Flash memory storage innovator SanDisk Corp. has expanded its Lightning Enterprise Flash Drive (EFD) family with six new 2.5-inch 6 GB SAS (6 BG per second, serial attached SCSI) models. The new products extend the Lighting family to 11 models of SAS SSD solutions.
The new drives include three SLC (single-level cell) flash drives with capacities of 100 GB, 200 GB, and 400 GB, and three MLC (multi-level cell) flash drives with capacities of 200 GB, 400 GB and 800 GB.
SanDisk also confirmed today that HP has qualified and integrated the new Lightning 6 GB SAS drives into its HP Qualified storage drive offerings. They are also available to customers on HP ProLiant servers.
“With ever-increasing demands being placed on cloud and enterprise IT,” explains Greg Goelz, SanDisk’s vice president and general manager, “our OEM partners require data storage solutions that don’t just keep up, but help their customers stay ahead.”
The six latest SLC- and MLC-based models feature a new Single Firmware Binary technology that reduces customer qualification time and speeds time-to-market. The new models also feature Write Through Logging (WTL) technology, a solution designed to deliver high performance at low queue depths to avoid volatility that would otherwise require battery back-up or super-capacitors for protection.
SanDisk Lightning products are available in a 2.5-inch and 3.5-inch standard form factor with capacities ranging from 100 GB to 800 GB. The new drives are designed to integrate seamlessly into existing SAS enterprise storage and server systems without the need for modifications to existing applications, operating systems, or infrastructure.
The new SanDisk Lightning 6GB SAS models are being delivered for OEM qualification, and will be available via authorized channel partners in Q3 2011. ††
