We logged the server onto the group’s virtual IP address to enable load balancing and connected it to a 50GB virtual volume.ĭell’s host integration tool (HIT) makes MPIO configuration a breeze: log on to the portal and leave it to sort out the details for you. Add a second appliance and its ports join the virtual IP address, increasing available bandwidth.įor testing, we used a Dell PowerEdge R710 rack server equipped with dual 2.53GHz Xeon E5540s and running Windows Server 2008 R2. The Gigabit data ports are grouped together under a virtual IP address and load-balanced. If you want to grow your group beyond this point you must add a PS6100 series appliance, which lets you expand group membership up to 16 S4100 and PS6100 appliances. Group membership is restricted to two appliances, so the PS4100 series has a top capacity of 72TB per group. Volumes created in this space are presented as iSCSI targets, but data is spread across all members.
Although each looks after its own RAID arrays, the storage on all group members is available as a single entity. If you want high-speed 10GbE ports then check out the PS4110 series.Ī key concept of the EqualLogic appliances is grouping. The PS4100- series controllers have dual Gigabit data ports and a dedicated 10/100 management port. If a port in the primary controller fails, it will use the corresponding port in the secondary controller. Battery packs have been replaced with a capacitor, and in the event of a complete failure it provides enough power for the cache to be written to flash memory.Ĭache contents are synchronised between the controllers, which also show off Dell’s vertical port failover feature.
The controllers have been redesigned and have an uprated 6Gbits/sec SAS backplane, plus Dell’s new cache-to-flash feature. Another version offers 15K LFF SAS drives, and the PS4100X and PS4100XV models support 24 10K or 15K SFF SAS drives respectively.
It supports 12 hot-swap nearline SAS drives, and the price for this system includes a full house of 1TB drives. The PS4100 family is aimed at SMBs and enterprise offices, and in this exclusive review we examine the entry-level PS4100E.
This has allowed Dell to slash prices, making the entry-point appliances more affordable for SMBs. A big change that affects the entire range is the move to in-house manufacturing. Dell’s latest EqualLogic IP SAN appliances represent the biggest platform refresh since they were acquired in 2008, including a major hardware redesign.