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back to article Fusion-io flies into flash SAN space

It's flash SAN marketing war: Fusion-io has expanded upwards from its PCIe server flash card base into networked flash SAN storage, taking on Violin Memory, Pure Storage and all the other all-flash array players via OEMs and system builders who combine Fusion's flash hardware and SAN software with server systems. Fusion's ION …

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  1. Nate Amsden

    not really a SAN?

    I mean if they can't get something basic such as full redundancy between a pair of DL370 servers, need to have at least the controller level redundancy, online firmware upgrades, etc. Doesn't really sound like a storage system, more like just a server with a buncha flash. I suppose you could get a pair of them and run software RAID between the two from upstream servers but sounds kinda hackish and not efficient.

    Even if you don't have data management features like thin provisioning, you have to at least have some form of controller level availability, even if it's optional(with 3PAR it's not), if your going to call yourself a storage array.

    Maybe if they took the concept and used one of those PCIe extender bus things that Dell came out with a while ago

    http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/12/dell_c410x_gpu_chassis/

    put the fusion cards in something like that, figure out a way to connect it to two different servers simultaneously, with some sort of fail over or clustering. Even something really basic as active/passive.

    looks like a cool product otherwise though.

    For some perspective - the All SSD 3PAR P10k consumes 3 racks of equipment - vs this is 2U.

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  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Hurry up

    I am impatiently waiting for someone to make a real SAN with Fusion-IO cards in them.

    I am surprised it has taken this long.

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    1. Erik (TMS)
      Reply Icon

      Re: Hurry up

      You don't need to have Fusion-io cards to get speedy SAN access. My company, Texas Memory Systems, has been making fast Flash-based SANs for several years, and there are no Fusion-io cards or SAS/SATA SSDs inside.

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      1. regorama
        Reply Icon
        FAIL

        Re: Hurry up

        EMC chose Micron and LSI over TMS, Cisco chose Fusionio and LSI over TMS, and NetApp chose Fusionio, and TMS put itself up for sale back in December. What does that tell you about TMS? Hint: all you need to know about how irrelevant TMS is to the Flash conversation.

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  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    ok, I'll ask...

    Would it be cheaper/just as fast to have battery-backed RAM?

    I know its inherently less stable, but you've got 4 hour response, right? Probably a ups for the the server in the bottom of the rack too?

    Add a SATA drive for a dump in the event of a mains power faliure/shutdown.

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    1. Anonymous Coward
      Reply Icon
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: ok, I'll ask...

      At half a million $ for 1.5TB, apparently not.

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  4. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Flash Appliance

    It appears to turn any server into a Flash appliance and not a SAN.

    http://www.fusionio.com/products/ion/

    The do have failover between two servers which is nice and any number of initiators. But not really a SAN replacement. It seems more like a Violin Memory replacement.

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