EMC VNX2 Hardware Components, VNX5200, VNX5400, VNX5600, VNX5800, VNX7600, VNX8000

EMC VNX2 Hardware Components

Technology

VNX2 storage systems include these hardware components:

  • Storage Processors (SPs) support block data with UltraFlex I/O technology that supports Fibre Channel, iSCSI, and FCoE protocols. The SPs provide access for all external hosts and the file components of the VNX array.
  • The Storage Processor Enclosure (SPE) is 4U in size and houses dual storage processors. This form factor is used for the high-end VNX8000™ model. It does not contain any onboard drive slots and requires the use of DAEs, supporting a maximum of 1,500 drives.
  • The Disk Processor Enclosure (DPE) is 3U in size and houses dual storage processors and the first tray of disks. Mid-to-high-end VNX2 models (VNX5200, VNX5400, VNX5600, VNX5800, and VNX7600) use this form factor. It contains 25 x 2.5” onboard drive slots and supports a maximum of 125, 250, 500, 750, and 1000 drives, respectively.
  • Blade (or Data Mover) accesses data from the back end and provides host access using the same UltraFlex I/O technology that supports the NFS, CIFS, and pNFS protocols. The blades in each array are scalable and provide redundancy.
  • The Data Mover Enclosure (DME) is 2U in size and houses the Data Movers (Blades). All file and unified VNX models use at least one DME.
  • Li-Ion Standby Power Supplies (SPSs) are 2U in size and used only in the VNX8000. There are two SPSs in a VNX8000 array. Each SPS has two batteries. One SPS provides backup power to the SPE, and the second to the first DAE. These SPSs provide enough power to each storage processor and first DAE to ensure that any data in flight is de-staged to the vault area in the event of a power failure, guaranteeing no writes are lost. When the array is restarted, the pending writes are reconciled and persisted.
  • Battery Backup Units (BBUs) are used in the VNX5200, VNX5400, VNX5600, VNX5800, and VNX7600. There are a total of two BBUs per array (one per SP) and they are installed in the base module of each SP. BBUs provide enough power to ensure that any data in flight is de-staged to the vault area in the event of a power failure.
  • Control Stations are 1U in size and provide management functions to the file blades. The Control Station is responsible for controlling blade failover. The Control Station may optionally be configured with a matching secondary Control Station to ensure redundancy on the VNX2 array.
  • Disk Array Enclosures (DAE) house the drives used in the array. They enable the expansion of each array’s drive count to provide the storage needed for expanding needs over time of each implementation. The 15-drive DAE is 3U in size, the 25-drive is 2U in size, the 60-drive DAE is 4U in size, and the 120-drive DAE is 3U in size.
  • The SPE/DPE and DME use dual power supplies that are integrated into the chassis, and provide back-up electricity if a single power supply fails.
  • For NAS services (i.e., Data Mover Blade I/O options):
    • 4-port 1 GbaseT Ethernet copper module
    • 2-port 10 Gb Ethernet optical/twin-ax module
    • 2-port 10 GBaseT Ethernet copper module
  • For Block Services to host (i.e., Storage Processor I/O options):
    • 4-port 8 Gb optical Fibre Channel UltraFlex I/O module
    • 4-port 16 Gb optical Fibre Channel UltraFlex I/O module
    • 4-port 1 GBaseT Ethernet iSCSI/TOE module
    • 2-port 10 Gb Ethernet optical/twin-ax iSCSI/TOE module
    • 2-port 10 GBaseT Ethernet copper iSCSI/TOE module
    • 2-port FCoE optical/twin-ax module

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