Ax150 Dell Array (Emc)

Dell Enterprise Systems Group Page 1 March 2006

INFOBrief Dell |EMC AX150/AX150i Network Storage System

Key Points

Shared storage for up to 10 servers using either a familiar Gigabit Ethernet (AX150i) or a higher performance Fibre Channel (FC) network (AX150).

Customer installable and scalable - Ideal for small businesses or departments/workgroups in large enterprises. Simple, appliance-like installation process helps you deploy a SAN (Storage Area Network) in four easy steps

Large storage capacity scales from 750GB up to 6 TB of storage Data protection Redundant storage processors, fully redundant N+1

Power and UPS or battery-backed cache create a highly available architecture. SATA-II hard drives provide increased performance versus standard SATA drives.

Simplified, integrated management features Includes all the easy-to-use software you need for management, snapshots, and automated data path failover. And, you can add servers to the array at no additional software cost.

The Dell/EMC AX150 and AX150i can be deployed in 4 simple steps and offer highly available networked storage at breakthrough pricing

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Background

Organizations of all sizes rely on digital information. This information must be highly available and secure at all times, to keep employees working, satisfy regulatory entities, and serve customer

But business information is growing each year, with no end in sight. You need to manage this growing information poolwithout a lot of manual intervention or additional staff. Small to medium size businesses, remote offices of large corporations and local government agencies all feel pressed because they need the quality and reliability of high-end storage platforms, without the high price and demands on their technical staff. They need solutions that are easy to install and use, and simple to redeploy in a variety of ways as their storage needs change.

To keep information safe and available, many growing organizations are turning more and more to Storage Area Networks (SANs). A SAN is a high-speed, special purpose network that connects data-storage devices, such as disk arrays and tape libraries, to servers. With the AX100 and AX100i, Dell and EMC first made the advantages of SANs available to smaller, budget-conscious organizations. The Dell/EMC AX150 and AX150i build on those award-winning platforms, bringing new levels of reliability and availability to entry-level SAN storage

Product Description

The Dell/EMC AX150 (Fibre Channel) and AX150i (iSCSI/Ethernet) storage systems are entry-level storage arrays that enable organizations to share storage with up to 10 servers. These arrays scale from 750 GB to 6TB, and come with EMC's powerful yet easy to use integrated management software

The AX150 and AX150i offer several much-appreciated features from the Dell/EMC CX family in a lower price class. Now you can enjoy simple, robust management, snapshot copy, and automated failover, all in a product from the trusted Dell and EMC brands.

The AX150 and AX150i make it possible for small organizations with limited budgets and technical expertise to migrate from direct-attached storage to take advantage of what SANs have to offer: simplified, centralized management, improved utilization, and streamlined backups.

Integrated Management Features Make It Easy

The AX150 is bundled with all the easy-to-use software you need to assure data availability. Once you connect the AX150 to a server, the installation and setup wizards help you configure the system for your needs in four simple steps. Friendly, wizard-assisted software makes it easy to add other devices, such as servers and switches, and perform all other management tasks.



Easy, centralized management lets you provision the exact amount of storage you need, then securely assign it to a serverall from one console.

Automated failover software reroutes data to an alternative path in the SAN should a component fail, to help ensure that you have continuous access to your information.

Snapshot software helps you recover lost or corrupted data, and provides offline copies for secondary processes such as backup, testing, and data mining.

Support for Microsoft Windows, Novell NetWare*, Sun Solaris*, VMWare* and Linux operating systems

Single console management of CX and AX arrays with optional management software.

Figure1 Array-based management software: browser-based management for the AX150 and AX150i

* Available for AX150 only.



Architected for Reliability and High Availability

The AX150 and AX150i consist of up to two active/active storage processors and hold up to twelve 250 GB or 500 GB SATA-II disk drives. They feature redundant fans, and fully redundant N+1 power supplies in a single 2U chassis. The dual-processor configuration is supported by an additional 1U, UPS for maximum data availability.

SATA-II hard disk drives can offer improved performance over previous generation SATA drives through Native Command Queuing (NCQ) which uses advanced algorithms to execute commands in the most efficient manner.

Connectivity Choices for Flexible Configurations

The AX150 offers up to four full-bandwidth, 2Gbps Fibre Channel host ports and allows direct connection of up to four hosts or a single 2-node, high availability cluster (two HBAs per server). With the addition of the Brocade SW200E Fibre Channel switch, the AX150 storage system can host storage for up to 10 redundantly or non-redundantly connected servers.

The AX150i offers up to four 1Gbps Ethernet host ports and allows direct connection of up to four hosts or a single 2-node, high availability cluster. With the addition of a Dell PowerConnect (or any industry-standard) Gigabit Ethernet switch, the AX150i storage system can host storage for up to 10 redundantly or non-redundantly connected servers. With the use of free iSCSI initiators for Windows and Linux, the AX150i offers the most affordable connectivity option available for a Dell/EMC SAN.

Redundancy Features Keep Your Information Available

The AX150 and AX150i feature mirrored cache, and hot-swap fans, power supplies, and disk drives, to help assure continued operation in the unlikely event of component failures.

One of the twelve hard drives can be dedicated as a "hot spare" to be automatically incorporated into a RAID 5 or 1/0 RAID set should another drive fail. Data in cache is written to disk in the event of a power failure. Unlike data stored in battery-backed cache, data stored on disk can be retrieved long after batteries are exhausted.

Feature AX150/AX150i CX300 CX500 CX700 Drive scalability 12 60 120 240



Host scalability

10 64 128 256

Host connections

4 SFF optical or 4 GbE 4 SFF optical 4 SFF optical 8 SFF optical

Rack size (DPE2 or SPE) 2U/3U1 4U 4U 5U RAID 5, 1/0 0, 1, 1/0, 3, 5 0, 1, 1/0, 3, 5 0, 1, 1/0, 3, 5 Cache vaulting Yes Yes Yes Yes Data scrubbing Yes Yes Yes Yes Management software

Navisphere Express or Navisphere Manager (optional)

Navisphere Manager

Navisphere Manager

Navisphere Manager

Point in time copy SnapView Express SnapView SnapView SnapView

Remote mirroring N/A N/A MirrorView MirrorView

Table 1: AX150 and AX150i Feature Comparison to the CX300, CX500, and CX700

Valued Features for the Entry-Level Market

All Dell/EMC arrays provide investment protection that lets you meet future requirements by leveraging existing hardware assets and a common management environment. The AX150 and AX150i arrays offer the following growth paths:

Existing unit: Expand from 750 GB to 6 TB; upgrade from a single to dual controllers; migrate from direct-attached to SAN; add servers

Additional units: Modular, brick-like design and centralized management functionality of the integrated Array-based Management Utility make it easy and cost-effective to scale with up to 4 units attached to a single server.

Easy, non-disruptive data migration to CX arrays: SANCopy/E software enables a seamless migration path to higher performing CX arrays and allows for tiered storage.

1 The AX150 is a 2U platform. The dual storage processor configuration is supported with a UPS that takes up 1U of rack space.



The Benefits: A Business Perspective The AX150 and AX150i storage arrays are designed to meet the challenges you face:

Continuous data growth with no end in sight The need to keep digital information available all the time Affordably priced solutions, flexible enough to use in a variety of

ways as your needs change

With robust availability and reliability, and ease of installation and use, the AX150 and AX150i arrays give you an easy route to implementing your first SAN. You get real business benefits at the financial, operational and technical levels:

Financial benefits For your organization to grow, its essential to implement new processes that automate the management of your organizations crucial asset information. The AX150 and AX150i are helping to reduce the cost and complexity of SAN technology while still offering all of the capabilities youd expect from Dell and EMC. If you thought SANs were too complex and expensive, its time to take a look at Dell.

Technical benefits Managing growing amounts of data for your organization can be a tough job. Relief is in sight. Dell has teamed with EMC and other leading vendors to offer an inexpensive but complete SAN solution that you can install and maintain yourself. If you thought SANs were complex, its time to take a look at Dell.

Operational benefits Technology can help you spend more time managing your growing company but cant get in your way. The new Dell/EMC AX150 and AX150i will easily help protect your most important asset information. From e-mail messaging to small data bases, this easy to use storage array lets you take charge of your information rather than information taking charge of you.



Service and Support

As EMC's #1 storage partner, Dell service professionals have a wealth of best practice knowledge and practical experience to help deliver on the promise of cost-effective SAN solutions. Whether you need occasional IT assistance or to out-source service functions, Dell's flexible services portfolio offers skilled resources to balance the skills and availability of your internal staff with our experienced service professionals to achieve an efficient, cost-effective strategy for getting the most value from your Dell technology.

Dell offers services across the storage lifecycle that can help you plan a storage solution that is aligned with your IT objectives, then efficiently implement the technology into your business and maintain your SAN solution at peak performance to support your critical business operations.

Plan

Whether you're consolidating disparate data stores onto a SAN platform for the first time, or adding platforms to support growing storage requirements, Dell's experienced SAN professionals can help you choose the right technology to meet the demands of your scalable enterprise.

System Consolidation

Helps maximize the performance and capabilities of server and storage systems by consolidating redundant or underutilized systems.

Infrastructure Consolidation Readiness Assessment Analyzes existing infrastructure, operational practices and technical readiness to develop a roadmap for conducting a server or storage consolidation.

Consolidation Planning and Validation Consists of developing a detailed consolidation deployment plan as well as a validated and refined solution design.

Implement

The Dell/EMC AX150 is designed to be quickly integrated into your IT environment. Complementing this customer friendly packaging are Dell's flexible deployment services that offer the level of assistance you may need to efficiently deploy your Dell/EMC AX150 SAN. Dell provides a choice of service offerings ranging from as needed, over-the-phone consultation and remote assistance to on-site project management and deployment services for complex storage migration and consolidation initiatives.

Storage Installation



Dell recommends on-site or remote installation of your complete Dell storage system. By allowing Dell to provide installation, you can help reduce the time required to get your system up and running, while making efficient use of your employees' time.

Remote installation2 for the AX150 provides customers with an alternative to onsite installation for direct attach or SAN AX150 configurations. By using a combination of Phone and Remote support, Dell technicians will assist customers with all aspects of configuring Windows hosts to access the AX150.2

Getting your IT resources quickly up-to-speed on any new technology is essential in today's fast-past business environment. Dell's comprehensive on-line or on-site training courses will arm your IT staff with the skills they need to proficiently manage your new Dell/EMC AX150 SAN.

Maintain

After your Dell/EMC AX150 is fully operational, Dell can help keep it running smoothly. Dell's support services can help you maximize your SAN's availability and performance.

Platinum Enterprise Support

Offered to organizations with more than more than 200 Dell server comprehensive support service that Dell offers, Platinum EnterpriseEnterprise Expert Center and a designated Platinum Technical Accounique requirements and work with you to develop a custom suppsystem availability even during complex incidents or times of cri

Gold Enterprise Support

Gain prompt phone-based access to Dell's senior-level engineers along with access to a Technical Account Management team who can provide the attention and resolution you need for business-critical systems.

Silver Enterprise Support

Provides 7 x 24 toll-free complex issue phone support, followed by on-site service3 after phone based troubleshooting if necessary.

Dell|EMC Maintenance



Dell/EMC Maintenance Service provides periodic health checks, updates and upgrades for your SAN system throughout your warranty period. We will analyze your system for overall health and provide software and system updates and upgrades. We can also provide how-to assistance for configuring or installing SAN components through our Enterprise Assistance program.

At Dell we understand that the true value of your SAN is realized long after it has been delivered and installed. Its greatest contribution to your success lies in its ongoing performance, dependability and how well it meets changing demands and challenges. Dell/EMC Maintenance service is the smart choice for your SAN system maintenance.

Summary: Product Advantages The Dell/EMC AX150 and AX150i storage arrays are affordable solutions that make it possible for small and medium-sized organizations to migrate from direct attached storage to SAN. The AX150 and AX150i offer:

Appliance-like installation and easy, wizard-driven management A complete, shrink-wrapped solution at an affordable price Trusted Dell and EMC quality Advanced functionality, for simplified management and streamlined

backups. Dell cannot be responsible for pricing or other errors, and reserves the right to cancel orders arising from such errors.

3 Service may be provided by third-party. Technician will be dispatched if necessary following phone-based troubleshooting. Subject to parts availability, geographical restrictions and terms of service contract. Service timing dependent upon time of day call placed to Dell. U.S. only.

2 This service is only available for those configurations deemed customer installable and applies only to Windows configurations.

Dell and the Dell logo are trademarks of Dell Inc. EMC, Navisphere, and VisualSAN, and EMC2 are registered trademarks, and SnapView and SAN Copy are trademarks of EMC Corporation. Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Dell disclaims proprietary interest in the marks and names of others.

Copyright 2006 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden. For more information contact Dell.


Ax150 Dell Array (Emc)

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