IBM® has announced native Internet Protocol (IP) replication using Bridgeworks SANSlide technology with its IBM System Storage® SAN Volume Controller (SVC), IBM Storwize® V7000, IBM Storwize V5000 and Storwize V3700 virtualized storage systems. This combination of SANSlide and the SVC/Storwize family provides a powerful solution for clients who require efficient, IP-based replication over long distances. This certification gives SVC/Storwize clients a fully supported, transparent technology that includes unmatched levels of performance and reliability. With the SANSlide protocol acceleration technology, it is now possible to replicate data across continents in a cost-efficient way, with little or no loss in performance. At the same time, bandwidth usage can improve to over 95%, rather than the 1% - 5% normally achieved in long-distance IP networks. This IBM RedpaperTM publication shows the steps required to implement this solution efficiently and speedily.

This IBM® Redbooks® publication describes several of the preferred practices and describes the performance gains that can be achieved by implementing the IBM SAN Volume Controller powered by IBM Spectrum® Virtualize V8.4. These practices are based on field experience. This book highlights configuration guidelines and preferred practices for the storage area network (SAN) topology, clustered system, back-end storage, storage pools, and managed disks, volumes, Remote Copy services, and hosts. Then, it provides performance guidelines for IBM SAN Volume Controller, back-end storage, and applications. It explains how you can optimize disk performance with the IBM System Storage Easy Tier® function. It also provides preferred practices for monitoring, maintaining, and troubleshooting IBM SAN Volume Controller. This book is intended for experienced storage, SAN, and IBM SAN Volume Controller administrators and technicians. Understanding this book requires advanced knowledge of the IBM SAN Volume Controller, IBM FlashSystem, and SAN environments.

Data is the new currency of business, the most critical asset of the modern organization. In fact, enterprises that can gain business insights from their data are twice as likely to outperform their competitors; yet, 72 percent of them have not started or are only planning big data activities. In addition, organizations often spend too much money and time managing where their data is stored. The average firm purchases 24% more storage every year, but uses less than half of the capacity it already has. A member of the IBM® Storwize® family, IBM SAN Volume Controller (SVC) Data Platform is a storage virtualization system that enables a single point of control for storage resources to help support improved business application availability and greater resource utilization. The objective is to manage storage resources in your IT infrastructure and to make sure they are used to the advantage of your business, and do it quickly, efficiently, and in real time, while avoiding increases in administrative costs. Virtualizing storage with SVC Data Platform helps make new and existing storage more effective. SVC Data Platform includes many functions traditionally deployed separately in disk systems. By including these in a virtualization system, SVC Data Platform standardizes functions across virtualized storage for greater flexibility and potentially lower costs. SVC Data Platform functions benefit all virtualized storage. For example, IBM Easy Tier® optimizes use of flash storage. And IBM Real-time CompressionTM enhances efficiency even further by enabling the storage of up to five times as much active primary data in the same physical disk space. Finally, high-performance thin provisioning helps automate provisioning. These benefits can help extend the useful life of existing storage assets, reducing costs. Integrating these functions into SVC Data Platform also means that they are designed to operate smoothly together, reducing management effort. In this IBM Redbooks® publication, we discuss the latest features and functions of the SVC 2145-DH8 and software version 7.3, implementation, architectural improvements, and Easy Tier.

Businesses of all sizes are faced with the challenge of managing huge volumes of data that are becoming increasingly valuable. But storing this data can be costly, and extracting value from the data is becoming more and more difficult. IT organizations have limited resources and cannot afford to make investment mistakes. The IBM® Storwize® V3500 system provides a smarter solution that is affordable, simple, and efficient, which enables businesses to overcome their storage challenges. IBM Storwize V3500 is the most recent addition to the IBM Storwize family of disk systems. It delivers easy-to-use, entry-level configurations that are specifically designed to meet the modest budgets of small and medium-sized businesses. IBM Storwize V3500 features the following highlights: - Consolidate and share data with low cost iSCSI storage networking. - Deploy storage in minutes and perform storage management tasks quickly and easily through a breakthrough graphical user interface. - Experience peace of mind with proven IBM Storwize family high-availability data protection with snapshot technology and IBM warranty support. - Optimize efficiency by allocating only the amount of disk space needed at the time it is required with high performance, thin-provisioning capabilities.

This IBM® Redbooks® Product Guide publication describes the IBM FlashSystem® 5200 solution, which is a next-generation IBM FlashSystem control enclosure. It is an NVMe end-to-end platform that is targeted at the entry and midrange market and delivers the full capabilities of IBM FlashCore® technology. It also provides a rich set of software-defined storage (SDS) features that are delivered by IBM Spectrum® Virtualize, including the following features: Data reduction and deduplication Dynamic tiering Thin provisioning Snapshots Cloning Replication Data copy services Transparent Cloud Tiering IBM HyperSwap® including 3-site replication for high availability (HA) Scale-out and scale-up configurations further enhance capacity and throughput for better availability. The IBM FlashSystem 5200 is a high-performance storage solution that is based on a revolutionary 1U form factor. It consists of 12 NVMe Flash Devices in a 1U storage enclosure drawer with full redundant canister components and no single point of failure. It is designed for businesses of all sizes, including small, remote, branch offices and regional clients. It is a smarter, self-optimizing solution that requires less management, which enables organizations to overcome their storage challenges. Flash has come of age and price point reductions mean that lower parts of the storage market are seeing the value of moving over to flash and NVMe--based solutions. The IBM FlashSystem 5200 advances this transition by providing incredibly dense tiers of flash in a more affordable package. With the benefit of IBM FlashCore Module compression and new QLC flash-based technology becoming available, a compelling argument exists to move away from Nearline SAS storage and on to NVMe. With the release of IBM FlashSystem 5200 Software V8.4, extra functions and features are available, including support for new Distributed RAID1 (DRAID1) features, GUI enhancements, Redirect-on-write for Data Reduction Pool (DRP) snapshots, and 3-site replication capabilities. This book is aimed at pre-sales and post-sales technical support and marketing and storage administrators.

The use of external storage and the benefits of virtualization became a topic of discussion in the IBM® i area during the last several years. The question tends to be, what are the advantages of the use of external storage that is attached to an IBM i environment as opposed to the use of internal storage. The use of IBM PowerVM® virtualization technology to virtualize Power server processors and memory also became common in IBM i environments. However, virtualized access to external storage and network resources by using a VIO server is still not widely used. This IBM Redbooks® publication gives a broad overview of the IBM Storwize® family products and their features and functions. It describes the setup that is required on the storage side and describes and positions the different options for attaching IBM Storwize family products to an IBM i environment. Basic setup and configuration of a VIO server specifically for the needs of an IBM i environment is also described. In addition, different configuration options for a combined setup of IBM PowerHA® SystemMirror® for i and the Storwize family products are described and positioned against each other. Detailed examples are provided for the setup process that is required for these environments. The information that is provided in this book is useful for clients, IBM Business Partners, and IBM service professionals who need to understand how to install and configure their IBM i environment with attachment to the Storwize family products.

This IBM® Redbooks® publication describes the new features that have been added with the release of the IBM System Storage® SAN Volume Controller (SVC) and IBM System Storage Storwize® V7000 6.4.0 code, including Replication Family Services. Replication Family Services refers to the various copy services available on the SVC and Storwize V7000 including IBM FlashCopy®, Metro Mirror and Global Mirror, Global Mirror with Change Volumes, Volume Mirroring, and Stretched Cluster Volume Mirroring. The details behind the theory and practice of these services are examined, and SAN design suggestions and troubleshooting tips are provided. Planning requirements, automating copy services processed, and fabric design are explained. Multiple examples including implementation and server integration are included, along with a discussion of software solutions and services that are based on Replication Family Services. This book is intended for use by pre-sales and post-sales support, and storage administrators. Readers are expected to have an advanced knowledge of the SVC, Storwize V7000, and the SAN environment. The following publications are useful resources that provide background information: Implementing the IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller V6.3, SG24-7933 Implementing the IBM Storwize V7000 V6.3, SG24-7938 IBM SAN Volume Controller and Brocade Disaster Recovery Solutions for VMware, REDP-4626 IBM System Storage SAN Volume Controller Upgrade Path from Version 4.3.1 to 6.1, REDP-4716 Real-time Compression in SAN Volume Controller and Storwize V7000, REDP-4859 SAN Volume Controller: Best Practices and Performance Guidelines, SG24-7521 Implementing the Storwize V7000 and the IBM System Storage SAN32B-E4 Encryption Switch, SG24-7977

This IBM® Redbooks® publication describes the IBM storage area network (SAN) and IBM SpectrumTM Virtualize, and SAN Volume Controller Enhanced Stretched Cluster configuration when combined with VMware. It describe guidelines, settings, and implementation steps necessary to achieve a satisfactory implementation. Business continuity and continuous availability of applications are among the top requirements for many organizations today. Advances in virtualization, storage, and networking make enhanced business continuity possible. Information technology solutions can now be designed to manage both planned and unplanned outages, and to take advantage of the flexibility, efficient use of resources, and cost savings that cloud computing offers. The IBM Enhanced Stretched Cluster design offers significant functions for maintaining business continuity in a VMware environment. You can dynamically move applications across data centers without interruption to those applications. The live application mobility across data centers relies on these products and technologies: IBM Spectrum Virtualize and SAN Volume Controller Enhanced Stretched Cluster Solution VMware Metro vMotion for live migration of virtual machines A Layer 2 IP Network and storage networking infrastructure for high-performance traffic management Data center interconnection

IBM® Spectrum Virtualize Software Version 7.8 provides software-defined storage capabilities across various platforms, including IBM SAN Volume Controller, IBM Storwize® V7000, Storwize V7000 (Unified), Storwize V5000, Storwize V3700, and Storwize V3500. These offerings help clients reduce the complexities and cost of managing their storage in the following ways: Centralizing management of storage volumes to enable administrators to manage storage volumes from a single point Improving utilization of storage capacity with virtual volumes to enable businesses to tap into previously unused disk capacity Avoiding downtime for backups, maintenance, and upgrades Performing data migration without disruption to applications Enabling all storage devices to be organized into storage pools from which virtual volumes, whether standard, compressed, or thin-provisioned, are created with the characteristics that you want Delivering automation of storage management with SmartCloud Virtual Storage Center, IBM Tivoli® Storage Productivity Center (as applicable by platform), and IBM Tivoli Storage FlashCopy® Manager (as applicable by platform) Increasing the performance efficiency of storage pools with IBM Easy Tier® Restoring data access quickly with near and remote copy capabilities across Fibre Channel (FC), Fibre Channel over Ethernet (FCoE), and IP networks In this IBM Redbooks® publication, which is aimed at storage administrators and technical professionals, we describe the IBM HyperSwap® capability in IBM SpectrumTM Virtualize Software V7.8. HyperSwap delivers high availability (HA) and disaster recovery (DR) in one solution and reuses capital investments to achieve a range of recovery and management options that are transparent to host operations. This book describes how you can use HyperSwap with VMware to create an environment that can withstand robust workloads.

This IBM® Redbooks® publication provides an introduction and overview of the latest products in the IBM FlashSystem® 5000 Family, including their hardware and software features.