IBM Huge TS3500 Library

The IBM System Storage TS3500 Tape Library (machine type 3584) is part of the family of tape library storage solutions designed for the large, unattended storage requirements in today’s midrange to high-end systems. Each aspect of the subsystem is designed to optimize access to data and reliability. The TS3500 Tape Library supports the IBM System Storage LTO Ultrium and Enterprise Tape Drives.

The TS3500 Tape Library now includes support for the new high-density (HD) expansion frames, Models S54 and S24, which are compatible with current TS3500 library frames. Models S54 and S24, are driveless, storage-only expansion frames, with Model S54 designed to contain up to 1,320 Ultrium (LTO) tape cartridges and Model S24 designed to contain up to 1,000 3592 tape cartridges. Model S54 offers a 3:1 increase in slot capacity over the Model D53 and Model S24 a 2.5:1 increase in slot capacity over the Model D23.

The TS3500 Tape Library Model S54 can be attached to installed Model D32, D52, D53, L32, L52, and L53 with IBM TS1040 or LTO Ultrium Tape Drives. Model S24 can be attached to Model D22, D23, L22, and L23 with TS1130 or 3592 Tape Drives.

The TS3500 Models S24 and S54 also incorporate IBM’s patented HD slot technology, which allow multiple cartridges to be stored in a tiered architecture. The depth of a cartridge location in a high-density slot is known as a tier. (Previous model frames support only one cartridge per storage slot.) High-density slots are designed to contain multiple cartridges in Tiers 1 through 4 (Model S24) or Tiers 1 through 5 (Model S54).

The TS3500 Tape Library is designed to provide an excellent network data backup/archive solution. With the granularity and scalability to follow your requirements from a few servers to hundreds of clients, from gigabytes to petabytes, this powerful pairing can grow with you, helping to protect your investment.

Model S24
The TS3500 Tape Library Model S24 is a high-density, storage-only expansion frame that can contain up to 1,000 3592 tape cartridges, compared to 400 3592 cartridges in the Model D23. The base capacity for a Model S24 frame consists of up to 600 storage slots available in Tiers 0, 1, and 2. In order to use the additional high-density capacity of up to 400 storage slots in Tiers 3 and 4, the Capacity on Demand (CoD) feature #1645 for Model S24 is required. Advanced Library Management System (ALMS) and an enhanced gripper assembly are required for any library with a Model S24 frame.

Model S54
The TS3500 Tape Library Model S54 is a high-density, storage-only expansion frame that can contain up to 1,320 LTO Ultrium cartridges, compared to 440 LTO cartridges in the Model D53. The base capacity for a Model S54 frame consists of up to 660 storage slots available in Tiers 0, 1, and 2. In order to use the additional high-density capacity of up to 660 storage slots in Tiers 3, 4, and 5, the CoD feature #1646 for Model S54. ALMS and an enhanced gripper assembly are required for any library with a Model S54 frame.

TS3500 Tape Library means high performance
The IBM TS1040 LTO Ultrium Tape Drives and TS1130 Tape Drives are designed for high performance in a streaming mode of operation. Automatic data caching, using an expanded cache memory and read/write buffering, helps enhance performance even further. The TS3500 Tape Library is designed for high data transfer performance.

Cartridge move time within the TS3500 Tape Library can be as short as 3.0 seconds or less in a single-frame library. The dual-gripper accessor is designed to retrieve the next cartridge to be mounted, unload the current cartridge, and load the next cartridge, helping provide the following potential benefits as compared to a single gripper:

• Save complete move operations
• Improve overall library performance
• Increase redundancy and reliability

TS3500 Tape Library defines high reliability
Leading-edge technology designed to position the TS1130 Tape Drives and TS1040 LTO Ultrium Tape Drives among the tape technology. Highly accurate recording is supported by an exclusive thin-film write module designed by IBM with read-after-write data verification. Data read is managed by IBM’s Magneto Resistive (MR) heads, designed for accuracy, high reliability, and durability. The TS3500 drives and library robotics are TapeAlert-compatible, and are designed to provide tape drive and library error and diagnostic reporting. Drive cleaning is an automatic function that can be performed by the library when required by the drive, without requiring operator intervention.

Advanced Library Management System (ALMS)
ALMS is the next generation of patented IBM Multi-Path Architecture. ALMS provides a license key to enable dynamic management of cartridges, cartridge storage slots, tape drives, and logical libraries. Tape drives can be assigned to any logical library using a Web user interface. It is designed to allow logical libraries to be added, deleted, or easily changed non-disruptively. In addition, storage capacity can be added while avoiding impact to host applications in many instances.

ALMS is designed to avoid outages when adding capacity on demand (COD) storage, adding or removing logical libraries, or when changing logical library storage allocation. The use of ALMS may also help reduce outages when adding expansion frames, adding or removing tape drives, or changing logical drive allocation.

TS1130 Tape Drive, Model E06
The new TS1130 Tape Drive, Model E06 (machine type 3592) is designed for automation and uses a tape cartridge with a form factor similar to the 3590 tape cartridges, which allows it to be used in the TS3500 Tape Library. The TS1130 Tape Drive is designed to provide higher levels of performance, reliability, and cartridge capacity than the TS1120 Model E05 Tape Drive. The TS1130 has a high-technology Giant Magneto Resistive (GMR) head design and provides a native data rate performance of up to 160 MB/sec versus the 100 MB/sec data rate of the TS1120 Tape Drive Model E05. The TS1130 E06 Tape Drive has a dual-port 4-Gbps Fibre Channel interface for Fibre Channel attachment to host systems or a switched fabric environment.

With the use of the IBM 3592 Extended Data cartridge (JB), the TS1130 Model E06 can format a cartridge uncompressed up to 1 TB (3 TB with 3:1 compression).

The TS1130 Model E06 is designed to support capacity scaling of an individual tape cartridge to 20% of maximum capacity (128 GB for standard tape cartridges or 200 GB for extended tape cartridges). Capacity scaling lets the utilized length of tape to be logically shortened, allowing improved data access times in trade off for reduced capacity. The tapes can subsequently be scaled back to full capacity as needed. For details on the TS1130 (3592) Tape Drive, refer to Hardware Announcement 108-493, dated July 15, 2008.

TS1040 Tape Drive, Model F4A
The IBM System Storage TS1040 Tape Drive, Model F4A (machine type 3588) provides integration of IBM LTO Ultrium 4 Tape Drives in the TS3500 Tape Library and offers enhancements in performance, capacity, and reliability over today’s IBM Ultrium 3 Tape Drives. The tape cartridge capacity of the IBM LTO Ultrium 4 800 GB Data Cartridge has doubled over the IBM LTO Ultrium 3 400 GB Data Cartridge to 800 GB native physical capacity (1,600 GB with 2:1 compression). Ultrium 4 Tape Drives can read and write LTO Ultrium 3 Data Cartridges and read LTO Ultrium 2 Data Cartridges.

The TS1040 Tape Drives and LTO Ultrium 4 data cartridges are supported in TS3500 Models L32, L52, L53, D32, D52, and D53 frames. In addition, the Ultrium 4 Tape Drive is designed to provide:

• Ability to configure Ultrium 2, Ultrium 3, and Ultrium 4 tape drives in the same frame and/or the same logical library
• Ability to distinguish between Ultrium 2, Ultrium 3, and Ultrium 4 Tape Drives on all user interfaces (using inquiry data), on the front of the drive, and at the rear of the drive canister
• Ability to maintain the Ultrium 4 drive serial number during a FRU replacement in the same manner that the TS1130 or 3592 drive serial number is maintained
• A larger 256 MB internal drive buffer

WORM media support

• The IBM 3589 Ultrium 4 800 GB WORM Tape Cartridges are designed for applications such as archiving and data retention, as well as those applications requiring an audit trail. These cartridges work with the LTO Ultrium 4 Tape Drive to help prevent the alteration or deletion of user data. IBM Ultrium 4 800 GB WORM Data Cartridges can be ordered as unique 3589 models with the following features:
• Pre-labeling, with the ability to specify a starting volume serial and color-coding
• Packaging in individual jewel cases or in bulk
• Cartridge memory, built into every cartridge helps to enhance functionality and media reliability by storing access history and media performance information for use by the tape drive every time the cartridge is accessed
• Half-inch particle tape with a 800 GB WORM native capacity in a single cartridge

Encryption
The IBM System Storage TS1130 (3592) Tape Drive and the IBM System Storage TS1040 (3588 F4A) Tape Drive support encryption of data on a tape cartridge. Three encryption management methods are supported: Application, System, or Library Managed. Encryption capability is supported when the TS1040 or TS1130 Tape Drive is integrated or attaches to IBM supported tape libraries, subsystems, or controllers. All 3592 and Ultrium 4 media, including WORM cartridges, can be encrypted.

Additional TS3500 Tape Library enhancements
Along with integration of Models S54 and S24, the TS3500 Tape Library also supports the following enhancements. (These enhancements were announced in U.S. Hardware Announcement 108-494, dated July 15, 2008, or the announcement letter specific to your geography.)

• IPv6, designed to allow the Internet to grow steadily in the number of hosts connected and the amount of data transmitted. The TS3500 supports addresses in IPv4 and IPv6 formats.
• Secure Socket Layer (SSL) functionality, a communication protocol for transmitting documents through the Internet and supported on the TS3500.
• Embedded Storage Management Initiative-Specification (SMI-S), which allows a SAN environment management software, such as IBM TotalStorage® Productivity Center (TPC), to communicate directly with the TS3500. This simplifies the management infrastructure by removing the need for a separate SMI-S Agent for Tape software.
• IBM Tape System Reporter (TSR), a Windows-based GUI software application that collects information from multiple TS3500 tape libraries (ALMS must be enabled) and aggregates the data in a centralized database. TSR provides the ability to generate SQL queries or custom reports on the usage and performance of the tape drives and cartridges of the tape library.

Planned availability dates

• November 7, 2008: All features except 2304 and 2305
• December 5, 2008: Features numbers 2304 and 2305
• February 20, 2009: Model conversions from 3584 Model S24 to 3584 Model S54 and from 3584 Model S54 to 3584 Model S24