FMS: Excelero NVEdge Block Storage Software for Creating NVMe AFAs

Excelero Ltd. announced NVEdge block storage software for creating NVMe AFAs (NAFAs) that leverage traditional controller-based HA storage architectures.

Targeted at OEMs, large integrators and tech giants that are building disaggregated NAFA solutions, NVEdge delivers a fast NVMe AFA performance, demonstrating over 2.7 million 4K IO/s on a 100Gb link – achieving full bandwidth while being thin provisioned at up to a 1000X oversubscription rate. This software realises a performance levels while providing enterprise storage features for simplified deployment, efficiency and operation.

With NVMe-based arrays using NVMe-oF host connections expected to drive more than 50% of all external primary storage revenue by 2021, NVEdge enables x86 systems and those based around SmartNIC-based architectures to take advantage of NVMe SSDs with application categories such as AI, ML, GPU and edge computing. It delivers the company’s hallmark IO/s performance, throughput and cost efficiency via the NVMe over Fabrics (NVMeoF) protocol – supporting NVMeoF standards.

NVEdge is block storage software targeted for two underserved markets:

• Cloud data centers where a rack is a single failure domain, yet disaggregated NVMe single-chassis storage needed to be HA.

• Deployments requiring an HA NVMe storage array with local NVMe performance, but without the need for massive scale.

This software enables OEMs to build a scale-up NVMe flash array on their choice of HA hardware, using the firm’s software approach. NVEdge replaces the need for proprietary block drivers with NVMeoF, and provides an answer for settings demanding HA as well as performance.

A standards-compliant NVMeoF target, NVEdge supports HA x86 systems as well as newer SmartNIC-based platforms such as Mellanox Technologies Ltd.‘ BlueField and Broadcom, Inc.‘s Stingray. Based in part on SPDK for writing high performance, scalable, user-mode storage applications, NVEdge supports both RDMA and TCP/IP networking, and includes features for data protection, thin provisioning, and checksums.

In testing against many block storage solutions at a partner’s lab, the company’s was a solution to reach full bandwidth at 4K IO across a 100Gb network with thin provisioned logical volumes.

“The integration of the Excelero NVMeoF target solution and the BlueField SmartNIC SNAP feature enables customers to build their own disaggregated flash storage solution and benefit from the higher efficiency achieved by utilising NVMe in a central server,” said Dror Goldenberg, SVP, SW architecture, Mellanox. “They can enjoy exceptionally low latency and reach full bandwidth across a 100gbE network. We are extremely happy about the collaboration between the two teams and the innovation that we create together.“

“Throughout its history, Excelero has pursued a SDS strategy that offered maximum deployment flexibility for their customers,” said Eric Burgener, research VP, infrastructure systems, platforms and technologies group, IDC. “Excelero already supports a variety of different server-based storage nodes, but the Excelero NVEdge announcement further extends the choice of deployment options to customers that need to deploy high performance NVMe-based storage in a single chassis, commodity hardware platform that also needs to support HA.“

“Excelero already delivered the highest performance solution for scale-out NVMe, and now, by adding Excelero NVEdge to our distributed NVMe product line, we also provide the highest performance solution for scale-up NVMe,” said Lior Gal, CEO and co-founder. “We’re providing even wider options for our customers, and offering OEMs, integrators and tech giants a simplified path to delivering the most efficient disaggregated NVMe-based solutions on the market.“

NVEdge is available to select partners.