Integration of Solid State Drive (SSD) technology into Sun's portfolio of x64 servers and blades has been announced for the Sun Fire X4140, X4240 and X4440 servers. SSDs based on Flash technology are now an enterprise-class storage option for these listed Sun Fire servers, providing faster I/O performance at a compelling price point with low power requirements.

Now supported on Sun Fire X4140, X4240 and X4440 servers are 32GB, 2.5-inch, SATA II Sun SSD which can be used as a storage device in supported servers. This is a data storage "block" device with high I/O performance and low I/O response times. This SSD can be placed in traditional 2.5-inch HDD slots to replace HDDs.

To add an SSD into existing Sun Fire X4140, X4240 and X4440 Servers if the existing server was configured with a HDD, all that is required is the Host Bus Adapter (HBA) so that the SDD can be inserted into a slot.

Hardware requirements for the Sun Fire X4140 and X4440 servers, if there is no HBA in the configuration:

• 1) use the on-board SATA controller with either 4281A Internal On-board SATA Drive Cable Kit for Sun Fire X4140 or 4283A Internal On-board SATA Drive Cable Kit for Sun Fire X4240 and X4440 server;

• 2) Use a PCIe HBA and either 4280A Internal HBA Drive Cable Kit for Sun Fire X4140 server or 4282A Internal HBA Drive Cable Kit for Sun Fire X4240 and X4440 server.

Conventional HDDs can be mixed with SSDs. In the Sun Fire X4140 and X4440 servers, up to 4 SSDs with HBA and the rest can be filled with HDDs that equal up to 8 (Example: 2 SSD and 6 HDDs). Or, up to 4 SSDs with the on-board SATA controller with no HDDs available. In the Sun Fire X4240 servers, up to 8 SSDs with HBA and the rest filled with HDDs that equal up to 16 (Example: 2 SSDs and 14 HDDs).

Sun servers with integrated SSDs instantly improve performance for applications and offer cost and eco-efficiency benefits, including ease of use, and reliability compared to traditional HDDs, Sun reports.

Available either as X-options or for inclusion in the ATO (assemble to order) process, customers can take advantage of the benefits of SSD technology, which Sun outlines as:

• Reduced storage latency and I/O bottlenecks
• Reduced power, cooling and space by as much as 99%
• Maximized performance and reduced storage costs with hybrid storage infrastructure

Compared to traditional hard disk drives, Sun reports that its enterprise SSD delivers 70x faster response time, 38% less power/GB, 98% less power/IO, and greater shock resistance.

Sun's software stack is designed for SSDs including the Open Solaris/ZFS solutions that provide automated Hybrid Storage Pool data management and storage optimization. "Flash technology will help application providers make their offerings even more attractive, stay competitive, and grow revenues," Sun says.

More Information

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