Iomega updated the 12-drive rack mount StorCenter device, introducing the px12-350r today

Iomega surprised exactly no one by announcing an updated 12-drive rack mount storage array today. Featuring “Cloud Edition” software introduced earlier this year, the px12-350r also sports mildly updated hardware specs, though still relies on Intel’s “Core2 Duo” CPUs and Gigabit Ethernet. The new device slots in between the desktop px4/px6 line and parent EMC’s new VNXe storage devices.

What’s In A Name?

According to Iomega’s established naming standard, the px12-350r uses the new “Cloud Edition” OS (“px”), features 12 drives, ought to perform better (“350″) than the existing “300″ devices, and is rack-mountable. Comparing it to the previous-generation ix12-300r reveals what Iomega changed and what they didn’t.

What’s new compared with the ix12-300r:

• Iomega stepped up from 5900 rpm “green” drives to faster 7200 rpm disks for more rotational IOPS
• 3 TB drives are now available, for a maximum of 36 TB raw storage, though many customers will likely choose less-expensive 2 TB drives instead
• Solid-state drives (SSD) are now available as an option like the desktop px line, though Iomega doesn’t get automatic sub-LUN tiered storage like EMC’s VNXe line
• The “Cloud Edition” OS includes Iomega’s nifty “personal cloud” replication features, allowing data to be moved to other Iomega px devices
• This new OS also supports SCSI3 persistent reservations, required to support many clustered server operating systems
• Iomega finally rolled out the Avamar deduplicating backup client I spotted last year at EMC World a few months ago, and it will be a featured component of the px12-350r
• On the hardware side, Iomega doubled the system memory to 4 GB, so it should handle more users than the previous device
• The px12-350r still uses Intel’s older Core2 Duo CPU range, though it’s not clear if this is the same 3 GHz E8400 chip
• The ix12-350r still features quad Gigabit Ethernet ports, not 10 Gigabit Ethernet like some competing products from companies like D-Link, HP, Overland, and Winchester

Impressions of the px12-350r

The software is all-new, but the px12 still relies on a Core2 Duo CPU and Gigabit Ethernet

Overall, I’m pleased but not overly amazed by Iomega’s new top-of-the-line device. This is partly due to the fact that I knew what was coming: This product was telegraphed by the px4-300r introduced previously. In fact, the shipping px12-350r doesn’t even offer the enhancements I expected: I suggested it would include Sandy Bridge CPUs and hoped for 10 Gigabit Ethernet.

I still expect a transition to next-generation Core CPUs in the coming year, and boxes like this will likely use that extra horsepower to run additional applications. I’m dreaming of a Sandy Bridge Xeon box with an integrated copy of VMware ESXi and 10 Gb Ethernet – such a device would be awesome for remote offices or small businesses!

Iomega’s “personal cloud” technology is perhaps improperly named for this product. It allows a small or mid-sized business to replicate and protect data to another Iomega px-series device without any monthly fees. The device can also back up to Mozy or Amazon S3, and the integrated Avamar client will be appreciated by larger customers.

This product, like the desktops and the previous-generation ix12-300r, includes PCI Express slots. I had hoped these might be populated with optional 10 Gigabit Ethernet cards (as many competitors offer) but these haven’t turned up yet. Iomega suggests smaller IT groups are still holding off on 10 GbE, perhaps waiting for 10GBASE-T. But 10 GbE pricing is dropping rapidly, and I’m seeing much interest from end users. I strongly suggest Iomega roll out this connectivity option in short order!

It’s interesting that VMware chose to develop their own software for the vSphere Storage Appliance (VSA) in vSphere 5 rather than use this Iomega/EMC LifeLine OS. LifeLine is possible as a VM: It will be available in the lab at VMworld! But this is not available for production.

Stephen’s Stance

Despite a lack of surprises, the px12-350r is still a solid SMB or remote office product. Retail price is $6k-$10k, slotting in below the EMC VNXe3100, and the device’s features reflect this product stratification as well. The consumer-sounding “personal cloud” data replication is actually much more useful in a small-business environment, and I suspect Iomega resellers will be pushing this (as long as they don’t sell some other replication option).

I expect further product updates from Iomega in the coming year, including a switch to Sandy Bridge (second-generation Intel Core) CPUs and the availability of 10 GbE. I’d also like to see the LifeLine software (and Iomega’s recommendations) abandon RAID5 in favor of some wide-striping “post-RAID” for performance and reliability. And integrated automated storage tiering would be great, though this would really show up the “big brother” VNXe line. Hey, a guy can dream right?

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | Iomega Introduces the StorCenter px12-350r
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Everything, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

The Iomega StorCenter PX4 is both an evolution of the older IX4 and the start of a new line of business-focused devices

Iomega today announced a new line of small desktop and rackmount storage devices. The PX Series addresses many of the limitations of the IX line, bringing high-performance CPUs, SSD, “bring your own drive” options, and “personal cloud” data protection. But the PX will not replace the recently-refreshed IX; instead, it segments the market between home office (IX) and small business (PX).

A Look Back At the IX

I have been ambivalent about Iomega’s IX line of StorCenter devices since they appeared in 2009. Although they bring impressive features like iSCSI and multimedia at a low cost, devices like the ix4-200d in my lab left me wanting more. This was especially true in the area of performance, where the 4-drive ix4 delivered a mediocre 25-30 MB/s of iSCSI throughput in my testing.

The core issue for the ix4 was its reliance of an under-powered embedded CPU and modest 512 MB of integrated DRAM. It was nice to have a sub-$1000 iSCSI array for VMware ESX and Microsoft Windows Server testing, but there was no way I would deploy it in a production business environment. The performance issue was addressed with the ix12-200r, but it came at a steeper price and that rack-mount device was not intended for use outside the data center.

Another concern about the IX was its dizzying set of features. One got the feeling that EMC’s engineers were given free rein when adding features to the StorCenter’s “LifeLine” platform, and the result was something of a mess. This improved with each successive release, but the IX feels like a servant of too many masters: Is it a home multimedia device, a security server, an office file server, or an iSCSI target for virtualization?

PX: A New Level of Performance?

The PX changes everything, or appears to at least. Clearly aimed at the small business and remote office market, the PX promises an enterprise feature set and the horsepower needed to deliver serious performance.

		PX4-300d	PX6-300d	PX4-300r
Form Factor		Desktop		Rack-Mount
Disk Slots		4	6	4
CPU		Intel Atom D525		Intel Celeron
RAM		2 GB SO-DIMM

Let’s start with the brain. All StorCenter PX devices include a dual-core Intel CPU: An Atom D525 in the PX4 and PX6 desktop models and a Celeron multi-core in the rack-mount PX4. All three models also feature 2 GB of RAM, and SSD can be used for high-performance applications. The StorCenter operating system should perform much better on this platform, which is reminiscent of the existing ix12 array. Expect that device to be refreshed shortly with SSD support and perhaps a Sandy Bridge CPU.

The new devices have been completely redesigned mechanically. The PX4 is similar in total volume to the IX4, though it appears smaller since it is taller and skinnier. The PX6 is a veritable tower, while the rack-mount PX4 has a conventional look but adds an optional swappable power supply and redundant fans for datacenter use.

Flexible Drive Options

Iomega has added "bring your own drive" capability to the PX line

There are three firsts in terms of drive support:

1. Iomega has added a “bring your own drive” (BYOD) option, allowing end users to buy an empty or partially-populated PX device and add supported drives in the future. The software does not support dissimilar drives as flexibly as some competitors, but this lowers the price point substantially.
2. The PX Series supports solid state drives (SSDs), as we will discuss in a moment.
3. Finally, the included drive carriers now support 2.5-inch drives, though capacity and price points make this less interesting except when it comes to SSDs.

This is a big step forward for Iomega, who has long required their own drives to be used in these devices. Iomega will ship 1, 2, and 3 TB Hitachi 7200 rpm Deskstar drives at first, but may add other options in the future. I expect a low-power “green” drive from Seagate or Western Digital.

The PX Series approved vendor list (AVL) includes many popular options, including the Hitachi Deskstar, Seagate Barracuda (including the LP line) and Western Digital Caviar and Green. The company has created an area in their support forums for customers to discuss other drive options, though only AVL-listed drives are supported. Since many of these drives are 4K natively, the PX Series should have no trouble with the shift to Advanced Format.

SSD Ahoy!

The introduction of solid state disk (SSD) storage is a major step forward. Iomega will use the excellent Micron C400 (aka Crucial M4) SSD in 128 or 256 GB capacity points. These  are installed in pairs and will typically be used as a RAID 1 mirror for performance-sensitive data. The best application for the SSD, therefore, is the 6-bay PX6-300d, along with a 4-disk RAID 5 set.

There is no automated storage tiering or SSD caching in the Iomega PX series. Administrators simply create RAID sets, LUNs, and shares on SSD or HDD and manually place data there based on need. It is possible to leverage the StorCenter’s included “copy job” functionality to create a rudimentary tiering system, but it seems likely that most users will rely on manual data placement.

It will be interesting to see what the combination of the dual-core 1.8 GHz Atom CPU and C400 SSD will offer in terms of performance. This represents a “maximum speed” configuration for the Iomega device and will likely set a new benchmark in the segment. Although just two Gigabit Ethernet ports are available for connectivity (no 10 GbE or USB 3.0), iSCSI and NFS performance should be very respectable. Iomega tells me they will be demonstrating a VMware VDI “boot storm” scenario using a PX6 with SSDs at EMC World next week.

Updated Software

Beyond the hardware, Iomega has revved the LifeLine software stack for performance, features, and integration. Iomega previewed many of these updates in the “Cloud Edition” versions of the IX2 and IX2 products earlier this year. This includes a cleaner interface as well as “Personal Cloud” software for SOHO or small business users.

The Personal Cloud is pretty clever, allowing different devices (StorCenter, IX Cloud, PX, PC and Mac) to share data using a peer-to-peer architecture. Desktop users experience Personal Cloud similar to Dropbox, using Explorer or Finder to mount a volume for drag and drop copies. This Iomega technology can be accessed remotely or scripted for data distribution between locations.

Owners of older Iomega IX devices can’t officially upgrade to Personal Cloud, but I’m told it is possible. Call the support team and ask for help. Sadly, this upgrade is destructive to data, so back up first!

One important change (necessitated by the BYOD option) is that the LifeLine operating system image is stored in (and executed from) flash rather than on the disks. The iSCSI stack finally supports SCSI-3 persistent reservations and trusted domains for clustering, and Iomega also promise that the updated iSCSI target software performs better with simultaneous file and block traffic.

Pricing and Availability

The PX Series is shipping to resellers now, and will be in end-user hands next week. Pricing is up from previous offerings, but still reasonable, especially in BYOD configurations. CDW has an exclusive on the pre-populated models, but others will sell BYOD versions (and the pre-populated arrays after 30 days).

Iomega will continue to sell the IX lineup for SOHO users but will focus on the PX for business and server use cases.

Stephen’s Stance

The StorCenter PX line is a major step forward for Iomega. The BYOD option is welcome, as is SSD performance and improved specs. With official Citrix XenServer, Microsoft Windows Server, and VMware ESX support, the PX is finally up to the task of business computing. We look forward to putting these new devices through their paces in the future!

Strategically, it makes sense for Iomega to segment their “network storage” offerings into the home/home office-oriented IX line and business-focused PX series. I would prefer even stronger differentiation and perhaps the elimination of home media features from the PX line. It pains me to mention it, but perhaps the IX no longer needs iSCSI support, since it was so woefully underpowered and unable to deliver on the promise of block storage. At least these features should be de-emphasized since they don’t appeal to the intended audience of the products.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | Iomega StorCenter PX Series Preview
This post was categorized as Apple, Enterprise storage, Features, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

• My writing:
  • My thoughts concerning HDS following their “blogger day” in London
  • My good friend W. Curtis Preston announced more Backup Central Live! dates; you really ought to go see him!
• Other great stuff:
  • Intel Announces New Xeon 4 Socket CPU (E7); Dell, HP and IBM Slated to Refresh Blades
  • Awesome! Free Microsoft iSCSI Target!
  • Anatomy of an Attack is a forthright and honest statement from an RSA blogger
  • The Impossible Project -new- PX 680 Film is amazing. Just amazing!
  • The Iomega StorCenter ix2-200 Network Storage, Cloud Edition is out
  • Jeff Fry shares his impression of Drobo

Subscribe to my Google Reader feed or follow me on Twitter to see these in real-time.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | Back From the Pile: Interesting Links, April 8, 2011
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Everything, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

CalDigit USB 3.0 PCI Express Card Review

I recommend the CalDigit PCI Express card for Mac Pro users with a need for (storage) speed!

No, Apple didn’t send me a sneak peak at some new hardware. My USB 3.0 experience comes courtesy of CalDigit, who sent me their Mac OS X-compatible USB 3.0 PCI Express card for evaluation. I’m pleased as punch with the card and software drivers they delivered, and it makes me crazy that this isn’t included by default in Mac Pro desktops, let alone the new MacBook Pros to be introduced tomorrow.

The CalDigit USB 3.0 adapter is a PCI Express card intended for use in a Mac Pro. A graphic artist friend of mine was kind enough to let me use his very-expensive Apple workstation for testing, and was so impressed that he turned around and ordered a CalDigit card for himself. Installation is a snap – just open the Mac Pro, unscrew the retainer above the PCI Express slots, slide the card in place, and screw everything back together. (Side note: I love Apple’s tower case design!)

I didn’t see a 4-pin mini floppy power connector inside the Mac Pro case, but the CalDigit card does include a compatible header. This would give the ports more power than they can draw from the PCI Express bus itself, but I didn’t see the need. Using only the PCI Express bus, I was able to spin up and use every USB bus-powered drive I tried with no issues.

Installing the software was a snap, too. CalDigit’s driver appears to be locked to only their card (I tried it with a variety of other USB 3.0 cards with no success) but it did support every USB 3.0 drive I tried. This is in stark contrast to the LaCie USB 3.0 driver which only talks to LaCie drives! Specifically, I connected two different Seagate GoFlex USB 3.0 drives, a generic USB 3.0-to-SATA adapter, and Iomega’s screaming-fast USB 3.0 SSD. Every one was instantly available to Mac OS X and visibly out-performed FireWire and USB 2.0.

Real-World Tests

Since this was not my own machine, I was not able to perform my usual benchmarks. But I did test some copy operations, experimenting with USB 2.0 and FireWire 400 and 800 connections. The 1 TB Seagate GoFlex drive pushed over 100 MB/s when using the CalDigit USB 3.0 card, according to my iPhone stopwatch, but were limited to about 45 MB/s and 30 MB/s when using FireWire 400 and USB 2.0, respectively. I had previously tested this drive using eSATA on my iMac and found it topped out at about 110 MB/s, so the drive itself appears to be the bottleneck when using USB 3.0.

Swapping in the Iomega USB 3.0 SSD was eye-opening. This drive proved to be blazing fast in my tests earlier in the week, topping 200 MB/s in both read and write operations when connected to my Asus Cougar Point motherboard running Windows 7. I wasn’t able to perform adequate benchmarks with the Iomega, but my stopwatch showed it accelerating past the GoFlex and easily pushing 150 MB/s or more. I wouldn’t doubt that the CalDigit card is capable of 200 MB/s with an appropriate storage device.

The CalDigit controller lagged in writes, but performance was still impressive

The story was somewhat different under Windows. My instrumented tests (using Atto Disk Benchmark in Windows 7) showed a curious slowdown in write operations compared to the ASMedia USB 3.0 controller selected by Asus for my P8H67-M Pro motherboard. The CalDigit card and drivers matched the ASMedia at over 200 MB/s in read operations to the Iomega SSD, but lagged behind at 150 MB/s when it came to writes. I wonder if perhaps Mac-oriented CalDigit did not optimize their Windows 7 drivers for this card. Of course, 150 MB/s is still more than four times faster than USB 2.0, and I would never have noticed this if I was only using a hard disk drive!

Stephen’s Stance

If you own a Mac Pro, there is no need to wait for Apple to release USB 3.0 hardware and software. I can unreservedly recommend the CalDigit USB 3.0 PCI Express card for Mac Pro owners. The performance and ease of use is well worth the $79 MSRP. With so many external storage vendors rapidly switching to USB 3.0, the days of FireWire 800 being top dog in Mac performance are over. I’d love to connect the new USB 3.0-equipped Drobo S to this card!

CalDigit promised to send me an ExpressCard USB 3.0 adapter to try in my MacBook Pro as soon as they refresh their stock. I’m eager to try it out, since I’ve noted less-thrilling performance in the other USB 3.0 ExpressCard adapters I have tried. Those maxed out at around 110 MB/s in my Dell XPS/Windows 7 laptop, suggesting serious performance limits for the ExpressCard form factor. I am curious to see how the MacBook Pro performs in comparison.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | USB 3.0 For Mac Is Here!
This post was categorized as Apple, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

The Iomega USB 3 SSD is the fastest drive I've ever tested

Iomega recently shipped me a USB 3.0 SSD for review. I previewed this unit in December, concluding the ultra-capacity, ultra-performance portable device was a new category rather than a giant thumb drive or overpriced alternative to portable hard disks. Now that I’ve got some hands-on time with the drive I can enthusiastically affirm that my impression was correct.

Fast, Spacious, and Rugged

Although burdened with a clunky and overly-descriptive name, the Iomega USB 3.0 SSD is eminently useful. It’s smaller in person than one would guess from pictures, notably slimmer than any portable hard disk drive. The case is made from solid brushed black aluminum, though the end caps are plastic.

The drive is pleasingly solid in the hand, reminiscent of an iPhone 4 or my Samsung SP-H03 rather than the hollow plasticky portable hard drives one often travels with. I had no compunction about throwing it in my laptop bag unprotected before a trip, and I’m certain it will survive thanks to the solid-state technology inside.

The shipping package is very small, with just a glossy quick-start sheet, USB 3.0 cable, and the SSD. Considering the high price (over $600 for the 256 GB model I received), the packaging is quite disappointing. Although the drive itself is very Apple-esque, the packaging screams “Windows cheap.” That USB cable is of the dual-jack power-and-data variety, though the drive functioned perfectly without the extra power in every USB 2.0 and 3.0 port I tried it in.

Quality Inside and Out

Being a hard-core storage geek, I was interested in just what components the SSD was built from. Iomega does not disappoint here, packing a top-notch Micron/Crucial SSD rather than some off-brand junk. The S300 SSD is the 1.8″ form factor model with a standard but uncommon Slim SATA connector. This is a speedy unit with a Marvell (dual-core ARM) controller and generous DRAM buffer capable of even higher performance than the USB 3.0 interface will allow.

The plastic endcaps are secured with a pair of philips screws hidden under black plastic stickers at each end. Remove these and the whole assembly (controller, SSD, and rubbery rails) slides out one end. The SSD is contained in a full metal case and those rails further isolate it from impacts. It’s much more solid than any laptop I’ve disassembled!

Blistering Performance

The Iomega SSD blasted through read operations at over 200 MB/s

With guts like this, it seems a shame to attach the SSD to a pedestrian USB 2.0 port. But USB 3.0 remains almost entirely off-limits to Apple users, so it’s worth a look anyway. USB 2.0 performance on my iMac and MacBook Pro is absolutely port-limited, but the Iomega SSD is the fastest device I’ve ever tested. I was able to top 36 MB/s in sequential performance, a few MB faster than any hard disk drive I’ve used. The built-in USB 2.0 controller in my Asus P8H67-M Pro motherboard just slid over 33 MB/s. I imagine a decent controller architecture and absolutely no latency contribute to this performance, since there’s no reason a spinning drive shouldn’t be able to match it.

The drive really shines with USB 3.0, however. Using the built-in ASMedia USB 3.0 controller in the Asus “Cougar Point” motherboard, the SSD delivered around 210 MB/s in sequential read and write performance, topping any hard disk drive I’ve tested. When tested in my Dell XPS Windows 7 laptop with an ExpressCard using NEC’s popular USB 3.0 chip, the drive maxed out at 110 MB/s, indicating a serious bottleneck in that configuration.

The CalDigit controller lagged in writes, but performance was still impressive

I also benchmarked the drive against a CalDigit SuperSpeed PCI Express Card for USB 3.0 for Mac I received at the same time for testing. This was more interesting: Although the CalDigit matched the ASMedia controller in read performance, it lagged behind in writes to the tune of 50 MB/s. Perhaps the CalDigit drivers were not optimized for write, or perhaps the NEC chip used by CalDigit isn’t up tot the task.

The shape of the graphs suggested it might be able to go faster if not limited by the USB 3.0 interface, so I ripped it open to see the Crucial disk inside. Sure enough, when connected directly to the 6 Gb/s Intel Cougar Point SATA controller, the SSD turned in 230 MB/s writes and over 300 MB/s reads. That’s a heck of a lot of performance from such a small device!

Stephen’s Stance

After testing the Iomega USB 3.0 SSD extensively both in terms of benchmarks and real-world usability, I’m sold on it. the only outstanding question is the high price of the unit: The 64 GB drive starts at an attainable $190, but the big 256 GB drive is downright expensive at $620 (street price). It’s hard to knock the drive’s performance, component choices, or build quality, but is it worth more than a budget laptop?

Disclaimer: As often happens with new gadgets, Iomega sent me this SSD free of charge for review, with no other strings attached. I examined it on my own and came away impressed.

Note: Some of these links include affiliate codes that help pay for this blog. For example, buying an Amazon Kindle with this link sends a few bucks my way! But I don't write this blog to make money, and am happy to link to sites and stores that don't pay anything. I like Amazon and buy tons from them, but you're free to buy whatever and wherever you want.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2011. | Iomega USB 3.0 SSD: Hands-On Review
This post was categorized as Apple, Everything, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

• We kick off this week still focused on Apple (of course) and their new MacBook Air. Although some have suggested it uses a mSATA or PCI Express Mini Card, it definitely does not. Read Apple’s Unconventional New MacBook Air SSD for more information.
• While we’re at it, I posted a video about How to install an internal Apple SuperDrive in an external USB case. Watch for a post soon!
• Finally, I posted another preview: Iomega Bundles Capacity and Performance in New External SSD Drive
• A blast from the past, (not so) Recent comments about FCoE and iSCSI from a 2007 discussion featuring some big names in storage
• Jay posted Drobo FS – A review – worth a read if you’re looking at the FS
• Then there’s Simon’s excellent piece on Running VMware vSphere on an HP MicroServer
• The Keyboard Cult looks at folks like me who love keyboards (mine is a 1987 IBM Model M)
• Four hidden features in vSphere 4.1 is another great read
• Last there’s the Storage Gorilla with Man Bites Dog – Why IBM (and everyone else) should fear EMC’s acquisition of Isilon Systems

Subscribe to my Google Reader feed or follow me on Twitter to see these in real-time.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | Back From the Pile: Interesting Links, October 26, 2010
This post was categorized as Apple, Enterprise storage, Everything. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

• The MacBook Air was a major topic of discussion, but I focused on the storage side of things (predictably)
  • Apple Replaces Operating System DVDs with the Software Reinstall Drive
  • Unconventional SSDs: PCI Express Mini Card (Mini PCI-E)
  • Apple’s Unconventional New MacBook Air SSD
  • Apple signals disk free notebooks way to go
  • HDDs’ Burgeoning Capacities: Aspiring To Cut Off SSDs At The Knees (a counterpoint)
• Iomega is back with an external USB 3.0 SSD: Iomega Bundles Capacity and Performance in New External SSD Drive
• Chris Evans is tackling some serious enterprise storage “as a service” concepts. This week it’s Billing:Enterprise Computing 4 Pillars – Billing for Tiered Storage
• HP is showing some serious interest in attracting enterprise IT pros, and Greg Ferro tackles it in HP ExpertONE certifications announced
• Mark Bowker questions conventional wisdom regarding server virtualization in A Virtual Reality Check
• And finally, Steve Duplessie points out the amazing circumstances that made storage the talk of the town in Hey Baby, Wanna See My LUN?

Subscribe to my Google Reader feed or follow me on Twitter to see these in real-time.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | Back From the Pile: Interesting Links, October 22, 2010
This post was categorized as Apple, Enterprise storage, Everything, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Is Iomega's new External SSD a new category or just a big flash drive?

Iomega, the anchor company in the Consumer and Small Business Products division of storage giant EMC, last week introduced an External SSD Flash Drive designed for business and “prosumer” users. Boasting USB 3.0, built-in encryption, and a suite of backup and security software, the drive is the vanguard of a new breed of rugged and compact external storage. Although expensive by consumer standards, business and pro users will welcome its combination of features and performance.

What Exactly Is This Thing?

Flash memory-based solid state drives (SSDs) are nothing new, of course, but neither are they as compact and portable as thumb-sized USB flash drives. Further, portable hard disk drives, including those made by Iomega, are hot sellers at retail for consumers looking to add capacity to their PCs. But every one of these products entails a trade-off in terms of usability, performance, and price.

SATA SSDs are fast and capacious but difficult for end-users to install and use. External drives are easier to connect, but their performance is limited by the USB 2.0 bus, although multiple companies, including Iomega, have recently launched USB 3.0 portable and desktop HDDs for use with high end desktop computers and laptop models now shipping with USB 3.0 ports.  This has led to the development of two distinct portable device categories: Small and cheap flash drives and large and slow portable hard disk drives.

Iomega’s new USB 3.0 SSD attempts to combine the best features of both device categories in a single package. Their SSD drive line features generous capacity points (64, 128, or 256 GB) and high performance (USB 3.0 is roughly 10 times faster than common USB 2.0 ports.)

Although pricey compared to portable flash drives and hard drives at $229, $399, and $749, respectively, this new external device is competitive with internal SSDs plus it offers the same capacity and performance as an internal SSD without the hassle of SATA or PCI installation.

The External SSD is a new product in a new category

A New Market Niche

This new drive is, as they say, neither fish nor fowl. It is a new category of storage and will therefore carve out a new market niche. Iomega clearly believes that it will be attractive to businesses, creative professionals and early adopters, as they have bundled it with their corporate-friendly Protection Suite features:

• Encryption
• “v.Clone” disk imaging
• QuickProtect and Roxio Retrospect Express backup software
• Trend Micro Internet Security
• Mozy Home Online Backup.

This feature set is similar to Iomega’s existing eGo portable hard drive offerings, and shows that the company expects to attract similar business and upscale individual customers. The built-in 256-bit AES encryption is a critical feature for a portable device, especially a fast SSD priced at hundreds of dollars. Loss and theft of portable drives is common, and this expensive device will be a tempting target.

Anyone spending this much on an external drive will be storing valuable and sensitive data on it. Although the loss of such a drive will be disappointing, the fact that the data it contained is secure will be reassuring to buyers. The AES encryption, though a hardware feature, requires installing a client application on the PC for access.

Portable hard disk drives are susceptible to physical damage as well, and this is another area where Iomega’s SSD shines. Solid state flash storage is almost impervious to shock, and the company claims the drive and its metal case will survive a drop of 10 feet. A generous 3-year warranty demonstrates their faith in the product, and experience shows that SSDs are exceptionally rugged.

Apple Macintosh users are left out in the cold at this point, however. The bundled software, including the encryption client, is Windows-only. One cannot fault Iomega for this, however, since Apple has not yet released a computer with a USB 3.0 port. Although the drive is backwards compatible with USB 2.0, the performance will disappoint.

It’s too bad that Apple is lagging, too, since their customers are exactly the sort upscale professionals that would be interested in (and could afford) a portable SSD like this. Demanding applications like video editing would fly with over 300 MB/s of real-world read and write performance, but only PC users will be able to use the drive. For those without a USB 3.0 port, Iomega does offer USB 3.0 adapters for PC users (an ExpressCard for laptops or a PCI Express card for desktops), priced at just $39.99. These adapters are Windows-only as well, however.

Stephen’s Stance

Although expensive, Iomega’s External SSD Flash Drive combines portability, performance, capacity, and durability unmatched by existing SSDs, flash drives, and portable hard disk drives. Corporations looking to equip their mobile professionals with a rugged and reliable external storage solution should consider investing in drives like this rather than constantly replacing failed mechanical hard disks. The built-in AES encryption is a huge benefit for these organizations, as is the rest of the software bundle. Mac users will just have to wait for Apple to get on the USB 3.0 bandwagon.

Disclaimer: I was paid by DCIG to write this, and it was posted first on their web site. I received no compensation from Iomega, though they offered to send me a review unit after their briefing.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | Iomega Bundles Capacity and Performance in New External SSD Drive
This post was categorized as Apple, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

iTunes 10 breaks third-party server compatibility. Again.

Do you use an “iTunes compatible” device like an Iomega ix4 or Drobo FS or Roku SoundBridge? Have you noticed that it no longer works since you updated to iTunes 10? That’s because Apple made a simple change to their Digital Audio Access Protocol (DAAP) that causes third-party devices to fail to connect correctly. Although software patches are already appearing, there is no guarantee that older devices like that Roku will ever be updated.

DAAP, Firefly, and iTunes Clients

Apple introduced “music sharing” over a network in version 4.0 of iTunes way back in 2003, and third-party devices have been trying to play along ever since. Digital Audio Access Protocol (DAAP) was based on http and xml and leverages zeroconf/Bonjour to discover and stream audio across a network. iTunes can act as both a server or client.

Although Apple only licensed the protocol to a select few client applications, DAAP was successfully reverse-engineered shortly after its debut and integrated into a number of third-party clients and servers. Apple has continually modified DAAP for almost a decade, adding MD5-based and proprietary authentication in versions 4.2 and 4.5, but this has not stopped third-party servers like the open-source Firefly/mt-daapd from serving as an iTunes server.

Apple was successful in preventing third-party clients from accessing music through iTunes, adding a client validation challenge to version 7.0 that has not yet been broken. This allowed them to limit client access to only those few third parties who paid for a license, including the Roku SoundBridge that I own.

No More Servers?

Did your "iTunes-compatible" home NAS suddenly stop serving music?

Since it was open source and capable of supporting iTunes, the Firefly Media Server (formerly called mt-daapd) has seen widespread use in “home media servers” like the Iomega ix4 and Drobo FS. Just about every home NAS that supports iTunes uses this software or a related fork, and just about every one stopped working with the release of iTunes 10.

As of version 10, when iTunes requests a list of songs, it requires the server to respond with a correct “mediakind” response. Previous versions apparently assumed type 1 (music) whenever this was missing, but iTunes 10 simply refuses to play, reporting odd error messages like “untitled playlist.” So Apple has broken iTunes compatibility. Again.

A patch is ready for some versions of mt-daapd, but a more important question is raised: Should commercial products rely on reverse-engineered protocols like DAAP? Much of the Apple ecosystem is reliant on reverse engineering, from iPod chargers to AFP to Time Machine. Many of the resulting “tricks” are commercialized in a wide variety of products from manufacturers small and large. Even IT titans like HP and EMC advertise Apple support based on reverse-engineered protocols!

Stephen’s Stance

Anyone want to buy a lightly-used Roku SoundBridge? It may work with iTunes for a while yet...

In my review of the Drobo FS, I questioned the wisdom of relying on “buggy and limited software” and discussed my use of “a real iTunes instance on my always-running iMac.” My experience with a Linksys NSLU2 running Firefly was never positive. Even my two Roku SoundBridge clients don’t work very well, and they’re licensed! I’m much happier with the performance of my AirPort Express, even though it would be nice if Apple would update the Remote app for the iPhone!

Many people complain about Apple’s “walled garden” approach, and I think they have a point when it comes to protocols like DAAP. By not allowing third parties to develop compatible hardware and software, they’ve forced everyone underground. Now that they’ve changed their implementation, all of these devices are “broken” in the eyes of users. Some, like the Roku, are out of date and might never be updated.

This is typical Apple. Out with the old and in with the new. They did the same with their own Apple TV hardware this month, stranding the few buyers it found without an update. Some may suggest that this minor change to iTunes is a conspiracy to push AirPlay, but I imagine it’s a simple case of upgrade-itis. Who cares about all that old junk when all this pretty new hardware and software is available?

We really can’t blame Apple for this. They never allowed the DAAP protocol to be used, and never promised that these reverse-engineered servers would work. In fact, I wonder why they even allowed “iTunes compatibility” to be promised without licensing. Perhaps some of the larger companies have Apple licenses, but I doubt it. At the end of the day, it is these vendors who are responsible for promising compatibility that they could not hope to deliver.

Note: The Roku SoundBridge still works fine as a client with iTunes 10. To clarify, I was saying that Apple could break this functionality in the future and Roku would be unlikely to fix it since they seem to have abandoned this product line.

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | iTunes 10 Breaks Non-Apple Streaming (Again)
This post was categorized as Apple, Computer History, Everything, Personal, Terabyte home. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.

Native Avamar support in the ix12-300r? That's new!

Chocolate and Peanut Butter

EMC’s Avamar backup product deserves much more press than it gets. Global deduplication is the secret sauce, allowing high efficiency for backups, both in terms of capacity and bandwidth usage. This means that Avamar is very well-suited for small business and remote office use.

Iomega’s new ix12 is similarly well-suited in this environment. It includes flexible storage allocation, both iSCSI SAN and NAS, and is bursting with features, from replication to webcam support. The 12-drive array fits perfectly into the small-business and remote-office markets with a low $5k-$10k price tag.

Avamar’s backup deduplication technology and Iomega’s “just right” small-business storage is a real “chocolate-and-peanut butter” combination. Both target the same markets and mixing them together is even better than selling them apart. Integrated Avamar client support makes the ix12 even more compelling, and will likely drive Avamar sales as well.

I talked to the Iomega execs at EMC World and they confirmed that this support will be included in the shipping ix12 software but was not yet supported by the company. They expect Avamar qualification to come later in the year, but I suspect that customer interest could accelerate this timetable. If you are interested in the combination, let Iomega and Avamar know!

ix12 Impressions

My release-day review of the ix12-300r was based on press materials and a briefing, but getting a hands-on look at the device revealed details beyond the Avamar support. I was quite pleased by the build quality of the array: It is solidly constructed and the connectors, fans, and power supplies looked to be of high quality. The designers seem to have paid attention to cooling and airflow, important in a box containing 12 spinning hard disk drives. The dual power supplies are hot-swappable and seemed fairly robust as well.

I also spotted two empty PCI Express slots at the rear of the ix12. One wonders what use Iomega will put these to. One can imagine adding additional gigabit or 10 gigabit Ethernet controllers, but solid-state storage (SSD) would be much more interesting. The ix12′s LifeLink software has been enhanced fore more-flexible RAID configuration; I wonder if it also includes the ability to tier storage to SSD. A mini array with EMC’s FAST technology would be compelling, but the use of SSD as a cache (FAST Cache?) might be simpler to implement.

Clearly, the ix12-300r is much more than a SATA-expanded ix4-200r. Iomega is adding real valuable business features to the system and moving it ever closer to the EMC and Dell CLARiiON products. Yet the price is still well below those systems. Chocolate and peanut butter, anyone?

© sfoskett for Stephen Foskett, Pack Rat, 2010. | EMC Mixes Avamar Into Iomega ix12-300r
This post was categorized as Enterprise storage, Gestalt IT, Terabyte home, Virtual Storage. Each of my categories has its own feed if you'd like to filter out or focus on posts like this.