Today we announced that the SanDisk FlashSoft software has been validated by NetApp for use with NetApp’s OnTAP enterprise storage and data management solutions. We’re very excited about this announcement, because we’ve worked closely with NetApp over a long period of time to ensure complete interoperability between our products. The NetApp team is excited about working with us because FlashSoft offers their customers a solution that seamlessly improves performance for the broadest set of user applications and operating system environments.

Server-side solid-state caching is a real game-changer in the storage industry, but no matter how great an innovation it represents, there’s little benefit without the assurance of data integrity and compatibility with existing storage systems and operations. From the beginning, FlashSoft software was designed to work with our customers’ preferred server platforms, storage infrastructure and solid-state devices. In our collaboration with NetApp, we’ve gone through rigorous testing to demonstrate that NetApp customers can confidently use FlashSoft software to deliver the performance benefits of a server-side solid-state cache without any disruption to their storage infrastructure.

This year we’ll be working directly with NetApp sales and technical staff, as well as channel partners and customers, to demonstrate the benefits of FlashSoft in NetApp storage environments with servers running Linux, Windows Server, and VMware vSphere. We’ll be hitting the road to visit cities across the country in the NetApp Partner Academy program during May and June, and we’ll be back in Las Vegas for NetApp Insight in October.

If you’re considering solid-state caching in the server for use in your NetApp storage environment, you will want to learn more about FlashSoft.

Tom

At Dell World last month, I had the opportunity to chat again with the folks from Truth in IT. Host, W. Curtis Preston and I discussed the rapid change in the mindset of enterprise organizations when it comes to the adoption of flash as a cache in the server – moving from a possible application to an inevitable application – to take full advantage of the potential that flash offers in reducing I/O latency.  We also talked about the benefits associated with implementing FlashSoft™ for VMware® vSphere® software in the data center to intelligently accelerate I/O to use cache most effectively.

The complete interview is available here.  Check it out when you have the chance.

Rich

Last week, I met with many of the top analysts and industry watchers following the storage industry at Needham’s Sixth Annual HDD/Flash Memory Conference. Their expertise in markets spanning HDDs, solid state drives (SSDs), PCIe, and flash-based next generation storage systems was quite impressive. At the event in Boston several key public and private companies were present to discuss the key trends in the storage business in 2013 and beyond.

In case you missed the live stream, please visit the SanDisk website here to view the full presentation.

Mike Chenery

It’s hard to believe that it’s already time to say farewell. On Wednesday, the last day of the Solutions Exchange, our excitement was just as high as ever, though our energy may have begun to flag toward the end.

Our preparation began months ago, with our plan to introduce FlashSoft™ Software v3.0 for VMware® vSphere® at this year’s VMworld in San Francisco. Months of hectic activity ensued as our team laid out the preparation for this milestone event – the first launch of a new software product by SanDisk Enterprise Storage Solutions.

We arrived at the Moscone Center on a beautiful Sunday morning, where we unpacked our bags and tidied up our booth in the Solutions Exchange hall. We set up our demo stations, and checked dozens of little details, right up to the moment the doors opened at 4:00PM on Sunday.

And then you arrived.

Thousands of VMware experts from every state in the United States, and everywhere around the world poured into the Solutions Exchange. With food and drink on Sunday night, then immediately after the keynote on Monday morning, and over the next three days, we got to meet you, hear from you, and draw on whiteboards with you, to learn what you were doing to virtualize servers and desktops, and to manage them more efficiently. And we had the opportunity to talk directly with you about FlashSoft.

Some vendors go to conferences to deliver a pitch. But it is just as important for us to listen to you, to hear what you are doing with virtualization, what challenges you face, and what goals you have for the future.

At this year’s VMworld, we learned that I/O latency remains a problem, and that a server-tier solid-state cache is something you want to investigate. In some cases you’ve virtualized the low hanging fruit, but held off on certain apps where performance might be an issue. In some cases, the latest upgrade to storage infrastructure delivered the expected performance bump to most of your hosts, but you still need to boost some that are especially I/O constrained. For some of you, server-tier caching on flash is a key strategic goal, and you are already in the process of determining the right path to that goal.

Over three and a half days, we learned a lot from you. Thanks for teaching us about your operations, and talking with us about FlashSoft. Then perhaps we saw you one last time at the party on Wednesday night. Well, no need to get into that…

So we talked and listened to each other, and we scanned your badge (of course). And now we ask, are we going to build on what we learned from each other? Will we make that conversation at VMworld a starting point for an investigation of server-side solid-state caching with FlashSoft? Will we take the next step and plan an evaluation, to see how much FlashSoft can increase VM density and application performance in your environment?

Speaking for the FlashSoft team at SanDisk, I can say that we’ll do everything we can to make sure that the conversation we had at VMworld is just the start of a serious effort to help you achieve your goals for VMware vSphere.

Oh, and by the way, will we see you in VMworld in Barcelona?

Rich

SanDisk expands its portfolio of enterprise storage solutions with the new FlashSoft™ software for VMware® vSphere®. Compatible with both Storage Area Network (SAN) and Network Attached Storage (NAS) configurations, the FlashSoft technology caches frequently accessed, “hot” data, on low-latency solid-state devices installed directly in the server, thereby reducing I/O latency that can slow application performance in virtual server environments.

FlashSoft for VMware vSphere software provides a 2x to 4x increase in application performance** on virtual machines, a 2x to 3x increase in VM density* and the ability to run transparently while supporting all VMware vSphere features. Enabling I/O acceleration directly in the servers themselves, this type of performance boost is well-suited to virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) environments and business-critical applications where concerns over response latency often prevent the migration of “tier-one” applications to virtual environments.

We’re thrilled about offering the new FlashSoft software for VMware vSphere to the enterprise market – stay tuned for more good news from SanDisk as it continues to expand its presence in the enterprise storage arena.

The full press release with additional details can be found here.

Greg

* Results from OLTP workload test. System under test: Dell R720. Performance numbers are tpm scores. Complete test report available
**Results from tile-based virtualization workload test. System under test: Dell 810. Complete test report available

June was an exciting month for the SanDisk Enterprise Storage Group (ESS). We launched SanDisk’s new enterprise Lightning® PCI Express (PCIe) Solid State Accelerator (SSA) cards at COMPUTEX Taipei. Our own Greg Goelz, vice president and general manager of ESS, also participated in the Global ICT Summit 2012 in Tokyo, Japan. Greg joined other technology leaders in a panel discussion at the summit, sponsored by Nikkei Inc. and the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, where he discussed how flash memory storage solutions in the enterprise are addressing the challenges of managing big data.

Photo courtesy of Global ICT Summit 2012

C.T.

SanDisk today announced the acquisition of Schooner Information Technology, Inc., an enterprise software company that develops flash-optimized database and data store solutions. Schooner is a great addition to SanDisk’s growing portfolio of enterprise SSD and flash-optimized software offerings that enable customers to accelerate the performance of data-intensive applications and reduce overall cost of ownership. We are pleased to welcome the Schooner team to the SanDisk family.

The full press release is available here for your reference.

Greg

SanDisk Lightning® Enterprise Solid State Drives (SSDs) are now offered in Stratus ftScalable® G2 Storage, a fault-tolerant array manufactured for Stratus by Dot Hill. The Stratus array connects to the entire fault-tolerant ftServer system line, providing customers with industry-leading uptime assurance for servers and storage.

Lightning SSDs are mission-optimized for supporting critical business operations identical to those that Stratus is known for protecting against latency and downtime, making our drives ideal for Stratus customers.

You can view the full press release here.

Greg

Today, SanDisk expanded its portfolio of enterprise storage solutions with the new Lightning® PCI Express (PCIe) Solid State Accelerator (SSA) cards. The PCIe SSAs combine SanDisk’s proven enterprise SSD technology and its NAND Flash leadership to provide OEMs and system integrators with an ideal solution for accelerating enterprise applications in data centers, server farms and cloud computing environments.

SanDisk PCIe SSAs deliver low latency, low maximum response time during peak periods using our advanced controller to manage data protection and I/O functions with little impact on the CPU and without adding costly DRAM. This type of performance is ideal for a wide range of businesses, including financial institutions analyzing and processing massive amounts of information around the clock; to social media and website providers whose customers demand a nearly instant response with every click of a mouse; to media content creators editing high-definition videos.

We’re really excited about offering PCIe solutions to the enterprise market, so stay tuned for more good news from SanDisk in this area in the future.

The full press release with additional information and specs can be found here. A video overview and high-level description of the new PCIe products can also be viewed here.

Greg

SanDisk Lightning Enterprise Solid State Drives (SSDs) were chosen to deliver high I/O performance in the new Teradata Active Enterprise Data Warehouse Platform 6690 (Teradata Active EDW), designed to be an analytic workhorse managing tough, real-time workloads for enterprise customers.

The Teradata Active EDW is the company’s newest generation of hybrid storage leveraging a balance of SSDs and HDDs to handle massive data volumes from thousands of concurrent users. The system easily manages concurrent mixed workloads that include ad hoc, tactical, and basic reporting queries.

SanDisk Lightning SSDs are equipped with leading enterprise-class performance, reliability and endurance, making our drives the top pick for the new Teradata Active EDW.

Here are a few links to industry information on the benefits of hybrid storage, and the Teradata press release:

Solid State Drives – A big Step Forward for Analytic Workloads: B-eye Network Podcast, Dan Graham
Teradata’s Hybrid Storage: White paper, Jerome Wendt, DCIG analyst
Hot and Cold Running Data: Teradata Magazine article, Keith Muller
Teradata Active Enterprise Data Warehouse Platform 6690 press release

Greg