Hybrid array
A hybrid array is a form of hierarchical storage management that combines hard disk drives (HDDs) with solid-state drives (SSDs) for I/O speed improvements.
Hybrid storage arrays aim to mitigate the ever increasing price-performance gap between HDDs and DRAM by adding a non-volatile flash level to the memory hierarchy.[1] Hybrid arrays thus aim to lower the cost per I/O, compared to using only SSDs for storage. Hybrid architectures can be as simple as involving a single SSD cache for desktop or laptop computers, or can be more complex as configurations for data centers and cloud computing.
Implementations
Some commercial products for building hybrid arrays include:
- Adaptec's High-performance Hybrid Arrays (HPHA) for enterprise storage, e.g. the MaxIQ series[2]
- Apple's Fusion Drive
- bcache, dm-cache, and Flashcache/EnhanceIO on Linux
- Condusive's ExpressCache mostly used on laptops
- EMC Corporation VFcache[3]
- Various Fusion-io products, e.g. ioTurbine[4] and the product line it acquired by buying NexGen [5]
- Hitachi Accelerated Flash Storage (HAFS) used together with the Hitachi Dynamic Tiering software[6]
- IBM Flash Cache Storage Accelerator (FCSA) server software[7]
- Intel's Smart Response Technology for desktop
- Intel's Cache Acceleration Software for servers and workstations
- LSI CacheCade software for their controllers[8]
- Marvell's HyperDuo controllers[9]
- Microsoft's Automated Tiering (since Windows 2012 R2)
- NetApp's Flash Cache, Flash Pool, Flash Accel[10]
- Oracle/Exadata Smart Cache Flash
- Oracle Corporation FS1 Flash Storage System
- Microsoft' ReadyBoost, useful for low-end personal computers using USB flash drives as cache
- Nvelo DataPlex SSD caching software[11] (acquired by Samsung[12])
- SanDisk FlashSoft for Windows, Linux, and vSphere[4]
- Products are offered by vendors like AMI StorTrends,[13] Tegile Systems, Reduxio, and Tintri.[14]
- ZFS using hybrid storage pools, are used for example in some Oracle Corporation products.[15]
See also
- Hybrid drive – built-in flash cache, handled by firmware
- Automated tiered storage – another name for hierarchical storage management
- The "five-minute rule" for caching
References
- ^ Rino Micheloni; Alessia Marelli; Kam Eshghi (2012). Inside Solid State Drives (SSDs). Springer. p. 62. ISBN 978-94-007-5145-3.
- ^ Charlie Demerjian (2009-09-09). "Adaptec's MaxIQ caches RAIDs with SSDs". SemiAccurate. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
- ^ Dignan, Larry (2012-02-05). "EMC unveils VFCache, targets Fusion-io". ZDNet. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
- ^ a b "Fusion-io spins up ioTurbine, enhances server flash caching". theregister.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
- ^ "Fusion-io buys NexGen". theregister.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
- ^ "Big storage turns the tide in the hybrid flash array market", Computer Weekly, September 2013, retrieved 2015-03-26
- ^ The SSD Guy (2013-08-20). "IBM Adds Server-Side Caching". The SSD Guy. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
- ^ "LSI MegaRAID CacheCade Pro 2.0 Review". storagereview.com. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
- ^ "Hands-on with the Marvell HyperDuo hybrid storage controller". CNET. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
- ^ "NetApp: Flash as a STORAGE tier? You must be joking". theregister.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
- ^ "NVELO Dataplex SSD Caching Software Review - Seven mSATA SSDs Prove An Amazing Concept". The SSD Review. 2011-12-04. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
- ^ "Samsung Acquires SSD Caching Company NVELO". AnandTech. Retrieved 2013-12-23.
- ^ Ian Barker (2014-01-27). "AMI StorTrends 3500i offers high performance storage for smaller enterprises". BetaNews. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
- ^ "Mutant array upstarts feast on EMC, NetApp's leavings". The Register. Retrieved 2015-03-26.
- ^ "Oracle's Flash-Friendly Sun ZFS Storage Is Ready for New SPARCs". enterprisestorageforum.com. 3 April 2013. Retrieved 2015-03-26.