HPC in the Cloud: Nimbus Launches E-Class Flash Memory System for Mission-critical Enterprise and Cloud Infrastructure

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January 31, 2012

Nimbus Launches E-Class Flash Memory System for Mission-critical Enterprise and Cloud Infrastructure

New sustainable storage platform scales to 500 TB with no single point of failure and record-setting energy and Rackspace efficiency

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 31 — Nimbus Data Systems, Inc., the leader in Sustainable Storage, today unveiled the new E-Class Flash Memory System, the industry's first fully-redundant multiprotocol solid state storage system. With record-setting capacity and unprecedented power, cooling and rackspace efficiency, the E-Class outperforms and costs less to operate than conventional disk arrays while providing the high-availability, scalability and cost reduction that enterprises and cloud providers demand. Highlights of the new E-Class include:

First multiprotocol solid state system with no single point of failure and enterprise-grade flash
Most scalable solid state storage system ever engineered, supporting 500 TB as one logical pool
Highest density primary storage system ever, eclipsing 15K RPM disk arrays by over 3x
Lowest energy consumption of any primary storage system, consuming as little as 5 watts per TB
Comprehensive data management software and "unified" storage without any licensing fees

"The Nimbus E-Class sets a new standard for solid state storage scalability and operating cost economics," stated Benjamin S. Woo, program vice president, worldwide storage systems at IDC. "Large enterprises and cloud providers must consider the significant infrastructure consolidation possible with all-flash storage systems. By providing both innovative hardware and comprehensive software, Nimbus is well-positioned to not only capitalize on the need for high-performance systems but also the significantly greater trend towards primary storage based exclusively on solid state technology."

No Single Point of Failure

Complementing Nimbus' existing S-Class flash systems, the E-Class elevates Nimbus' multiprotocol solid state storage platform to meet the needs of the most rigorous IT environments. With no-single-point-of-failure, the Nimbus E-Class is ideal for applications such as enterprise-wide server virtualization, Web infrastructure, database clusters, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), and high-performance computing. The E-Class platform consists of a pair of redundant controllers and up to 24 solid state storage enclosures. Each E-Class controller supports up to four active-active IO modules including 10 Gigabit Ethernet, Fibre Channel, and Infiniband. Nimbus software automatically detects controller and path failures, providing non-disruptive failover. The E-Class also supports online software updates and online capacity expansion. With RAID protection and hot-swappable flash, power, and cooling modules, components can be easily replaced without downtime.

Most Scalable Flash Memory System Ever

Scaling from 10 TB to an unprecedented 500 TB with one point of management and one unified storage pool, the Nimbus E-Class is the highest capacity flash storage system ever engineered. Nimbus achieved this record-setting capacity through both hardware and software innovation. The E-Class features Nimbus' third-generation enterprise flash modules, packing twice as much enterprise-grade flash memory as before. Nimbus' file system seamlessly aggregates the capacity across all E-Class solid state enclosures. From one interface, users can provision capacity using Fibre Channel, iSCSI, NFS, CIFS, or SRP (SCSI RDMA Protocol), providing unified block (SAN) and file (NAS) storage in one easy-to-use system. All storage is thin-provisioned, maximizing utilization and simplifying storage capacity planning.

Most Efficient Primary Storage System Ever

Requiring as little as 5 watts of power per terabyte, the E-Class also sets a new record for efficiency, delivering the lowest power consumption of any primary storage system. Whereas conventional disk arrays consume 25 watts or more of power per terabyte, the E-Class consumes 80% less, reducing energy costs, cutting power and cooling capital expenditures, and improving overall datacenter reliability.

Highest Density Primary Storage System Ever

Nimbus' latest solid state storage enclosures pack 20 TB of enterprise-grade flash memory in a mere 2U of rackspace. This unmatched system density enables up to 440 TB of solid state storage in a single industry-standard rack, delivering the same capacity that would otherwise take more than three racks of 15K RPM disks. In IOps, the E-Class delivers in one rack the equivalent of 14 racks of 15K RPM disks. These gains in rack density perfectly complement existing server, desktop and IO virtualization initiatives to maximize datacenter utilization and significantly reduce OpEx.

Affordable and Software Complete

The E-Class is powered by Nimbus' award-winning HALO storage operating system, a full-featured unified SAN and NAS software stack proven at over 200 customer installations. With snapshots, replication, deduplication, and encryption, all at no additional cost, the E-Class helps customers escape excessive licensing fees and avoid external appliances or gateways that increase cost and complexity. Despite being based entirely on enterprise-grade flash memory, the E-Class is remarkably affordable, matching the per terabyte net acquisition cost of 15K RPM disk arrays without relying on data reduction.

"Unveiling the E-Class is a watershed event for both Nimbus and the rapidly-growing solid state industry," stated Thomas Isakovich, founder and CEO of Nimbus Data Systems. "Customers are not satisfied with hybrid storage arrays or proprietary tiered systems that offer only modest performance gains, do not improve efficiency, and lock-in customers to one vendor for all of their storage capacity. With the Nimbus E-Class, the ultimate goal can be achieved: a best-in-class all-flash primary storage infrastructure that helps our customers leapfrog the competition in both IT performance and profitability."

Availability and Pricing

The Nimbus E-Class is available immediately, with a 10 TB dual-controller configuration starting at $149,995. The full HALO storage operating system is included in the system price.

Learn More

To learn more, contact a Nimbus FlashPoint partner or visit our website at www.nimbusdata.com.

About Nimbus Data Systems

Nimbus develops award-winning Sustainable Storage systems, the most intelligent, efficient and fault-tolerant solid state storage platform engineered for server and desktop virtualization, databases, HPC, and next-generation cloud infrastructure. Combining low-latency flash memory hardware, comprehensive data management and protection software, and highly-scalable multiprotocol storage features, Nimbus systems deliver dramatically greater performance at a significantly lower operating cost than conventional disk-based primary storage arrays, all at a comparable acquisition cost. For more information, visit www.nimbusdata.com, or follow Nimbus at twitter.com/nimbusdata.

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Source: Nimbus Data Systems, Inc.

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