Chapter 1. Introduction; Overview; About The Ds4100 Base Storage Server - IBM TotalStorage DS4100 Installation, User's, And Maintenance Manual

Chapter 1. Introduction

This chapter describes the operating specifications, features, and components for
the IBM TotalStorage DS4100 storage server (hereafter referred to as DS4100 or
storage server). This chapter also includes a list of hardware that comes with the
storage server.

Overview

IBM DS4000 solutions support the large and growing data storage requirements of
business-critical applications. These scalable IBM DS4000 solutions offer you data
access and protection to meet your existing enterprise storage requirements and
prepare for the future.
Designed for data archival, data reference, and near-line storage applications, the
DS4100 utilizes the latest Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA) disk
drive technology. The DS4100 supports up to fourteen 1.5 Gbps 250 GB SATA disk
drive modules, offering up to 3.5 terabytes (TB) of capacity per enclosure.
Note: SATA hard drive CRUs cannot be interchanged with the fibre-channel hard
The DS4100 can be used in storage area networks to satisfy the needs of various
fixed content, data-reference applications that require large amounts of storage
capacity but do not have the high utilization and access characteristics satisfied by
fibre channel disk drive storage. The storage server provides continuous, reliable
service, using hot-swap technology for easy replacement without shutting down the
system.
IBM currently offers two versions of the DS4100:
v DS4100 base storage server (Machine Type 1724, Model 100)
v DS4100 single-controller storage server (Machine Type 1724, Model 1Sx)

About the DS4100 base storage server

The DS4100 base (dual-controller) storage server (Machine Type 1724, Model 100)
is a rack-mountable storage server that comes with two RAID controllers, two power
supplies, and two cooling units. It provides dual, redundant controllers, redundant
cooling, redundant power, and battery backup of the RAID controller cache. The
DS4100 base storage server is designed to provide maximum host and drive-side
redundancy, enabling full redundant drive loop support to additional disk storage
capacity in the drive expansion enclosures via the drive loop port from each RAID
controller. In addition, each RAID controller supports direct attachment of two hosts
that contain two fibre channel host bus adapters each. External cables and small
form-factor pluggable (SFP) modules connect the storage server to the storage
expansion unit and the host servers.
Up to seven DS4000 EXP100 storage expansion units can be connected together
with the DS4100 base storage server in a fibre-channel loop, providing connections
to a maximum of 112 hard drives. With the DS4100 base storage server, you can
configure RAID-protected storage solutions of up to 28 TB (by connecting the
DS4100 base storage server to seven drive expansion enclosures with 250 GB
SATA hard drives), providing economical and scalable storage for your rapidly
growing application needs for limited access, data reference storage capacity. The
DS4100 base storage server is designed with redundant 2 Gbps fibre channel
© Copyright IBM Corp. 2004
drive CRUs that are supported in other DS4000 storage products.
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