3PAR (NYSE: PAR), the leading global provider of utility storage, announced today that the new 3PAR InServ F400 Storage Server has become the fastest single-system mid-range storage array as measured by audited, peer-reviewed SPC-1 Results submitted to the Storage Performance Council (SPC). The InServ F400 storage array also reported one of the best price-to-performance ratios of any array with submitted SPC-1 results, demonstrating that the F-Class delivers the highest-performing midrange Fibre Channel array for the lowest total cost.
The recently-announced 3PAR InServ F400 - the only quad-controller midrange array architecture available today - achieved a total of 93 050.06 SPC-1 IOPS, an 8.85 millisecond average response time, a total ASU capacity of 27 046.695 gigabytes, and a cost of only $5.89/SPC-1 IOPS.
The SPC-1 result reported by 3PAR demonstrates the power of the Mesh-Active, quad-controller InServ F-Class, which was designed to overcome the technical limitations of traditional midrange arrays. The F-Class offers features and benefits typically only associated with high-end arrays but at a price that targets the midrange storage market.
3PAR's result of 93 050.06 SPC-1 IOPS was achieved with 96% capacity utilisation and without complex configuration or performance tuning. According to results submitted to the SPC, this makes the InServ F400 the only midrange array capable of delivering the InServ F-Class high level of performance right out of the box, without performance-enhancing techniques such as “short stroking,” a common practice whereby vendors leave physical capacity space unaccessed in order to speed disk performance.
"This latest round of excellent SPC-1 results proves the that Mesh-Active 3PAR architecture delivers industry-leading levels of performance across both high-end and mid-range fibre channel arrays,” said Brian Garrett, Technical Director of Enterprise Strategy Group Lab. "The advanced features of the 3PAR InServ F400 eliminate the performance and scalability compromises that typically accompany midrange storage. This is particularly crucial in this economy, where organisations are pressed to do more with less and are looking for low-cost, high-performance alternatives."
The F400 scales up to four clustered, Mesh-Active controller nodes powered by the 3PAR Gen3 ASIC with Thin Built In. Unlike legacy “active-active” mid-range controller architectures - where each volume is active on only a single controller - 3PAR's Mesh-Active architecture allows each volume to be active on every mesh controller in the array, thereby automatically delivering more robust, load-balanced performance and greater headroom. The Gen3 ASIC also allows data and metadata to be processed independently in different processor/memory subsystems within the controllers to deliver high performance, even with mixed workloads. Without this mixed workload support, in order to maintain performance integrity, it is necessary to deploy a separate mid-range array for each workload, a limitation that encourages legacy array sprawl.
“The new F-Class - with its Mesh-Active, quad-controller architecture - delivers an efficient and simple mid-range storage system that scales not only in capacity but also in performance and connectivity,” said David Scott, 3PAR President and Chief Executive Officer. “InServ F-Class arrays were designed to eliminate the scalability, efficiency, and management sacrifices typical with traditional mid-range systems, and this SPC-1 result proves that we have been able to do this while delivering performance and price-performance leadership.”
“We are pleased to be able to offer a product to the South African market that features industry leading performance, with other great features like 3PAR's revolutionary thin provisioning capabilities that reduce capital outlay, at a price that competes favourably with other vendors' mid-range offerings,” adds Adam Day, storage product manager at SYSDBA.
The SPC (www.storageperformance.org) is a vendor-neutral standards body focused on the storage industry. SPC Results such as the SPC-1 are intended to provide a source of comparative storage performance information that is objective, relevant, and verifiable. SPC benchmarks are designed to be vendor and platform-independent and are applicable across a broad range of storage configurations and topologies. Any vendor may sponsor and publish an SPC result provided their tested configuration satisfies the requirements of the appropriate SPC benchmark specification. The SPC-1 benchmark uses a single workload designed to demonstrate the performance of a storage subsystem while performing the typical functions of business-critical applications.
For complete information on the SPC-1 result for the 3PAR InServ F400, visit: http://www.storageperformance.org/results/benchmark_results_spc1#a00079
3PAR utility storage is available in South Africa via SYSDBA. Further information on the 3PAR storage is available at http://www.sysdba.com or e-mail info@sysdba.com for details on what benefits 3PAR can bring to your organisation.
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