IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - September/October 2009 - (Page 50) Administrator Getting the most from your systems SSDs Are Integral to Enterprise Storage Infrastructures BY JIM UTSLER T hanks to its use in popular devices such as cell phones, MP3 players and laptop computers, flash memory is quickly becoming a common consumer-storage medium. Many people use small, dedicated flash drives to carry files. Little wonder, then, why companies are curious how flash memory, in one form or another, can fit into their IT infrastructures and benefit their larger, overall business goals. The easy answer might be flash memory is faster than hard-drive disks (HDDs) and can process more transactions with higher I/O throughput. HDDs have been at the center of enterprise storage for around 50 years, and they’re not going away. This is in part because of the relative per GB costs of HDDs versus those of flash-based solid-state disks (SSDs). Although the gap is closing, SSDs still cost more than comparatively sized HDDs. Recent advances in storage technology are making SSDs a viable complement to HDD-based storage conf igurations. This is especially tr ue in hightransaction, small-data environments, where time from query to response has to be faster than that allowed by spinning hard disks. As a result, any higher up-front costs associated with SSDs can be justified by the technology’s unique characteristics, beyond those typically associated with HDDs. A Few Bytes of Data Most enterprises continue to rely on HDD as their pr imar y storage medium. In many cases, it’s a perfectly suitable way for organizations to save, store and access data. “The world’s largest supercomputers, which have very high throughput requirements, actually work with the cheapest, slowest disks you can find,” says Clod Barrera, chief technical strategist of IBM System 50 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2009 Storage*. “They stripe the data across many disks, and in combination, when aggregated together, the performance is very good.” This is fortunate since the need for more storage capacity is increasing. For example, there’s a growing desire to capture data from and serve data to Web clients, including Web 2.0 applications that support social-networking sites. Similarly, the banking industry is seeing an increase in online banking and ATM transactions, which contribute to this growth in storage-capacity needs. Other contributors include an increase in data-object sizes, particularly related to image and video applications; regulatory requirements to retain and maintain data for extended periods of time; and the replication of data for disaster-recovery and business-resiliency purposes. Over the years, HDD manufacturers have been keeping the costs of drives relatively constant while increasing their capacity, using technologies such as Tunnel Magnetoresistive-read heads, bit-patterned media and heat-assisted magnetic recording. These magnetic recording advances promise to extend areal, or surface, densities, and keep HDDs on their declining price curve. Continued development in these technologies indicate ongoing areal-density compound-growth rates from 30 percent to 50 percent, according to Barrera, further pushing down HDD per GB price points. As he explains, “The cost of the drive itself doesn’t go down, but the cost of storage in dollars per gigabyte does.” This allows enterprises to economically deploy many HDDs to increase data-query response times for large data files. When it comes to smaller data files, however, that notion is upended. For example, to find a single record in an HDD environment, many actions must take place, including engaging the appropriate ibmsystemsmag.com/mainframe http://www.ibmsystemsmag.com/mainframe Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 Editor's Desk: IBM Makes it Easy to be Green Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution Feature: Women in IT Team Up to Succeed Developer: Process XML Documents Within COBOL and DB2 SSDs Are Integral to Enterprise Storage Infrastructures Product News Advertiser Index Stop Run: Gordon Bruce Talks His Way Into a High-Profile IT Gig Reference Point 2010 Mainframe Buyer's Guide IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - (Page Intro) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page Cover1) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page Cover2) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 1) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 2) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 3) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 4) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 5) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 6) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 (Page 7) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Editor's Desk: IBM Makes it Easy to be Green (Page 8) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Editor's Desk: IBM Makes it Easy to be Green (Page 9) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package (Page 10) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package (Page 11) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package (Page 12) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package (Page 13) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package (Page 14) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Focus on Storage: System z, DS8000 and Tivoli Provide a Complete Encryption Package (Page 15) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control (Page 16) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control (Page 17) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control (Page 18) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control (Page 19) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control (Page 20) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Trends: CICS Transaction Server 4.1 Helps Organizations, Compete, Comply and Control (Page 21) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment (Page 22) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment (Page 23) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment (Page 24) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment (Page 25) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment (Page 26) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Case Study: Transzap Consolidates its Oracle Databases in a Virtualized Linux on Mainframe Environment (Page 27) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 28) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 29) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 30) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 31) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 32) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 33) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 34) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Cover Story: IBM Poughkeepsie Green Data Center Showcases a Dynamic Infrastructure (Page 35) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution (Page 36) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution (Page 37) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution (Page 38) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution (Page 39) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution (Page 40) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: IBM Study Reveals the System z10 Provides a Cheaper, Easier-to-Manage Cloud Solution (Page 41) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: Women in IT Team Up to Succeed (Page 42) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: Women in IT Team Up to Succeed (Page 43) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: Women in IT Team Up to Succeed (Page 44) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Feature: Women in IT Team Up to Succeed (Page 45) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Developer: Process XML Documents Within COBOL and DB2 (Page 46) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Developer: Process XML Documents Within COBOL and DB2 (Page 47) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Developer: Process XML Documents Within COBOL and DB2 (Page 48) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Developer: Process XML Documents Within COBOL and DB2 (Page 49) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - SSDs Are Integral to Enterprise Storage Infrastructures (Page 50) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - SSDs Are Integral to Enterprise Storage Infrastructures (Page 51) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - SSDs Are Integral to Enterprise Storage Infrastructures (Page 52) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - SSDs Are Integral to Enterprise Storage Infrastructures (Page 53) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Product News (Page 54) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Advertiser Index (Page 55) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Stop Run: Gordon Bruce Talks His Way Into a High-Profile IT Gig (Page 56) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Stop Run: Gordon Bruce Talks His Way Into a High-Profile IT Gig (Page 57) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Stop Run: Gordon Bruce Talks His Way Into a High-Profile IT Gig (Page 58) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Stop Run: Gordon Bruce Talks His Way Into a High-Profile IT Gig (Page Cover3) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Stop Run: Gordon Bruce Talks His Way Into a High-Profile IT Gig (Page Cover4) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Reference Point (Page RF1) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - Reference Point (Page RF2) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - 2010 Mainframe Buyer's Guide (Page BGCover1) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - 2010 Mainframe Buyer's Guide (Page BGCover2) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - August/September 2009 - 2010 Mainframe Buyer's Guide (Page BG1) IBM Systems Magazine, Mainframe digital edition - 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