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Enterprise-class disk array specifications

Thursday 05 October 2006 12:00
Disk arrays don't just supply primary storage for enterprise users and applications; arrays are also increasingly popular backup targets, leveraging the performance and reliability of Fibre Channel and SATA disk to protect mission-critical data. Enterprise-class disk arrays are noted for their huge storage capacities which can range from several terabytes (TB) into the low petabytes (PB). Enterprise arrays also offer powerful connectivity to the enterprise SAN using dozens of fibre channel ports, resulting in data throughput rates reaching 60 GB/s. Other features include high availability, high reliability, disk hot swapping and support for automation tools that streamline management tasks. The following specifications are current as of September 2006.

These specifications are periodically updated, and vendors are welcome to submit their updates and new product specifications to sbigelow@techtarget.com.

Go to the first product snapshot, or select the desired product below:

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Product Snapshot #1
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Product:3PAR InServ E200 Storage Server (1)

Usable Capacity:2.0 to 56.1 TB depending on configuration (2)
Raw Capacity2.3 to 63.1 TB depending on configuration (2)
# of Drives:16 ti 128 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:FC and NL (Nearline)
Drive Capacity:147GB FC, 300GB FC, 500GB NL
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:http://www.3pardata.com/products/performance.html
Connectivity:0, 4, 8 or 12 FC ports, 0 or 4 iSCSI ports
Release date:August 2006
Base price range:starting at $65,000.00 USD
Software:InForm Operating System, Rapid Provisioning, Access Guard, Full Copy, Virtual Copy, Remote Copy, Dynamic Optimization, Thin Provisioning, System Tuner, System Reporter, Multipath I/O for Microsoft Windows, Multipath I/O for IBM AIX, Recovery Manager for Oracle, Recovery Manager for Microsoft Exchange
Detailed Specs:http://www.3par.com/products/inservmodels.html
Vendor URL:www.3par.com

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Product Snapshot #2
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Product:3PAR InServ S400 Storage Server (1)

Usable Capacity:2.0 to 170.6 TB depending on configuration
Raw Capacity2.3 to 192 TB
# of Drives:16 - 1,280 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:FC and NL (Nearline)
Drive Capacity:147GB FC, 300GB FC, 500GB NL
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:http://www.3pardata.com/products/performance.html
Connectivity:0-64 2Gb FC ports and 0-8 iSCSI ports
Release date:2002
Base price range:starting at $115,000.00 USD
Software:InForm Operating System, Rapid Provisioning, Access Guard, Full Copy, Virtual Copy, Remote Copy, Dynamic Optimization, Thin Provisioning, System Tuner, System Reporter, Multipath I/O for Microsoft Windows, Multipath I/O for IBM AIX, Recovery Manager for Oracle, Recovery Manager for Microsoft Exchange
Detailed Specs:http://www.3par.com/products/inservmodels.html
Vendor URL:www.3par.com

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Product Snapshot #3
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Product:3PAR InServ S800 Storage Server (1)

Usable Capacity:2.0 to 341.3 TB depending on configuration
Raw Capacity2.3 to 384 TB
# of Drives:16 - 2,560 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:FC and NL (Nearline)
Drive Capacity:147GB FC, 300GB FC, 500GB NL
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:http://www.3pardata.com/products/performance.html
Connectivity:0-128 2Gb FC ports and 0-16 iSCSI ports
Release date:2002
Base price range:starting at $145,000.00 USD
Software:InForm Operating System, Rapid Provisioning, Access Guard, Full Copy, Virtual Copy, Remote Copy, Dynamic Optimization, Thin Provisioning, System Tuner, System Reporter, Multipath I/O for Microsoft Windows, Multipath I/O for IBM AIX, Recovery Manager for Oracle, Recovery Manager for Microsoft Exchange
Detailed Specs:http://www.3par.com/products/inservmodels.html
Vendor URL:www.3par.com

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Product Snapshot #4
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Product:EMC Symmetrix DMX-3 (1)

Usable Capacity:6 TB to 526 TB (RAID5) depending on configuration
Raw Capacity7 TB to 1,054 TB
# of Drives:96 to 2,400 (2)
Drive Types:Dual-ported Fibre Channel
Drive Capacity:73 GB, 146 GB, 300 GB, 500 GB Fibre Channel
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:not provided
Connectivity:2 Gb FC
Release date:July 2005
Base price range:Entry level configuration starts at $200,000 USD
Software:http://www.emc.com/dsp/DisplayProducts
Detailed Specs:http://www.emc.com/products/systems/symmetrix/DMX_series/pdf/C1304_Symmetrix_DMX3_SS_ldv.pdf
Vendor URL:www.emc.com

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Product Snapshot #5
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Product:HP StorageWorks XP10000 Disk Array (1)

Usable Capacity:144GB to 51TB; depending on configuration
Raw Capacity288GB to 69TB
# of Drives:Up to 240 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:Dual ported Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL) interface
Drive Capacity:73 GB 15K rpm; 146 GB 10K rpm; 146 GB 15K rpm; 300 GB 10K rpm
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:Sequential Reads – 1.3 GB/sec; Cache random reads – 700,000 IO/sec
Connectivity:2 Gb FC; 4 Gb FC; ESCON; 2 Gbps FICON; iSCSI
Release date:July 2005
Base price range:Base price around $230,000
Software:HP StorageWorks Command View XP Advanced Edition; HP StorageWorks XP Tiered Storage Manager; HP StorageWorks XP Provisioning Manager; HP StorageWorks XP Replication Monitor; HP StorageWorks LUN Configuration & Security Manager XP; HP StorageWorks Performance Advisor XP; HP StorageWorks Performance Control XP; HP StorageWorks Auto LUN XP; HP StorageWorks Data Exchange XP; HP StorageWorks Business Copy XP/Snapshot XP; HP StorageWorks Continuous Access XP/XP Extension/XP Journal; HP StorageWorks External Storage XP; HP StorageWorks RAID Manager XP; HP StorageWorks Flex Copy XP; HP StorageWorks Secure Path XP/Auto Path XP; HP StorageWorks Cluster Extension XP; HP StorageWorks XP Data Shredder; HP StorageWorks XP Disk/Cache Partition; HP StorageWorks Fast Recovery Solution XP; HP Storage Essentials
Detailed Specs:http://h18006.www1.hp.com/products/storageworks/xp10000/index.html
Vendor URL:www.hp.com

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Product Snapshot #6
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Product:HP StorageWorks XP12000 Disk Array (1)

Usable Capacity:288 GB - 290 TB; depending on drives
Raw Capacity576 GB - 332 TB
# of Drives:Up to 1,152 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:Dual ported Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop (FC-AL) interface
Drive Capacity:73 GB 15K rpm; 146 GB 10K rpm; 146 GB 15K rpm; 300 GB 10K rpm
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:Sequential Reads – 9.9 GB/sec; Cache random reads – 2.5 million IO/sec
Connectivity:2 Gb FC; 4 Gb FC; ESCON; 2 Gb FICON; iSCSI
Release date:September 2004
Base price range:Base price around $350,000
Software:HP StorageWorks Command View XP Advanced Edition; HP StorageWorks XP Tiered Storage Manager; HP StorageWorks XP Provisioning Manager; HP StorageWorks XP Replication Monitor; HP StorageWorks LUN Configuration & Security Manager XP; HP StorageWorks Performance Advisor XP; HP StorageWorks Performance Control XP; HP StorageWorks Auto LUN XP; HP StorageWorks Data Exchange XP; HP StorageWorks Business Copy XP/Snapshot XP; HP StorageWorks Continuous Access XP/XP Extension/XP Journal; HP StorageWorks External Storage XP; HP StorageWorks RAID Manager XP; HP StorageWorks Flex Copy XP; HP StorageWorks Secure Path XP/Auto Path XP; HP StorageWorks Cluster Extension XP; HP StorageWorks XP Data Shredder; HP StorageWorks XP Disk/Cache Partition; HP StorageWorks Fast Recovery Solution XP; HP Storage Essentials
Detailed Specs:http://h18006.www1.hp.com/products/storageworks/xp12000/index.html
Vendor URL:www.hp.com

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Product Snapshot #7
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Product:HDS; TagmaStore AMS1000 (1)

Usable Capacity:173.8TB SATA Intermix; 129.4TB Fibre Channel
Raw CapacityOver 200 TB
# of Drives:4–450 Fibre Channel; 0–420 SATA (2)
Drive Types:SATA; Fibre Channel;
Drive Capacity:73GB (10K & 15K RPM); 146GB (10K & 15K RPM); 300GB (10K RPM); 250GB SATA (7200 RPM); 500GB SATA II (7200 RPM)
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:13.7 Gbps Cached Bandwidth
Connectivity:Fibre Channel: 8 @ 1, 2, or 4 Gbit/sec; OR 4 Fibre Channel ports AND iSCSI: 4 @ 1Gbit/sec; OR NAS: 8 @ 1Gbit/sec
Release date:April 3, 2006
Base price range:Under $80,000
Software:IBM AIX; HP-UX; Sun Solaris; Microsoft Windows 2000, 2003; Windows Server 2003; Microsoft Simple SAN compliant; HP Tru64 UNIX; SGI IRIX; Novell NetWare; Linux; HP OpenVMS; VMWare; Apple MAC OS; IBM z/OS
Detailed Specs:http://www.hds.com/products_services/midrange_specifications/
Vendor URL:www.hds.com

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Product Snapshot #8
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Product:HDS; TagmaStore USP1100 (1)

Usable Capacity:Up to 330 TB internal (up to 32 PB externally virtualized storage)
Raw Capacity280GB to 332TB internal
# of Drives:129-1152 drives (2)
Drive Types:Fibre Channel
Drive Capacity:not available
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:81 GB/sec (Maximum Aggregate Bandwidth)
Connectivity:Up to 192 Fibre Channel, 96 ESCON, or 96 FICON ports
Release date:September 7, 2004
Base price range:$600,000 USD
Software:IBM AIX; HP-UX; Sun Solaris; Microsoft Windows 2000, 2003; Windows Server 2003; Microsoft Simple SAN compliant; HP Tru64 UNIX; SGI IRIX; Novell NetWare; Linux; HP OpenVMS; VMWare; Apple MAC OS; IBM z/OS
Detailed Specs:http://www.hds.com/products_services/universal_storage_platform/specifications/
Vendor URL:www.hds.com

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Product Snapshot #9
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Product:IBM System Storage DS8000 Series (1)

Usable Capacity:414GB to 249TB depending on configuration
Raw Capacity1.168 to 320TB
# of Drives:Up to 640 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:FATA; FC
Drive Capacity:500 GB FATA; 73, 146, 300 GB FC
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:up to 3GB/sec
Connectivity:2Gb and 4Gb FC/FICON; ESCON
Release date:December 2004; New DS8000 Turbo: September 2006
Base price range:$200,000 and up
Software:i5/OS, OS/400, AIX, Solaris, HP-UX, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, Linux for System z, z/OS, z/VM, VSE/ESA, TPF, Linux for System i, Linux for System p, Linux for Intel systems, OpenVMS, TRU64, NetWare, VMWare, Apple Macintosh OS X, Fujitsu Primepower, SGI IRIX
Detailed Specs:ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/common/ssi/rep_sp/n/TSD00374USEN/TSD00374USEN.PDF
Vendor URL:www.ibm.com

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Product Snapshot #10
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Product:Network Appliance Inc.; FAS6000 series

Specifications unavailable at this time

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Product Snapshot #11
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Product:Sun StorageTek 9985 System (1)

Usable Capacity:56.5 TB, open systems, RAID5
Raw Capacity69 TB
# of Drives:0-240 hard drives (2)
Drive Types:FC active-active
Drive Capacity:73GB 10K prm, 73GB 15K rpm, 146GB 10K rpm, 146GB 15K rpm, 300GB 10K rpm
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:12.1 GB/sec aggregate bandwidth
Connectivity:FC, NAS, ESCON, FICON, iSCSI
Release date:July 11, 2005
Base price range:Varies according to configuration and local business practices
Software:not provided
Detailed Specs:http://www.sun.com/storagetek/disk_systems/data_center/9985/
Vendor URL:www.sun.com

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Product Snapshot #12
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Product:Sun StorageTek 9990 System (1)

Usable Capacity:287.8TB (with 300GB 10K rpm drives); open systems, RAID-5
Raw Capacity332 TB
# of Drives:5-1152 drives (2)
Drive Types:FC active-active
Drive Capacity:73GB 10K rpm, 73GB 15K rpm, 146GB 10K rpm, 146GB 15K rpm, 300GB 10K rpm
Drive Hot Swap:Yes
Transfer Rate:81GB/sec (aggregate bandwidth)
Connectivity:FC, NAS, FICON, ESCON, iSCSI
Release date:September 7, 2004
Base price range:Varies according to configuration and local business practices
Software:not provided
Detailed Specs:http://www.sun.com/storagetek/disk_systems/data_center/9990/index.xml
Vendor URL:www.sun.com

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NOTES:

(1) There are various configurations of this product model. Exact specifications depend on the selected/expanded configuration.
(2) The exact number of drives/slots depends on selected options or expansion chassis.

** All prices shown are in US dollars (USD)

LEGEND:

FC: Fibre Channel
GB: Gigabyte
Gb: Gigabit
iSCSI: Internet SCSI
NL: Nearline
RAID: Redundant Array of Independent Disks
RPM: Rotations Per Minute
SATA: Serial ATA
TB: Terabyte