The optimised enterprise: Future-ready IT solutions

Thursday, 19 June 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Dell recently launched a brand new series of full-featured, enterprise storage arrays designed for mid-sized fibre channel deployments. Available first in the Asia-Pacific region and planned globally later in 2014, the new Dell Storage SC4000 Series arrays demonstrate Dell’s continued innovation to bring full-featured, enterprise-class storage to cost-efficient, high-performing, smaller-scale solutions. The new storage array series, with an all-flash solution that can cost up to 76 percent less than competing pure flash arrays, is the latest addition to Dell’s customer-driven enterprise data centre portfolio of purpose-built solutions designed to make IT more efficient and practical. “The Dell Storage SC4000 Series represents the latest example of Dell redefining the economics of enterprise storage and a huge opportunity for our customers, channel partners and Dell,” said Sumir Bhatia, General Manager, Enterprise Solutions, Dell South Asia. “Dell now can offer enterprise-class, fibre-channel arrays in a high-performing, affordable solution designed for mid-sized deployments. These arrays offer the advanced capabilities of larger-scale enterprise storage to help medium-sized organizations become more competitive, while enabling Dell to address an entirely new storage market segment with our world class solutions and support.” In 2014 and 2015, mid-tier, fibre channel-networked storage arrays and networked attached storage are expected to represent an estimated $ 5.5 billion market worldwide, an opportunity previously untapped by full-featured Dell Storage technology. Additionally, the vast majority of the Asia-Pacific region’s mid-tier storage array sales this year are estimated to be fibre channel-networked (79%), compared to 39% in North America. With the new Dell Storage arrays launching first in Asia-Pacific countries, Dell can help support the storage needs of the region while also opening new doors for business growth. Large-scale, enterprise-class features The new Dell Storage SC4000 Series arrays will debut with the Dell Storage SC4020, a 2U, 24-drive storage area network (SAN) based on Dell Compellent Storage Centre software. The arrays are designed to offer the same advanced capabilities as larger SANs in a solution sized and priced for mid-sized deployments. Launching with fibre channel connectivity, the new arrays complement the Dell EqualLogic iSCSI-based solutions and enable Dell to offer full-featured arrays that address both networking demands for mid-sized storage needs. The new Dell Storage SC4020, which can scale to 408 terabytes of raw capacity, supports a wide range of workloads for organizations across all industries and sizes seeking a high-performing, mid-sized SAN entry point or a remote or branch office storage solution. For example, the Dell Storage SC4020 can host up to 10,000 Microsoft Exchange 2013 user mailboxes in a single 2U SAN with 24 hard disk drives, and, with only 12 drives, the same 2U SAN can achieve up to129,000 Oracle database workload IOPS (input-output operations per second) with less than one millisecond latency. The new arrays offer interoperability with proven Dell Compellent storage solutions and the same ability to intelligently tier data across traditional rotating drives, write-optimised flash (SLC), and read-optimized flash (MLC) drives. Users can achieve all-flash performance for the price of 15K disk technology by tiering between flash drive types, thereby reducing total storage costs and gaining from all-flash performance to support applications, such as OLTP database workloads, where previously all-flash storage could have been cost prohibitive. The Dell Storage SC4020 provides an excellent replication partner for Dell Compellent SC8000 arrays, allowing customers to seamlessly connect and manage arrays together with a single, centralised management interface that can help simplify operations and reduce total cost of ownership. The Dell Storage SC4000 Series also offers customers: Unprecedented value: With a highly efficient SAN and compact size, making it ideal for mid-sized needs or remote or branch office deployments Enterprise-class performance: With dual controller capability and SAN optimised for all-flash or hybrid SSD/HDD configurations Flexible networking: Fibre channel connectivity and iSCSI support available for replication Best-in-class intelligence: Advanced levels of automation and control to auto-tune the customer’s storage environment Advanced software capabilities such as automated tiering, replication, thin provisioning, snapshots and centralised management for multiple local and remote SANs Perpetual software licensing that enables customers to pay only once for software features, even across hardware upgrades Unified storage with the ability to manage both block and file storage, with the Dell Fluid File System, from a single management console World class Dell Copilot support services that provide a combination of centralised support and 24x7 active system monitoring to help improve system performance and stability