New hybrid storage solution from AIC
Advanced Industrial Computer announced the release of its IP100-series NAS/iSCSI hybrid storage tower. The product family consists of two models with support for either five or ten 3.5″ SATA disks, RAID functionality, and 4 x 1 Gb/s of Ethernet host bandwidth – an ideal solution for SMB and enterprise workgroup environments in need of a dynamic storage infrastructure.
The IP100-series hybrid storage is powered by a dual-core Intel Atom processor 330 running at 1.6 GHz and armed with 1MB of cache. Both models include 1GB of fast and energy-efficient DDR2 RAM, upgradeable to 4GB. The platform’s network performance is enhanced by quad Gigabit Ethernet ports, which can be upgraded for teaming/bonding for exceptional throughput and for fault tolerance.
Native support for RAID levels 0, 1, 5, and 6 lets administrators configure an optimal blend of performance and redundancy. And because the product is designed to accommodate 3.5″ SATA hard drives, available capacity can be scaled to 10TB or 20TB using disks from AIC’s validated hardware list. Two 3 Gb/s eSATA ports facilitate additional SATA expansion, extending the IP100’s scalability outside of the box.
Leveraging the Intel Atom processor’s energy-efficient 45nm architecture, AIC’s IP100 boasts Open-E’s established Data Storage Server (DSS) RAID engine, which enables the scalable unified file- and block-level storage subsystem. Compatibility with the SMB/CIFS, FTP, HTTP, AppleTalk, and NFS protocols guarantee NAS interoperability, while a built-in software iSCSI initiator with optional failover function helps ensure SAN uptime as well. The standard installation supports 2TB physical and logical volumes and is upgradeable to support larger data repositories.
Managing the appliance locally or remotely is simple through a customizable Web-based GUI. Built-in hardware server statistics monitor network throughput, disk usage, and CPU/ memory utilization. SNMP (v.2 v.3 v.4) support and email notification helps remote administrators keep tabs on the system’s status as if they were on-site.
The IP100 is able to simultaneously deliver file sharing, backup, data consolidation, and robust disaster recovery thanks to its hardware foundation and software platform. AIC couples each model with a right-sized power supply (270W or 400W) to maximize operating efficiency and keep power consumption at a minimum.
The MSRP of SSG-IPCA4G1-005B-A1 is $1,100 while SSG-IPCA4G1-010B-A1 is $2,500. An upcoming version of the appliance will accommodate ten 2.5″ drive bays in 1U form factor, enabling more I/O intensive storage applications.