IBM System Storage DS5020 Express

In a continuing effort to provide storage solutions that are designed to provide low TCO, high performance, robust functionality and extreme ease of use, IBM offers the IBM System Storage DS5020 Express. As part of the DS5000 series, the DS5020 Express offers high-performance 8 Gbps-capable FC connections, optional 1 Gbps iSCSI interface for less demanding applications and lower cost implementation, up to 67.2 TB of FC or FC-SAS physical storage capacity, 224 TB of SATA physical storage capacity, 6 TB of SSD physical storage capacity, and powerful system management, data management and data protection features. The DS5020 Express is designed to expand from workgroup to enterprise-wide capability with up to six FC expansion units with the EXP520 Expansion Unit.

Highlights

• Next-generation 8 Gbps FC interfaces enable infrastructure simplification
• Mixed host interfaces support (FC/iSCSI) enables Storage Area Network (SAN) tiering
• Balanced performance well-suited for virtualisation/consolidation
• Support for low power superfast SSDs
• Lower cost of consolidation
• Self-encrypting drives (SED) secure data throughout your drive’s lifecycle
• Support for intermixing FC/FC-SAS/SED/SATA/SSD drives enables cost-effective tiered storage
• Trusted storage that protects and delivers your data when needed
• Feature-rich management software that maximises utilisation and minimises storage TCO
• Application certifications ensure confidence
• Central management of the DS3000 and DS5000 series with the IBM System Storage DS Storage Manager
• Support for up to 112 disk drive modules with the attachment of 6 EXP520 expansion units.

Manage data more effectively

Optimised data management requires storage solutions with high data availability, strong storage management capabilities and powerful performance features. The IBM System Storage DS5020 Express is designed to provide lower TCO, high performance, robust functionality and extreme ease of use. As part of the System Storage DS5000 series storage system, the DS5020 Express offers:

• High-performance 8 Gigabits per second (Gbps)-capable FC connections.
• Optional 1 Gbps iSCSI interface
• Up to 224 TB of physical storage capacity with 112 2 TB SATA disk drives
• Powerful system management, data management and data protection features.

Achieve a lower TCO

Facing relentless data growth and shrinking budgets, companies continue to look for ways to improve efficiency and reduce costs. 8 Gbps FC allows companies to reduce the number of host bus adapters (HBAs) per server and the number of overall ports in their FC SAN infrastructure without sacrificing performance, thus saving acquisition and operational costs.

Additionally, auto-negotiating 8 Gbps FC interfaces allow the DS5020 Express to integrate seamlessly into an existing 2 Gbps or 4 Gbps infrastructure, while offering investment protection going forward when the SAN inevitably becomes 8 Gbps.

The system is designed to help you avoid over-configuration for an affordable entry-point while offering seamless ‘pay-as-you-grow’ scalability as requirements change. Its efficient storage utilisation is designed to reduce raw capacity requirements and the capability to intermix high-performance and high-capacity drives enables tiered storage in a single enclosure. These unique capabilities reduce the number of drives needed to meet performance and/or capacity demands and can significantly reduce acquisition and operational costs.