Dell Storage, PowerStore, PowerFlex PowerMax & PowerScale, Virtualization & Containers Technologies
So Far, we provided, an high level overview of the PowerStore 2.0 release, A deep dive into the DRE enhancements and the NVMe Over FC integration with VMware Last year, […]
So Far, we provided, an high level overview of the PowerStore 2.0 release, A deep dive into the DRE enhancements and the NVMe Over FC integration with VMware
Last year, PowerStore changed the storage industry forever with a revolutionary new platform that made IT solutions around the world more data-centric, intelligent and adaptable. PowerStore has since become the fastest-ramping new storage platform in Dell Technologies history, with customer deployments in over 60 countries – and numerous industry accolades, including two Product of the Year awards.
The new PowerStore release introduces PowerStore 500, an affordable new hardware model!
This new model makes the overall platform more accessible by lowering the entry price point. More customers than ever before can now experience the PowerStore advantage.
Delivering the technology and enterprise features of PowerStore to a wider range of customers and use cases is critical to increasing adoption. With the introduction of the new PowerStore 500, customers with smaller IT environments and budgets, as well as those with ROBO and edge shared storage applications, can take advantage of PowerStore as a solution with both affordable entry price and exceptional scalability.
PowerStore 500 features include:
• Single-socket 12-core Intel Cascade Lake Scalable Xeon processor per node
• Unified storage (block, file, vVols) to support any workload
• Up to 1.2 PBe of storage in a 2U appliance
• Cluster with any PowerStore T model
• Leading technology and performance for entry applications
• End-to-end NVMe with Flash and Intel Optane SSDs and NVMe-FC connectivity
PowerStore 500 is a full member of the PowerStore family, running the same PowerStoreOS software and supporting the full suite of advanced management, data protection and replication capabilities featured on the PowerStore 1000 through 9000 models. The enterprise active/active over distance and application availability of PowerStore metro node also provide the 500 with unique capabilities for a product priced for the midsized business and edge markets.
With active/active dual-node architecture, hardware-assisted data reduction and NVMe architecture just like its larger PowerStore siblings, the 500 provides exceptional performance in a compact package, for a variety of core business applications such as databases and virtual desktops
Packing the simplified management, enterprise software capabilities and advanced technology of PowerStore into a more affordable platform opens a host of opportunities for distributed and embedded applications. Numerous verticals are ready to take advantage of PowerStore storage for small data center, ROBO, dedicated and edge solutions deployed in quantities from one to thousands per customer.
PowerStore 500 appliances serve Block and File services, and the software stack is deployed directly on the system. The PowerStore 500 hardware consists of a 2U, two node storage solution. The enclosure as a whole is called a base enclosure. Between the front and rear of the enclosure, a mid-plane distributes power and signals to all the enclosure components. On the front of the base enclosure, drives connect to the mid-plane. On the rear of the base enclosure, the nodes and power supply modules connect to the mid-plane. The I/O modules connect directly to the node. Each node contains an internal battery backup module, redundant fan modules, DDR4 memory, and one Intel Cascade Lake 12C processor.
In its initial release, PowerStore 500 does not support scale-UP expansion, but at 1.2PB effective capacity in the 2U base chassis, it provides more than enough space for typical customers at this price point. As with every PowerStore model, you can expand one drive at a time – with all parity and sparing configuration handled automatically by our DRE technology.
PowerStore 500 does support scale-OUT. You can connect up to three additional 500 models for a very affordable cluster with all of PowerStore’s advanced data mobility and load balancing capabilities. And for even larger configurations – up to almost 10PB effective capacity – you can mix and match other PowerStore T models. This gives you flexibility and headroom to add not only scale, but also the performance of higher models as your needs evolve over time.
PowerStore 500 also scales over distance, thanks to its support for PowerStore metro node. This gives you synchronous replication and mobility over metro distances and allows the affordable 500 to participate in distributed enterprise solutions, disaster recovery scenarios and more.
PowerStore 500 Hardware Overview
The 2U, 25-drive base enclosure consists of the following components:
Drives
Each drive resides in a drive carrier. The drive carriers are metal and plastic assemblies that provide smooth, reliable contact with the enclosure slot guides and mid-plane connectors. Each carrier has a handle with a latch and spring clips. The latch holds the drive in place to ensure proper connection with the mid-plane. Drive activity and fault LEDs are on the front of the enclosure.
There are two supported drive types:
You can mix NVMe SSD and NVMe SCM drives in the same base enclosure. If you mix drive types, the system uses the NVMe SCM drives for metadata tiering.
Up to 25x NVMe Drives
Midplane
The mid-plane separates the front-facing drives from the rear-facing nodes. It distributes power and signals to all components in the enclosure. The nodes and drives plug directly into the mid-plane.
Nodes
Each base enclosure contains two nodes. The node is the intelligent component providing the compute capability of the base enclosure.
Node power supply module
Each node contains a power supply module that connects the system to an exterior power source. If one power supply fails, redundant power supplies can keep the entire base enclosure running. The power supplies include LEDs to indicate component status. A latch on the module locks it into place to ensure proper connection.
EMI shielding
EMI shielding compliance requires a properly installed electromagnetic interference (EMI) shield in front of the base enclosure drives. When installed in cabinets that include a front door, the base enclosure includes a simple EMI shield. Other installations require a front bezel that has a locking latch and integrated EMI shield
Whether deployed on its own or in scale-out clusters with other PowerStore models, 500 makes the overall platform more accessible for businesses of all sizes and provides the catalyst for exciting new edge/ROBO solutions within larger ecosystems.
A guest post by Tomer Nahumi
