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Free Storage 5700E
Product Specifications | Management Support Software
Simple Solutions for
Complex Data Management Requirements
By the turn of the century,
annual computer storage shipments are expected to exceed 500,000
terabytes. If industry analysts are on the mark with their projections,
by that time, 75 percent of storage will be centrally managed. The
numbers bear out these estimates. More and more IS departments are
returning to a centralized model of information management. The demand
for effective control of enterprise-wide data—dispersed across
multiple platforms and locations, with multivendor hardware and software
components—has skyrocketed.
Today, an increasing number of IS environments capitalize on the
strengths of both centralized and distributed storage strategies.
Mission-critical business applications are supported by a growing
proliferation of distributed, departmental hardware. A complex patchwork
of middleware—essential for systems and network
management—links
software applications and hardware to correct a variety of operational
shortfalls. This combination of middleware, software, and hardware makes
management of resources and data storage more difficult than ever, and
can prohibit business units from attaining peak efficiency and realizing
corporate return on investment. The results are diminished peer-to-peer
competitiveness, and, ultimately, the collapse of effective business
systems.
Total enterprise-wide storage management is a universal requirement.
Because system responsiveness depends on data locality, storage
architecture must meet distributed and centralized physical deployment
requirements. Consistent storage architecture, look-and-feel, and
operation ensure simple device management, allowing IS administrators to
implement a single set of guidelines for all storage locations. Storage
deployment options must remain as flexible as business requirements
dictate.
Hitachi Freedom storage solutions are crafted from middleware, a family of
storage systems based on a common architecture, and professional
services. Storage management middleware tools facilitate integration
with existing environments and enhance day-to-day information
management. Offering a menu of consulting services for the evaluation,
design, and implementation of customer solutions, HDS also provides
ongoing hardware and network support.
The Hitachi Freedom 5700E is an integral part of HDS' overall
storage strategy—to allow customers to manage and control systems
growth, whether in single or multiserver environments. Because customers
do not have to change their existing setup or mode of operation, they
can achieve higher efficiency with minimal disruption. As Hitachi, Ltd.
continues to develop innovative computing options, customers can count
on HDS to lead them into the next millennium with comprehensive storage,
systems, and service solutions that help them achieve their
business objectives.
Highlights
Centralized network storage management delivers
enterprise-wide control
Managing distributed, heterogeneous
computing environments significantly complicates the responsibilities of
IT organizations. Advances in network technology, the increasing
complexity and size of networks, and the use of multivendor components,
hardware, and software make network management more difficult than ever.
Productivity and service level improvements depend upon implementing a
single point of control for network management activities.
An industry-standard protocol designed to facilitate the exchange of
information between network-resident devices, SNMP facilitates
configuration and management of multiple networked systems and
applications from a single point of control. HDS chose SNMP as its
standard of reporting based on wide deployment in TCP/IP networks,
which gives customers the greatest flexibility and uptime. HDS' SNMP has
been certified with the following enterprise management
software:
- HP OpenView
- SunNet Manager
- CA Unicenter.
Compatibility with these
mission-critical network tools allows the 5700E to be integrated into
users' network, system, application, and database management
environments.
SOMMET, HDS' optional software-based configuration management solution,
allows customers to both monitor and manage 5700E systems within multivendor environments through a graphical user
interface. SOMMET users know instantly when a failure occurs, where the
5700E is located, and the exact nature of the failure—complete
to the component level—allowing administrators to quickly initiate
service. Enhancing availability through dynamic configuration of disk
storage while the system is active, SOMMET also ensures data integrity
through disk storage analysis and storage techniques. SOMMET
communicates either through RS-232 or a Local Area Network (LAN).
Configuration, monitoring, and maintenance are also accessible through a
front-mounted operations panel on each 5700E disk array.
Customers can supplement (or substitute) SOMMET or other SNMP data
management tools with Hi-Track® proactive remote
diagnostics.
Back to highlights
High performance with Ultra-SCSI, doubled
cache, and increased bandwidth
The 5700E offers two 7,200rpm
Ultra-SCSI drive options (4.1GB and 8.7GB), as well as an Ultra-SCSI
interface which allows data transfers of up to 40MB/sec per channel. The
controller-level cache assures fast, reliable data access and is fully
battery protected. Customers also have the option of mirroring cache, so
that all write operations are secured in dual caches.
Larger disk capacities necessitate an increase in cache sizes. The
5700E features double the subsystem cache of previous generations. With
256MB per controller (or 512MB per subsystem), the 5700E allows for
higher I/O activity in high-capacity subsystems. The 5700E will
continue to accommodate increasing disk capacities.
RAID groups are designed for parallel access across all five internal
SCSI-3 disk channels, providing optimum I/O bandwidth. Customers also
have the choice of SCSI-3 fast or fast-and-wide external host interfaces
that deliver 40MB/sec data transfer rates each (for single controller
configurations) and 80MB/sec data transfer rates (with the optional
second controller).
Back to
highlights
Software-based data and storage management
solutions
Today's disk farms contain hundreds of drives. Enterprise server systems
present administrators with a complex set of inconsistent and
diversified storage management tools which increase administrative
costs. To address these issues, HDS plans to enhance the 5700E with
comprehensive new software-based utilities from Hitachi, Ltd. and other
leading providers of data and storage management software solutions.
Delivering a unified, compatible approach to server performance,
reliability, and data management, these solutions reduce costs and
increase IT returns. They also meet the demands of new user workloads in
distributed client/server environments while safeguarding
mission-critical data and applications.
The first of these offerings, Hitachi
Path Failover™, is a server-based software solution that enhances
RAID
subsystem availability by providing automatic recovery from
server-to-RAID connection failures. The SCSI bus between
the server and RAID subsystem is a single point of failure which can
result in a complete loss of data access. Path Failover allows system
administrators to define redundant SCSI connections between data servers
and RAID subsystems, thereby improving system resiliency.
Back to
highlights
Optimum connectivity enhances open systems information
management
The Freedom 5700E
may be attached to LAN servers supporting common operating environments
such as Windows NT and Novell NetWare, UNIX®-based
servers and
workstations, and the AS/400. It supports SCSI fast or fast-and-wide,
and Ultra-SCSI connections with data transfer rates of up to 80MB/sec.
Fibre Channel-capable: For 5700E users who need simultaneous
multiplexed connections in high-speed application-to-application
environments, HDS announces Fibre Channel or FC-AL (fibre
channel-arbitrated loop) capability. This connectivity feature provides
flexible information management for customer applications, as well
as compatibility with future offerings, by enabling integration of the
Fibre Channel with the "fabric" (or switching technology) of the
enterprise. This integration furnishes administrators with immediate,
transparent access to all data from any device. The Fibre Channel
upgrade offers greater connectivity and improved throughput for
high-volume applications such as high-speed data mining, remote/secure
storage, and multimedia.
HDS' Fibre Channel upgrade allows the 5700E to be connected to
customers' legacy systems, networks, and applications without
sacrificing the future extensibility of transfer rates and performance.
It supports speeds of up to 100MB/sec over distances approaching 500
meters (1,640 feet). To ensure maximum scalability and flexibility, the
Fibre Channel option supports over 120 connections per loop, at
distances of up to 10 kilometers (6.2 miles).
Back to
highlights
Flexible packaging eases growth planning
The 5700E features fast components,
performance-optimized microcode, multiple high-bandwidth internal
channels for parallel and overlapped operations, efficient data access
management, and robust cache management. Consistent with
industry-standard SCSI interfaces, the 5700E can be attached to multiple
hosts and/or connected 5700E subsystems.
Customers can choose from many growth plan options to accommodate future
storage requirements. The 5700E supports mixed disk sizes, so new
technology can be incorporated, protecting prior IT investments.
Depending on application capacity and performance requirements,
customers can also connect multiple, mixed-model 5700E subsystems to a
single host port.
The 5700E is available in four scalable
models:
- 5730E Mini-Tower. The free-standing 5730E model holds up to
five disks (with an optional hot standby drive), a second controller,
and cache memory of up to 256MB per controller (or 512MB per system).
The Mini-Tower controller is designed for high performance and
throughput, and is ideal for department or workgroup environments, Web
sites, or workstations with high storage I/O processing needs and low
capacity requirements.
- 574xE Rack-Mount.This configuration is designed to mount in
an industry-standard 19-inch rack, individually attached to the host or
to other 5700E systems. The 5742E Rack-Mount model can hold up to
ten active disk drives; the 5744E can hold up to twenty. Both models
support an optional hot standby drive and two controllers, each with as
much as 256MB of cache (for a total of 512MB). All components are
hot-pluggable. Fully redundant power is standard on the 5744E and
optional on the 5742E. The 5744E provides optional dual input power.
- 5750E Tower.The 5750E is a free-standing unit holding up to
twenty active disk drives, an optional twenty-first hot standby drive,
two controllers (each with a 256MB cache capacity), and N+1 power
supplies. All of these components are hot-pluggable. The Tower unit
offers maximum configuration flexibility and capacity in a compact,
self-contained enclosure.
Back to
highlights
Continuous availability protects investment in data and
applications
Like all HDS products, the 5700E is distinguished by its reliability,
assured in numerous ways. Computing operations may continue despite a
failed disk drive, power supply, controller, cache memory, SCSI channel,
or fan. The innovative RAID design of the 5700E disk arrays incorporates
standard and optional redundant features to maximize uptime.
The 5700E's components have ample bandwidth and reserve capacity,
ensuring that the loss of redundant components will not be catastrophic
and the system will continue to operate. Key system elements may be
replaced on-line.
Parity data is generated, maintained, and checked for all operations.
Data is also stored with error-correcting code. This technology is able
to detect and correct data flaws "on-the-fly." Traditional techniques
for determining whether data bits have been lost are not enough; the
5700E architecture employs this "data assurance code" for every data
record written to disk.
I/O reliability is enhanced through the use of optional mirrored
controllers and mirrored caches. All controller and data operations may
be concurrently duplicated.
Back to
highlights
Multifunctional versatility broadens configuration
options
The importance, time-critical nature, and economies of an application
may dictate which RAID level is most appropriate. The 5700E
offers multifunctional versatility through concurrent
support of three RAID levels within a single subsystem:
- RAID 0 is usually selected when capacity and cost are
primary, and
high availability is secondary.
- RAID 1 offers the highest level of availability and recovery
(where cost is not a primary issue).
- RAID 5 with parity protection is the most frequent overall
choice for high availability, capacity, and transaction-oriented
performance at a moderate cost.
RAID levels are user-configurable, and may be mixed within the same
subsystem.
Back to
highlights
Hitachi Data Systems—For computing as critical as your business
Continuing its traditions of technological innovation and reponsiveness
to customer needs, Hitachi Data Systems leads the way to yet another
critical computing arena—centralized management of enterprise-wide storage. While
HDS continues to expand its storage offerings, it is actively developing
partnerships with the industry's foremost software providers. Hitachi's
global technological leadership ensures the ongoing excellence of the
Freedom 5700E. HDS is committed to delivering greater
levels of management and performance to help customers transition into
the next millennium.
Back to
highlights
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