IBM i storage solutions

Simply integrated

IBM i provides state of the art disk storage subsystems, integrated with self-managing automated storage management tasks with easy to use extensive graphical interfaces. It delivers flexible and scalable implementations with both integrated direct attach storage, and external Storage Area Network (SAN) attached disk solutions to meet today's complex requirement of running multiple business workloads.

IBM i provides a comprehensive set of backup, recovery and hierarchical storage management solutions through a rich set of tape automation offerings such as IBM TotalStorage® Enterprise Tape devices, IBM TotalStorage LTO Tape devices, integrated tape offerings and optical devices. It leverages powerful software applications to manage backup recovery automation through IBM i, Backup Recovery Media Services and Tivoli Storage Manager.

IBM i supports the following SAN attach platforms:

Storage offering Attach mechanism

DS5020
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

DS5100
  • Direct Attach
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

DS5300
  • Direct Attach
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

DS8100/DS8300
  • Direct attach
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

DS8700
  • Direct attach
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

SAN Volume Controller
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

XIV Storage
  • Through Virtual I/O Server

Key benefits

IBM i offers flexible storage connectivity options to meet today's challenging business and performance requirements through its integrated advanced storage management architecture. Here are some of the highlights for the self-configuring and self-optimizing storage management tasks:

  • Balances storage of data dynamically, including data spreading
  • Implements optimized RAID-5 and RAID 6, with flexibility to exploit built in system level mirroring for parallel reads/write
  • Deploys extensive write cache capabilities, including compression
  • Self-optimizes workload I/O through self-caching architecture, further enhanced by Expert Cache
  • Provides innovative SAN-like storage management through Virtual I/O to Linux and Windows server environments.
  • Incorporates advanced technologies such as Skip Read/Write, Robust Error Recovery, and Longitude Recovery Check (LRC).
  • Increases overall disaster recovery and system availability through functions such as journaling, commitment control, Save-While-Active, Disk Migrate While Active, Independent Disk Pools, and Advanced Functions with IBM SAN solutions.

IBM's Content Manager OnDemand for i builds on the already rich storage management portfolio by offering high performance middleware that capitalizes on IBM hardware. With OnDemand, your System i becomes an archive server for i5OS business applications or applications on other host systems. Some of the many functions offered by this rich middleware are:

  • High performance online document capture, storage, and retrieval of computer output.
  • Graphical administration tools and powerful indexing capabilities.
  • Magnetic, tape, or optical storage to manage i5OS spooled files, data, and Binary Large Objects (BLOBS).
  • Advanced optional capabilities include PDF indexing and Web support.

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High Availability solutions for UNIX, Linux and IBM i (i5/OS) customers