the SSD Buyers Guide - click to see article
SSD buyers guide
the fastest SSDs - click to read article
the fastest SSDs
top 10 SSD oems
top 10 SSD oems

StorageSearch.com

enterprise buyers guides since 1991

storage search
"leading the way to the new storage frontier"

1.0" SSDs 1.8" SSDs 2.5" SSDs 3.5" SSDs PCIe SSDs rackmount SSDs
Sir Squeaks-a-Bit - image for rackmount SSD page
rackmount SSDs
Sir Squeaks-a-Bit felt undressed
without a metal jacket.
Universal Solid State Disk USSD 200 from Solid Access Technologies with SAS, FC, SCSI or custom interfaces
performance/price leading
SAS, FC & SCSI enterprise solid state disks
from Solid Access Technologies
.

rackmount SSDs

Why I Tire of "Tier Zero Storage"
RAM Cache Ratios in flash SSDs
the Top 10 Solid State Disk Companies
Are MLC SSDs Safe in Enterprise Apps?
Market Trends in the Rackmount SSD Market
RAM SSDs versus Flash SSDs - which is Best?
Clarifying SSD Pricing - where does all the money go?
the Problem with Selling Revolutionary SSDs to Risk Averse Technology Laggards
.
Editor's comment:- re SSD market history - you'd be surprised how long I've been writing about rackmount SSDs. The banner ad (shown on the right) - ran here - April 2002. And my coverage started 10 years before that! click for more info - banner ad from 2002
rackmount SSD news
A new way of looking at the Enterprise SSD market

Editor:- September 6, 2010 - in a new article published today on the home page of StorageSearch.com I suggest a new way of looking at all "enterprise SSDs" to help you cut more quickly through the tangle of new SSD web content which grows bigger than the hours in the day you've got to think about it.


law firm says WhipTail's SSD capacity 4x better than HDD

Editor:- August 31, 2010 - WhipTail Technologies today announced that a law firm customer - Finkelstein & Partners (350 attorneys and staff distributed across 17 locations) had achieved a 4x capacity reduction when using their SSD instead of HDDs in virtualized server apps - due to dedupe and faster IOPS.


Dataram's revenue up 70% - increases investment in SSD ASAP

Editor:- July 29, 2010 - today Dataram today reported that its annual revenue for the year ended April 30 grew 70% to $44 million incurring a net loss of $1.6 million.

Among other things, Dataram's president and CEO - John H. Freeman commented on the company's SSD ASAP.

"The development of our XcelaSAN product line continues to progress... In August, we plan to release enhanced features and functionality which are currently in development to support sales initiatives. These changes increase the products ease of use, ease of installation and interoperability.

"High Availability systems are expected to be available for sale in December. We anticipate that our enhancements and the shipment of high availability systems will accelerate product sales and broaden market adoption. We have made and are continuing to make significant investments in research and development in XcelaSAN. In part, this investment is being used to develop and implement client recommendations based on their actual test."


ASIC vs FPGA for use in enterprise SSDs

Editor:- July 21, 2010 - a reader's email this morning asked me to comment on the business and technical pros and cons of FPGAs vs ASICs when it comes to enterprise SSD design.

He named a bunch of enterprise SSD makers in both camps - and said he hadn't seen me write anything about this issue on StorageSearch.com. As you know - I'm never shy about commenting. Click here if you're interested to see what I said.


DCIG article about PCIe SSDs

Editor:- July 20, 2010 - DCIG has published an article - Identifying the Right SSD Architecture which describes the thinking behind some PCIe SSDs - and in particular those designed by the article's sponsor Fusion-io.

One of the disadvantages of the Fusion-io architecture (in my view) is that if you install it into a slow legacy server - it will not give you the same speedup as some other designs which offload more of their internal housekeeping functions to an onboard SSD controller. That difference magnifies if you fit multiple SSDs into the same PCIe bus.

At the other end of the scale, however, the Fusion-io design includes future-proofing for the server oems who design it in - because to some extent the performance will scale upwards automatically when they deploy the same SSDs into newer faster multi-core CPUs in new models of their servers.

These very big differences are part of what I call the Legacy versus New Dynasty segmentation model - which has been happening in the rackmount SSD market for several years. Superficially similar looking products actually address very different markets - and if you know which side of the divide you're on (and it can be different sides for different projects in the same enterprise) that can shortcut your vendor qualification processes.

You can read more about fundamental disagreement within the SSD industry in an article here on StorageSearch.com called the the SSD Heresies.


new article - SSD training and education

Editor:- July 19, 2010 - StorageSearch.com today published a new article and directory on the subject of - SSD training and education.

There are many people out there on the web who say they can help you. But choosing an SSD training supplier could be as tricky as finding a new SSD.


Nimbus improves features in NAS SSD

Editor:- July 19, 2010 - Nimbus Data Systems today announced higher density in its 10 GbE rackmount SSD systems - 10TB (enterprise MLC) in 2U - implemented as 24 x 400GB hot-swappable SAS flash blades.

The company also announced improved connectivity - upto 120Gbps - from its internal 12 port FlexConnect 'virtual switch' which makes all storage available to all ports without the need to create and assign volumes to specific ports. Every port can run all supported protocols – iSCSI, CIFS and NFS – simultaneously, enabling unified block and file storage and converged networking. Pricing for a 10TB system with FlexConnect is just under $110k.


the Top 10 SSD oems in the 2nd quarter of 2010

Editor:- July 6, 2010 - StorageSearch.com today published the 13th quarterly edition of the Top 10 SSD OEMs - with new commentaries and analysis - and a 1st time appearance in the top 10 list by OCZ.

Tracking the search volume of millions of SSD readers - the series is designed to alert you to emerging market trends and simplify your process of shortlisting potential partners and suppliers. ...read the article


Kaminario launches RAM SSD ASAP

Editor:- June 14, 2010 - Kaminario launched its 1st product - an FC SAN connected acceleration appliance in which a grid of blade servers access upto terabytes of shared memory.

Pricing starts at $200,000

Editor's comments:- the applications speedups quoted by Kaminario are similar to the best figures achieved by high end rackmount SSDs from NextIO, Texas Memory Systems and Violin Memory.

Kaminario doesn't call its product an SSD - but it integrates techniques which have been used by SSD customers for many years - to place data hot spots into memory.

Unlike a vanilla RAM SSD - the company says the data deployment is done automatically and transparently by its proprietary OS. Kaminario's product isn't an SSD - but conceptually the best way to understand what it does is to think of it as a RAM SSD ASAP. The exact speedup and cost effectiveness achieved by this type of product is highly application sensitive. Another similar product (which bundles servers with massive memory) is the Oracle-focused OPERA from Texas Memory Systems.


Solid Access launches very fast NAS SLC SSD

Editor:- May 20, 2010 -Solid Access Technologies today launched the UNAS 100 a very fast 2U rackmount NAS SLC fat flash SSD - with 2.4TB capacity, 96GB DRAM Cache, 2x 10GbE ports, 300,000 IOPS, 1,000MB/s bandwidth and under 10 microseconds access time.

Editor's comments:- this is the 1st flash SSD system from Solid Access - which has been in the RAM SSD market for 8 years and has often appeared in our directory of the fastest SSDs. As you'd expect - the new system includes enterprise SSD reliability features - and the flash modules are hot swappable and can be mirrored.


Nimbus nixes STEC SAS SSD costs in new iSCSI rackmount

Editor:- April 26, 2010 - Nimbus Data Systems today launched its S-class storage system - a 2U 10GbE rackmount SSD with 24 hot swappable internal 6Gbps SAS flash SSD blades in an 80W power footprint offering 5TB protected capacity for $39,995.

Powered by Nimbus' HALO storage OS the systems support iSCSI, NFS, and CIFS protocols and provide inline deduplication (typically 10 to 1), continuous local and remote replication capability in-the-box at no additional cost. Data protection inside the box ensures that no data is lost even with 2 simultaneous blade faults.

Editor's comments:- there has been a lack of market leadership in the NAS compatible rackmount SSD market. This new product from Nimbus shows what can be achieved with a true bottom up enterprise design - in the same way that for FC SAN connected applications you'd look at systems from Texas Memory Systems and in the PCIe connected rackmount SSD market you'd look at NextIO or at Violin Memory.

I spoke at length to Nimbus's CEO, Thomas Isakovich - about the new systems. He's been a network storage OS pioneer for 10 years (prior to Nimbus he founded TrueSAN) so I joked that - unlike many new SSD companies - at least this product wouldn't be surprised by applications doing the wrong type of R/W IOPS (different to those encountered in benchmark suites).

The 1st question I asked was about the storage blades. I had already guessed (and he confirmed) the interface was SAS. But the surprise came when I asked whose SSDs was he using?

Isakovich said Nimbus makes its own SSDs - and that while the company was talking to many SSD controller suppliers - it planned from the outset to change these suppliers for other best of breed alternatives as the market evolved. In this respect - Nimbus is different to most others in the NAS SSD space - because the company supplies the whole software stack from the choice of silicon up through the OS and into the network. (Editor's note:- in contrast competitor WhipTail Technologies' product is a complex integrated bundle which uses 3rd party COTS 2.5" SSDs, licenses the flash write attenuation software from EasyCo and licenses dedupe technology from Exar.)

I asked Isakovich does Nimbus use SLC or MLC? - he said the internal flash is Micron's "enterprise grade MLC" - which has 6x the endurance of standard MLC.

He explained that Nimbus is aiming to offer a competitively priced product (2.5TB model costs $24,995) but unlike other vendors they decided not to offer separate MLC or SLC versions. The argument being that once you sold a system to a customer - let's say a low cost MLC SSD for video streaming - you couldn't be sure that the customer might not redeploy that same system into a different application accelerating their database (which needs higher endurance). His thinking seems to be that once the SSD rack is out in the wild of the enterprise environment - it has to be tough enough to handle ALL enterprise applications.

The flash systems include 28% over-provisioning and write attenuation.

I asked about the size of the RAM cache - Isakovich said it's 48GB which puts it in the fat flash SSD class. Users do have options on how they can deploy this to tweak performance. Unlike SSD ASAPs - which are designed to accelerate hard disk arrays - the name of the game with the new Nimbus product line is to make it attractive for users to place all their critical IOPS intensive data into SSD.

And with this new product Nimbus is saying - they like the flexibility and features of SAS SSDs - but that doesn't mean to say the market has to pay STEC or Pliant prices.


NextIO launches "Fusion-io in a box"

Editor:- April 13, 2010 - NextIO announced availability of its vSTOR S100 - a 3U PCIe connected SSD with upto 7TB modular capacity and 1.7 million IOPS (4TB model).

When I spoke to NextIO's Product Marketing Director, Mike Lance, last month he mentioned that Fusion-io was one of their partners so I've been expecting this product announcement.

The best way to think about it is "Fusion-io in a box"- for applications where you need ultimate rackmount performance - but don't want to be locked in to proprietary SSD rackmounts.

NextIO launched a conceptually similar product using Texas Memory Systems PCIe SSDs in November 2009. But unlike the TMS based solution - which is SLC only - the Fusion-io based vSTOR also includes optional (lower cost) MLC which is reliable enough and more economic for applications like video.

Because the integration's already done for you using best of breed technologies - and because the systems are already parameterized - they offer convenient and affordable building blocks for serious users of datacenter SSDs.


TMS ships 10TB 500K IOPS 3U SLC SSD

Editor:- April 8, 2010 - Texas Memory Systems today announced the availability of the RamSan-630 an FC / InfiniBand compatible 3U SLC SSD with 4 to 10TB capacity, 500,000 IOPS, 8GB/s bandwidth, and R/W latency of 250 / 80 microseconds in a 450W power budget.

Levi Norman, Director of Marketing and OEM for Texas Memory Systems explained the rationale behind the new product - "We developed it in response to observing how customers were struggling to boost performance without adding to their data center footprint. The explosive growth in IT and storage over the years is resulting in many data centers reaching their limits for space and power draw."


reaching for the petabyte SSD

Editor:- March 16, 2010 - previewing the final chapters in the long running SSD vs HDD wars - StorageSearch.com today published an industry changing new article - SSDs - reaching for the Petabyte.


FalconStor tunes Violin's SSD

Editor:- March 2, 2010 - FalconStor today announced technical and VAR channel support for Violin Memory's 2U rackmount FC flash SSD - the Violin 1010 .

Although the headline specs of this very fast flash SSD are substantially the same as when it was launched in November 2008 the 2 important things which have changed are:-
  • the price point - $32,000 for the 500GB (lite capacity) version, and
  • the availability of SSD ASAP-like features implemented by FalconStor's SafeCache and HotZone software.


Avere Adds SLC SSD Options to 2U ASAPs

Editor:- January 26, 2010 - Avere Systems today announced it's shipping new SLC flash SSD options in its FXT Series 10GbE NAS compatible SSD ASAPs.

The 2U Avere FXT 2700 appliance (from $82,500) features 64GB of DRAM, 1GB of NVRAM, and 512GB of SLC flash SSD. FXT clusters can scale to 25 appliances and support millions of operations/sec and tens of GB/sec throughput.

"One of the main assumptions of Demand-Driven Storage is that data access requirements are different across applications," said Ron Bianchini, President and CEO of Avere Systems. "Applications that produce heavy random read workloads are best addressed by SSDs and the FXT 2700 is Avere's answer for those users who have a high-end NAS infrastructure that under delivers when it comes to these types of applications."
click to read article:- SSD Market History
Fusion-io fast SSDs - click for more info
world's fastest production PCIe SSD
from Fusion-io

click for more info about the revolutionary auto tuning XcelaSAN SSD accelerator from Dataram
XcelaSAN is a "revolutionary" self optimizing
2U enterprise SSD accelerator
from Dataram

click for more info about the RamSan-630 SSD
RamSan-630
10 terabytes fast SLC flash SSD
from Texas Memory Systems
.
rackmount SSD OEMs
Asine

Attorn

Avere Systems

BiTMICRO Networks

Compellent

Concurrent Computer

Coraid

Curtis

Dataram

Dell

Dolphin

EasyCo

EMC

Fuji Xerox

Gear6

Hitachi Data Systems

Network Appliance

NextIO

Nimbus Data Systems

Panasas

Pillar Data Systems

Rackable Systems

RAID

RunCore

SeaChange International

SEEK Systems

Solid Access Technologies

Solid Data Systems

Storspeed

Sun Microsystems

Superior Data Solutions

Taejin Infotech

Texas Memory Systems

Third I/O

TiGi

Vanguard Rugged Storage

Verari Systems

Violin Memory

ViON

WhipTail Technologies

Winchester Systems
.
disk
Hard disk drives

InfiniBand
InfiniBand

Flash Memory
Flash Memory

serial SCSI
Serial Attached SCSI

RAM
RAM

Military storage
Military STORAGE

storage search banner

1.0" SSDs 1.8" SSDs 2.5" SSDs 3.5" SSDs rackmount SSDs PCIe SSDs SATA SSDs
SSDs all flash SSDs hybrid drives flash memory RAM SSDs SAS SSDs Fibre-Channel SSDs

StorageSearch.com is published by ACSL