Modern data center challenges require a new approach to storage infrastructure

In the new data era, the combination of massive amounts of data and unparalleled technology innovation has given businesses of all sizes the opportunity to become disruptive, digital powerhouses.  But despite this potential, many learn that digital transformation can be complex and challenging. Data has become more diverse than ever before – and it is now being created, processed and stored everywhere, from edge to cloud. Most organizations have found that no single infrastructure can address all their data requirements, so they utilize different architectures, creating siloes of IT resources that are managed and consumed independently. At the same time, IT is under increasing pressure to deliver greater levels of simplicity and agility on the business side.  Enterprise-grade, on-premises storage must now provide the same operational flexibility as cloud, becoming ever more adaptable, automated and easier to integrate with existing management frameworks.  To meet these conflicting demands, a new architecture and approach to storage is required. Dell Technologies introduces PowerStore – a modern storage appliance designed for the data era. This game-changing new platform unlocks the power of data, regardless of its structure or location, helping you adapt and transform your IT without disrupting current operations.

Start with best-in-class

Purpose-built storage arrays have evolved over the years to fill an essential role in the datacenter, providing ever-expanding levels of performance, capacity, and resiliency for mission-critical workloads. PowerStore begins with the very best of modern storage technology, delivering a new kind of storage appliance with advanced services to complement and extend existing onpremises environments.

Any workload

PowerStore’s single architecture for block, file, and VMware vVols leverages the latest technologies to support an enterprise-class variety of traditional and modern workloads – from relational databases, to ERP and EMR apps, cloud native applications, and file-based workloads such as content repositories and home directories.  DC, low-line power and NEBS-ready solutions are available. The ability to accommodate application, multi-protocol network and multi-format storage diversity (physical and virtual volumes, containers, traditional files) within a single 2U appliance provides business-enabling flexibility and helps IT simplify and consolidate their infrastructure.

Performance optimized

Designed to leverage next-gen innovations such as end-to-end NVMe (both FC and Ethernet) and dual-port Intel® Optane™ solid state drives (SSDs) as Storage Class Memory (SCM), PowerStore delivers up to 7x more IOPs3 and 3x lower latency4 for real-world workloads compared to our previous storage generation, giving you all the headroom you need to ensure long-term value through multiple solution lifecycles.

Scale up and scale out

Expanding the capabilities of your initial PowerStore configuration is simple and extremely efficient, as capacity and performance may be scaled independently.  Each active-active PowerStore appliance can grow to over 2.8 PB effective capacity,5 and multiple appliances can be clustered for greater performance.

Efficiency without compromise

Regardless of how you grow, PowerStore costs remain consistently low.  Deduplication and compression are “always on,” and thanks to Intel QuickAssist hardware acceleration, PowerStore systems provide a guaranteed average 4:1 data reduction6 without compromising performance.

Make it simpler, and more intelligent

But it’s not just performance and scale.  PowerStore also delivers unprecedented levels of intelligence and automation, eliminating complexity, while enabling faster delivery of new applications and services with up to 99% less management interaction

Programmable infrastructure

PowerStore streamlines application development and automates storage workflows through integration with VMware and a broad ecosystem of leading management and orchestration frameworks.  You can provision PowerStore services directly from the application toolsets you use most. For example, IT and DevOps users can take advantage of plug-ins for VMware (vRO Plugin), Kubernetes (CSI Driver) and Ansible (Ansible Module), reducing deployment timeframes from days to seconds.

Autonomous appliance

PowerStore includes built-in intelligence to eliminate dozens of time-consuming tasks and decision points.  Labor-intensive processes like initial volume placement, migrations, load balancing and issue resolution are automated by PowerStore’s onboard machine learning (ML) engine, which fine-tunes both individual and clustered appliances, optimizing performance and cost as the solution evolves to meet new challenges.  SmartFabric Storage Software support even automates network tasks in an end-to-end NVMe environment.

Proactive health and cybersecurity analytics 

CloudIQ, included with PowerStore, gives administrators faster time to insight,10 with all the intel they need to take quick action and more efficiently manage their storage environment. By combining machine learning, advanced analytics and human intelligence, the cloud-based app reduces risk, spots anomalies before trouble occurs, and helps even IT generalists plan for future storage needs with powerful forecasting. CloudIQ makes storage management tasks easier, so you can get back to focusing on your business goals.

Ready to adapt when you are

If the advantages stopped here, PowerStore would already offer incredible storage value with a powerful lineup of enterprise-class features.  However, the PowerStore difference goes much deeper with revolutionary new capabilities that not only support current needs, transforming the way you run your data center today, but also empower you to evolve your infrastructure as your business evolves – as unpredictable as that may be.

Flexible architecture

PowerStore’s container-based software architecture, known as PowerStoreOS, improves performance, fault tolerance and security by isolating individual OS components as microservices. It also enables feature portability and rapid delivery of new or enhanced services over time. Administrators can choose to deploy PowerStoreOS in a bare metal configuration directly on the PowerStore hardware, or within a virtual machine (VM) running on PowerStore’s optional built-in VMware hypervisor, providing yet another layer of isolation, intelligence and abstraction.  When PowerStoreOS runs on a VM, administrators can also access the hypervisor to deploy their own applications directly on the appliance, using the same VMware tools and methods they use with external hosts. This gamechanging capability, known as AppsON, is ideal for data-intensive workloads in core or edge locations where infrastructure simplicity and density is required, as well as for “infrastructure applications” such as anti-virus or monitoring software.

With AppsON, PowerStore can provide both storage capacity for applications running throughout the enterprise and a VMware-based environment for hosting applications locally.

Best of all, since VMware ESXi is the underlying foundation, administrators can move seamlessly between these services.  PowerStore cluster management, combined with VMware tools including vMotion and storage vMotion, enables easy application mobility in and out of PowerStore to other VMware targets.  Using a single storage instance, applications can be deployed on networked servers, hyperconverged infrastructure, or directly on the PowerStore appliance, and migrated transparently among any of them, allowing IT and application owners to quickly deploy and reassign workloads to the most effective environment based on current requirements and available resources.

Flexible deployment  

PowerStore’s compact footprint and adaptable design is ideal for:

• Edge-based IoT data analytics and remote office applications where ease of deployment and advanced replication is required

• Core data center modernization, when flexibility, application mobility, and VMware integration is critical for consistent operations

• Multi-cloud access, including hybrid solutions that allow customers to integrate on-premises infrastructure with public cloud while maintaining management and operational consistency. Leveraging Dell Technologies Cloud Validated Designs, PowerStore can provide an ideal landing zone for data intensive workloads on VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF). PowerStore is also supported with Dell EMC Cloud Storage Services, which directly connects PowerStore to the users’ cloud(s) of choice, as a managed service. Cloud Storage Services can provide DRaaS to VMware Cloud on Amazon Web Services (AWS) with full operational consistency using VMware.   PowerStore may be deployed as a standalone appliance complementing existing infrastructure, or as a storage option within Dell Technologies VxBlock for CI, our all-in-one autonomous infrastructure cloud platform.

Flexible consumption 

PowerStore simplifies storage acquisition and ownership with a range of flexible purchase options that match the needs of your organization.  From traditional CAPEX to APEX Custom Solutions pay-per-use offerings that align spending with usage, PowerStore optimizes both technological and financial outcomes.  Whether you’re adding storage only, or launching an end-to-end solution involving multiple product categories, we’ll make sure you get the best possible return on your IT spend – both at the start and as you expand your environment.

Continuously modern platform

Within any deployment scenario, PowerStore is designed to eliminate costly and disruptive forklift migrations by seamlessly evolving both the software and hardware capabilities of the platform as new technologies become available.   All array software is included with the hardware purchase.

There are no feature licenses to buy and maintain, and future software enhancements are provided at no cost.  Anytime Upgrade, the industry’s most flexible controller upgrade program, 10 gives you immediate access to the latest hardware developments, allowing you to add state-of-the-art performance while preserving your original enclosure and drive investments. Unlike other programs, Anytime Upgrade provides multiple ways to evolve your PowerStore system.

• Data-in-place node upgrades: Replace the nodes (controllers) in your existing appliance with Next Gen + Higher Model versions.

• Scale-out upgrade: Apply a discount credit to expand your PowerStore cluster with a second system equal to your current model.

Each upgrade category is completely non-disruptive, and may be executed at any time during your maintenance contract.  You are not required to renew your contract to receive the upgrade.

The future of storage is here

From both a technology and an operational perspective, PowerStore complements and advances your current infrastructure.  Built from the ground up to provide unprecedented capabilities leveraging next-gen technology, the adaptable new platform simultaneously offers a familiar context and mature, comprehensive ecosystem support. Whether your current environment includes traditional 3-tier solutions (servers, networks, arrays), hyperconverged infrastructure, hybrid or public cloud, or a mixture of everything, PowerStore helps you simplify and modernize without adding another management silo, allowing your IT staff leverage current skillsets while investing confidently in the future.

Networking solutions help optimize your data center based on an open ecosystem where organizations can pick from innovative, industry-standard network applications, OS and hardware.

 
Dell EMC PowerSwitch S Series 1GbE Switches

1GbE ToR switches designed for reliable server/storage aggregation in the rack and cost-effective deployment.

–       A family of low-end switches with superb performance and low latency

–       Achieve more agility, more choices and lower costs

Dell EMC PowerSwitch S Series 10GbE Switches

10GbE ToR switches designed for flexibility and high performance for today’s demanding workloads and applications.

–       A family of mid-range switches that enable you to find the ideal solution for your specific data center in-rack needs

–       Delivers low latency, superb performance and high density

Dell EMC PowerSwitch S Series 25+GbE Switches

10/25/40/50/100/200/400GbE ToR switches built for building high-capacity network fabrics that are easy to deploy, cost-effective and provide a clear path to a software-defined data center. 

–       A family of high-performance, high-density switches

–       Achieve optimum density, cost-effectiveness and performance

Dell EMC PowerSwitch Z Series Switches

100GbE and 400GbE core/aggregation switches designed for building optimized data center leaf/spine fabrics of virtually any size

–       A family of flexible, multi-rate 100GbE and 400GbE, high-performance switches for the future-ready data center

–       Provides the flexibility to stay ahead of data needs rather than reacting to them

 
Dell EMC PowerEdge Modular System Switches

A family of MX7000 Ethernet and Fibre Channel switching modules, interconnects, and FN IO modules

–       Maximize the demanding connectivity needs of today’s data center workloads

–       Lower overall costs and network management complexity