Primary Storage

 View Only
  • 1.  What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    Community Leadership
    Posted Fri September 25, 2020 09:34 PM
    Edited by Peter Basmajian Fri October 09, 2020 03:02 PM
    We're often asked how NVMe technology can help IBM FlashSystem users, or those using our SAN switches.  Here is the first in a series of NVMe-related posts and frequently-asked questions. Please add any others you think will help other community members in the comments!

    Q: What is NVMe?
    A: Fundamentally, Non Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) is a protocol designed for high speed storage media. It's designed to remove some of the bottlenecks present in existing protocols, as well as increase the number of data queues which increases the ability to process data in parallel.

    Listen to IBM Distinguished Engineer @Brian Sherman and technology partner Broadcom explain in this short video!



    Q: As with any leading-edge technology, are there any risks or trade-offs to deploying NVMe that users need to be aware of? Listen below. 

     

    Q: Is NVMe all about speed? Or are there other advantages?



    Q: Should users consider special timing?



    Q: What is NVMeOF?
    NVMe Over Fabric (NVMeOF) extends the advantages of the NVMe protocol to the host layer, allowing lower latencies, increased transfer rates and reduced server IO workload demand. 16 and 32Gb Fibre Channel cards already support NVMeOF, and 25GbE iWARP and RoCE cards are ready for NVMeOF. This means you don't have to upgrade your IBM FlashSystem or IBM SAN Volume Controller (SVC) hardware when you upgrade your host environment. Host drivers and workloads also need to be ready for NVMeoF.

    Q: Do I have to use NVMeOF to take advantage of the NVMe storage?
    No, you can still use the other host interfaces (Fibre Channel and iSCSI) to take advantage of the NMVe storage.
    ​​​
    If you have other questions for our experts, please reply in the comments and they will reply directly! @Timothy Werts @Brian Sherman @Craig Nelson
    ​​​​​​​​​​
    ------------------------------
    Peter Basmajian
    Global Product Marketing and Advocacy, IBM
    San Francisco CA 650-542-7246
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    This message was posted by a user wishing to remain anonymous
    Posted Wed March 10, 2021 12:04 PM
    This post was removed


  • 3.  RE: What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    IBM Champion
    Posted Thu March 11, 2021 09:28 AM
    Peter,
    I'd like more info about NVMeOF.  I'm interested in learning how I can possibly leverage it in my existing environment with my 16GB Fibre Channel cards to help lower latency, increase transfer rates and reduce server IO workload.

    Regards,
    Norman

    ------------------------------
    Norman Owens
    Open Systems Architect
    Mohawk Industries
    ------------------------------



  • 4.  RE: What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    Posted Thu March 11, 2021 11:24 AM
    Hi Norman. A good place to get started is here https://www.ibm.com/support/knowledgecenter/en/STSLR9_8.4.0/com.ibm.fs9200_8401.doc/svc_fc_nvme_host_attachments.html . Feel free to reach out to me directly as well.

    ------------------------------
    Brian Sherman
    Distinguished Engineer
    IBM
    Markham ON
    ------------------------------



  • 5.  RE: What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    IBM Champion
    Posted Mon March 15, 2021 11:50 AM
    Thanks Brian.  I'm reviewing the documentation now.

    ------------------------------
    Norman Owens
    Open Systems Architect
    Mohawk Industries
    ------------------------------



  • 6.  RE: What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    Posted Fri March 12, 2021 11:39 AM

    Hi Norman. In addition  to Brians Link you will also need to look on you SAN infrastructure. 
    Cisco official NVMe support and validation for all 16Gbps/32Gbps MDS9000 switches with NX-OS 8.1
    Brocade Gen 5/6/7 is NVMe-ready also at a minimum firmware of 8.1. NVMe over Fibre Channel will run on existing Gen 5 and Gen 6 fabrics.

    If your concrete environment is supported you can check on SSIC https://www-03.ibm.com/systems/support/storage/ssic/interoperability.wss .



    ------------------------------
    Bernd Albrecht
    ------------------------------



  • 7.  RE: What is NVMe and how can it help me?

    IBM Champion
    Posted Mon March 15, 2021 11:49 AM
    Hi Bernd,

    Thanks for the info.  I'm not a SAN guy but I have IBM branded Brocade switches 2498-F48 (fos v8.2.2b) that was installed along with my IBM FlashSystem v9000 AE2.  Based on a quick search, it seems that my current switches are not NVMe-ready.

    ------------------------------
    Norman Owens
    Open Systems Architect
    Mohawk Industries
    ------------------------------