… Updates for DCS3700 Storage Controllers …

IBM Corp. announces technology updates for DCS3700 storage controllers.

They provide technologies that include Dynamic Disk Pooling, Enhanced
FlashCopy, and thin provisioning functionality. Additional they improve
host connectivity with new Asymmetric Logical Unit Access (ALUA) host
connection types and increase VMWare host efficiency with vStorage APIs
for Array Integration (VAAI).

With Dynamic Disk Pooling, customers will see simplified provisioning,
performance of their storage device through new disk virtualization
functions, and a recovery advantage in improved rebuild times.

Thin provisioning allows storage administrators to drive up storage
capacity utilization with little administrative overhead, maximizing the
utilization of their infrastructure, reducing initial acquisition
costs, and growing capacity as needed.

Enhanced FlashCopy can help reduce backup times with an increased number
of images per storage system and allows multiple consistency groups. It
also includes new feature codes such as FlashCopy rollback that helps
to restore the snapshots nearly instantaneously through mapping a
FlashCopy volume back to the base volume. The new features can be tested
first with the new Try and Buy feature, allowing a test of the
functionality for 90 days before purchasing the premium feature. They
increase the number of FlashCopies available, allow consistency groups,
and provide instantaneous volume mapping in the new FlashCopy Rollback.

ALUA allows access to a LUN without triggering an ownership transfer,
simplifying path failover and increasing its speed. ALUA takes advantage
of native failover in most network operating systems.

VMWare VAAI incorporates functionality from VMWare to the DCS3700,
allowing it to complete storage tasks, such as copying virtual machines,
without the direct interaction of the VMWare host, making the VMWare
host more efficient.

Key prerequisites
Model 80C for machine type 1818.

Planned availability date
June 15, 2012