Emulex Releases Target Mode Driver SDK

Emulex Corporation announced the launch of its software developer kit (SDK) for target mode drivers. The Emulex TargetConnect target mode software developer kit will enable data center storage solution developers to build and deploy Intel architecture-based storage solutions using Emulex Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) target mode drivers.

       Emulex TargetConnect Linux Software Developer Kit

The SDK will support development of two driver options:

• the Emulex Linux Target Mode Driver for customers supporting Linux-based or custom operating system (OS) proprietary hardware and storage solutions, and
•  the Emulex Linux SCSI Target Subsystem for Linux (SCST) Driver for developers of Open Source Linux storage solutions using the SCST infrastructure. All drivers created using the SDK will be compatible with Emulex’s entire LightPulse adapter product line.

"Emulex’s TargetConnect SDK helps broaden access to our products while meeting customer enthusiasm and demand for Intel Architecture-based target applications," said Steve Daheb, chief marketing officer and senior vice president of business development, Emulex. "What’s unique about the TargetConnect target mode SDK is the ability to run both initiator and target-mode devices with a single driver that runs across the entire Emulex entire product line based on eight generations of advanced, field-proved enterprise technology."

The Emulex Linux Target Mode Driver is geared for highly-tuned proprietary Linux applications and includes a Linux initiator base driver delivered in source code form, along with a target mode API added to the base driver. This option brings greater design customization to achieve better performance and proprietary functionality for Linux, Linux-based or custom OS solutions. For developers wanting to leverage the Open Source community SCST architecture, the Emulex Linux SCST Driver interfaces to the Open Source SCSI target subsystem (SCST), offering faster time-to-market and providing extensive target device support. In addition, the Emulex Linux SCST Driver supports SCST drivers for single, dual and quad-channel Emulex LightPulse 4Gb/s and 8Gb/s Fibre Channel Fibre Channel Host Bus Adapters (HBAs), as well as 10Gb/s Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE) Converged Network Adapters (CNAs).

"Intel architecture processors deliver industry-leading performance, flexibility, and scalability, along with the latest I/O technologies," said Brad Karlberg, director of marketing for Storage, Intel Server Platforms Group. "When combined with Intel processors, solutions such as the Emulex target mode driver software developer kit can provide a cost-effective means for storage solution developers to deliver differentiating features."

Companies are choosing to license the TargetConnect SDK and build solutions around Emulex LightPulse adapters for its compelling customer value.

With the SDK customers will experience:

• Access to a broad enterprise-class product line adapters that are available in broad range of form factors and supported across virtually every model of rack-mount and blade servers
• Decreased time-to-market for hardware and software developers with Linux-based SDK and technical documentation
• World-class support infrastructure from Emulex during the development phase
• Enhanced portability and driver compatibility across all generations of Emulex adapters

"Access to this software developer kit furthers our long-standing relationship with Emulex in our joint effort to deliver high performance computing and ultimately, offer the highest bandwidth and I/O rates in the industry," said Mark Lanteigne, founder and chief technical strategist, Third I/O. "We recently achieved 1.6 million IOPS with our storage platform IRIS, a milestone made possible because the Emulex SDK gave us more control of our development efforts to create an infrastructure for a target mode application at a low level-maintained API. This feature also provided us with greater design customization to achieve the performance and proprietary functionality we required in the first release of our I/O storage platform."

The TargetConnect SDK package is available for a one-time fee of $5,000 and includes the following:

• Access to the Linux source code to an Emulex Linux target mode driver
• Documentation for the target mode Application Programming Interface (API) and  royalty-free license to the resulting binaries
• Two Emulex LPe12002 dual-channel 8Gb/s Fibre Channel HBAs
• Two days of technical training at Emulex headquarters
• One year of Emulex dedicated technical support

Emulex drivers have undergone Device Validation Testing (DVT) to ensure robust reliability. The Emulex Linux Target Mode Driver is supported and tested with RHEL 5 and SLES 10. the Emulex Linux SCST Driver is supported and tested with Linux 2.6.18, with SCST version 1.0.1.