Dell EMC has announced the Dell EMC ScaleIO Ready Node, a software-defined, all-flash offering running on Dell EMC PowerEdge x86 servers, designed to help customers transform and modernise their data centers by utilising Dell EMC ScaleIO.
A key component of the Dell EMC Software-Defined Storage (SDS) portfolio, ScaleIO is scale-out, software-defined storage for block-based storage needs (commonly known as server SAN and considered an alternative to traditional SANs).
ScaleIO Ready Node combines flexible configurations of PowerEdge servers with ScaleIO software with a Dell EMC validated, and fully supported SDS solution that makes it easy for customers to purchase, deploy and run.
ScaleIO Ready Node all-flash configurations scale out and overcome the limitations of previous all-flash storage on server solutions that only supported a single application and, thus, were suitable for a narrow range of use cases. The ScaleIO Ready Node has a scale-out and highly parallelized architecture, utilizing the power of all-flash to any and all workloads.
The SSD drives within the ScaleIO Ready Node work in parallel to help eliminate performance bottlenecks. The ability to take advantage of the aggregate performance of the SSDs in a single node makes it possible for performance to scale linearly as nodes are added.
Key innovations in the system are:
* Next-Gen Hardware: ScaleIO Ready Node runs on workload-optimised Dell PowerEdge rack servers, designed to deliver exceptional performance, flexibility and scalability.
* Enhanced Caching Layer: Caching software makes the most actively used data accessible in faster-responding media for applications utilizing hybrid-based configurations.
* Operating System Flexibility: ScaleIO Ready Node delivers a server SAN with the flexibility needed to adapt as business needs and standards change.
Customer benefits include:
* Comprehensive Solution: A Dell EMC qualified, tested and supported SDS solution that meets the demands of mission-critical enterprise workloads while delivering higher and more consistent performance, capacity and cost efficiency than non-flash and hybrid offerings.
* Deployment Simplicity: Customers can build a modern data centre out of common Dell servers, using very few SKUs.
* Powerful Performance: The Dell servers allow VM and container consolidation while ScaleIO delivers powerful yet consistent I/O to all applications.
* Operational Ease: The solution makes it easy to expand the pool with more servers and also the ability to retire old servers – while avoiding loss to application services.
ScaleIO Ready Node enables customers to quickly deploy a server SAN that fits within existing infrastructure and reduces the burden of planning and deploying a new architecture. It offers best-in-class hardware and software from a single vendor and simpler, faster deployment by leveraging streamlined supply chain, services and support.
In addition, the ScaleIO Ready Node provides compelling economics – according to IDC it is up to 50% more efficient compared to traditional SAN infrastructures. It also offers pay-as-you-grow pricing, allowing customers to easily scale at the right time and the right price.
A high-performance, highly scalable SDS solution such as ScaleIO demands a high performing server platform to ensure the optimal outcome for customers. Dell PowerEdge servers are designed with reliability and power efficiency in mind; making them an ideal platform for a ScaleIO based SDS solution.
Management capabilities can also play a critical role in the success of SDS deployments, especially at scale. The award-winning capabilities of Dell iDRAC with Lifecycle Controller- is designed to allow organizations to monitor, configure, and update the infrastructure powering their SDS environment simply and efficiently.
ScaleIO Ready Node is also hypervisor and OS agnostic, providing the flexibility for users to build the optimal solution for their data centres. It supports VMware vSphere, Windows Server 2012 and Hyper-V, Linux and OpenStack deployments. Customers also have the ability to select from different deployment models (storage-only and hyper-converged) and configurations, including all-flash and hybrid. Customers are not confined by having to growing both compute and storage simultaneously but rather can add these independently.
