware Review: Promise SmartStor NS4600 – Part I In the first post of this series, we discussed the basic hardware configuration. This post will look at connectivity and RAID configurations supported by the NS4600. A quick glance at the back of the unit provides a clue as to what connectivity exists. See the first image in this post. There is are 2x USB, 1x eSATA and 1x Ethernet ports available.

See more here:
Hardware Review: Promise SmartStor NS4600 – Part II

Enterprise Computing: HP Blades Day – Lab Session – Part IV

admin — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 07:00:26 +0000

This is part of a series of posts with video recorded at the HP Blades Day in Houston, February 2010. Previous posts: HP Blades Day – Lab Session: Clip 1 HP Blades Day – Lab Session: Clip 2 HP Blades Day – Lab Session: Clip 3 In this final post from the Lab Session, James Singer discusses more about airflow and the chassis design. The video doesn’t always follow the subject (due to my quality videoing techniques; in fact I was trying to pay attention), however the soundtrack is accurate

Read the original post:
Enterprise Computing: HP Blades Day – Lab Session – Part IV

Enterprise Computing: VPLEX – A Dreary Storage Cluster?

admin — Wed, 12 May 2010 15:52:47 +0000

Those of you with relatively good memories will remember last year’s announcement from Hitachi/HDS, which at the time promised more than it delivered. In fact, the anagram posed by Claus Mikkelsen on his blog and used as part of the press release was “REGRADES OUR CLASSY TREATS” and should have translated to “STORAGE ARRAYS CLUSTERED” my tongue-in-cheek alternative was “A DREARY STORAGE CLUSTER” (who could have imagined such a serendipidous alternative). With EMC’s new release of VPLEX, it’s deja-vu all over again…. With the usual EMC fanfare, VPLEX has been heralded as “ a new storage platform “.

Original post:
Enterprise Computing: VPLEX – A Dreary Storage Cluster?

Cloud Computing: Cloud /= Virtualisation

admin — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:04:13 +0000

I finally managed to attend a London CloudCamp last Thursday, which conveniently co-incided with a #storagebeers evening. For two hours of listening to the collective wisdom of the presenters and the “unpanel” we were offered free beer and food

Here is the original post:
Cloud Computing: Cloud /= Virtualisation

Enterprise Computing: CLARiiON; Your Mileage May Vary

admin — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 10:16:29 +0000

As part of my work at Storage Fusion , I get to dig into the inner workings of storage arrays in a way most people don’t (either through inclination or time). One interesting anomaly we discovered this week was the variability in capacities of CLARiiON disks.

Go here to see the original:
Enterprise Computing: CLARiiON; Your Mileage May Vary

Virtualisation: Virtualising MY SOHO Infrastructure

admin — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 11:48:29 +0000

I’m in the process of migrating my existing physical infrastructure into a virtual environment. There’s nothing like “eating your own dog food” (there’s got to be a better expression than that) for testing out your beliefs on how technology should be implemented, so it’s only fitting I virtualise the IT infrastructure I rely on. In summary, I run a “production” Windows AD domain, Exchange, IIS and file services. This is a typical scenario for many small businesses, with perhaps a few variations thrown in for good measure, such as SharePoint

Here is the original post:
Virtualisation: Virtualising MY SOHO Infrastructure

Personal Computing: Drobo Replacement

admin — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:13:27 +0000

Following on from my Personal Computing: Drobo Wierdness , I have received a replacement unit from Data Robotics. I thought for a change I’d produce a video and so here is my attempt to swap out my drives into the new unit. In the end I formatted the existing drives as four new NAS shares. So the unit is back and working.

Read more here:
Personal Computing: Drobo Replacement