STORAGE
SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS Enables Performance for Shared Storage Assets
SGI today unveiled SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS, a new platform for extracting high performance from file-based storage and gaining in storage consolidation efficiencies. Efforts made by SGI to develop new storage technologies have pushed scalability, file directory size, and performance to levels needed to support accelerating data growth related to business, scientific, and digital media applications. 
SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS NAS solutions greatly simplify shared storage and give organizations the ease of an appliance in terms of initial installation, automated asset discovery and day-to-day management. The newest addition to the family -- the SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS -- also pushes data throughput to new levels. Large scientific, education or enterprise teams can now consolidate multiple departments on a single NAS platform and increase bandwidth to address demanding performance requirements. "Organizations that push performance to the limits no longer have to make difficult trade offs when it comes to shared storage assets," said Raj Das, vice president of Storage, SGI. "SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS solutions deliver SAN-like performance without the costs and complexities of Fiber Channel deployments. This is an important development for data center teams that have been struggling to introduce the efficiencies of consolidation but couldn't get enough bandwidth out of shared storage platforms. With RDMA over InfiniBand, we're pushing scalability to up to 1GB per second write and 3GB per second read performance with significant improvements planned for the future. This will offer even the largest teams the ability to consolidate storage assets while boosting file-based application performance." The Power Boost of RDMA SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS solutions introduce a one-two performance punch with the combination of remote direct-memory access (RDMA) over Infiniband and an expanded cache architecture. The results are reduced CPU overhead and increased data throughput from disk to application, and the possibility of enabling more memory and disks on a single NAS solution. The new "Super NAS" platforms address the needs of large-scale consolidation projects and increase upward scalability for any shared storage environment. Flexible Multi-Protocol Environments The newest SGI NAS solutions provide a performance alternative to Fiber Channel connections with the ability to combine InfiniBand, 10 Gigabit Ethernet, and Gigabit Ethernet in a single storage platform. The standard protocols simplify administration for lower total cost of ownership -- any IT administrator with networking experience can now manage high-capacity, high-performance consolidated shared storage. "While shared storage platforms and consolidation are invariably excellent when viewed in terms of plain efficiency and economics, it is equally obvious that users also need to still be able to easily manage and access their data," said Mark Peters, analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. "The InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS offering shows that SGI understands -- and is addressing -- these additional needs in a package that can help users seeking to effectively reap the benefits of consolidated, networked storage." The Family and Availability The complete SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS NAS family provides the efficiencies of common software including the new SGI Appliance Manager. Users can choose solutions that range from a 3TB compact 2U platform to a high-end solution with nearly half a PB of storage. The SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS solution will be available in December. For more detailed descriptions of the SGI NAS family, go to its Web site.
SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS NAS solutions greatly simplify shared storage and give organizations the ease of an appliance in terms of initial installation, automated asset discovery and day-to-day management. The newest addition to the family -- the SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS -- also pushes data throughput to new levels. Large scientific, education or enterprise teams can now consolidate multiple departments on a single NAS platform and increase bandwidth to address demanding performance requirements. "Organizations that push performance to the limits no longer have to make difficult trade offs when it comes to shared storage assets," said Raj Das, vice president of Storage, SGI. "SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS solutions deliver SAN-like performance without the costs and complexities of Fiber Channel deployments. This is an important development for data center teams that have been struggling to introduce the efficiencies of consolidation but couldn't get enough bandwidth out of shared storage platforms. With RDMA over InfiniBand, we're pushing scalability to up to 1GB per second write and 3GB per second read performance with significant improvements planned for the future. This will offer even the largest teams the ability to consolidate storage assets while boosting file-based application performance." The Power Boost of RDMA SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS solutions introduce a one-two performance punch with the combination of remote direct-memory access (RDMA) over Infiniband and an expanded cache architecture. The results are reduced CPU overhead and increased data throughput from disk to application, and the possibility of enabling more memory and disks on a single NAS solution. The new "Super NAS" platforms address the needs of large-scale consolidation projects and increase upward scalability for any shared storage environment. Flexible Multi-Protocol Environments The newest SGI NAS solutions provide a performance alternative to Fiber Channel connections with the ability to combine InfiniBand, 10 Gigabit Ethernet, and Gigabit Ethernet in a single storage platform. The standard protocols simplify administration for lower total cost of ownership -- any IT administrator with networking experience can now manage high-capacity, high-performance consolidated shared storage. "While shared storage platforms and consolidation are invariably excellent when viewed in terms of plain efficiency and economics, it is equally obvious that users also need to still be able to easily manage and access their data," said Mark Peters, analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. "The InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS offering shows that SGI understands -- and is addressing -- these additional needs in a package that can help users seeking to effectively reap the benefits of consolidated, networked storage." The Family and Availability The complete SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS NAS family provides the efficiencies of common software including the new SGI Appliance Manager. Users can choose solutions that range from a 3TB compact 2U platform to a high-end solution with nearly half a PB of storage. The SGI InfiniteStorage NEXIS 9000 NAS solution will be available in December. For more detailed descriptions of the SGI NAS family, go to its Web site.