SANBlaze Updated NVMe Test Suite Including PCIe Gen5 and Single Root I/O Virtualization

SANBlaze Technology Inc. released enhancements to its NVMe qualification platform.

The company’s Certified by SANBlaze test suite update, available via versions 8.4 and 10.4, supports all aspects of NVMe qualification with the addition of PCIe Single Root I/O Virtualization (SR-IOV) capabilities and implementation of enhanced features for NVMe spec, including ZNS, VDM, TCG, SRIS/SRNS clocking, OPAL/Ruby and T10/DIF. A variety of updates for APIs and Linux are included.

Linux distribution upgrade and security Eenhancements
A functionally equivalent version, v10.4, upgrades the Linux distribution to a CentOS Stream core, bringing the security and compatibility of a Linux distribution to the company’s systems. The firm’s software version 10.4 ships with both Python 2 and Python 3 installed (note that SANBlaze’ s Python test scripts require Python 3.)

A UI allows local management, alleviating the reliance on a remote connection. Enhanced system security incorporates encryption methods for compatibility with cloud-based computing.

Enhanced API support
Enhanced Python and XML APIs provide access to all tests and features, enabling integration of the company’s SBExpress NVMe systems into customers’ existing test infrastructure – all compatible with the company’s recently released PCIe Gen5 test and validation products.

“SANBlaze is excited to enhance the Certified by SANBlaze test suite with the addition of SR-IOV, a hardware standard that allows a PCI Express device, including NVMe drives, to present themselves as multiple virtual devices to a hypervisor,” said Vince Asbridge, CEO. “Working with early adopters of SR-IOV for NVMe has made this new release an invaluable test tool, allowing compliance testing of virtual PCIe devices under our SBExpress framework and our new Python API.”

Range of updates
Following features are highlighted in release:

• SR-IOV
  
• Python API for integration into existing test infrastructure 
• MI in-band testing 
• MI/VDM error injection (manipulation of the PCIe VDM header) 
• 24Gb SAS target support with Quarch error injection 
• Linux distribution upgrade for IT security 
• V15 base NVMe and MI conformance, including MI 1.1 support 
• Ability to specify an interpacket delay in multi-packet MI request commands 
• TCP/IP NVMe fabric up to 200G 
• SGL error injection 
• T10 DIF error injection 
• Script editor capability from the GUI

“Certified by SANBlaze is the most robust test suite now being recognized and adopted by major SSD manufacturers and system OEMs as a cost-savings test infrastructure that reduces validation overhead expense and accelerates time-to-market schedules,” said Rick Walsh, VP, sales and marketing. “With the addition of the SR-IOV virtual function support, we continue to progress toward a true certification test paradigm for the entire storage market. This test suite has been one of the most successful launches in company history and we continue to gain market share as the adoption rate of our Certified by SANBlaze continues to increase.”

Resources:
Whitepapers that detail testing of NVMe-MI over PCIe VDM, and verification for NVMe SSDs (Python support), ZNS, and TCG Opal SSC
Promotion on SBExpress-RM4 NVMe Test Platform system