Drives for FlashSystem 5200 Expansion

The IBM FlashSystem 5200 expansion enclosures support a variety of SAS-based drives, including nearline HDDs (7.2K RPM), enterprise HDDs (10K RPM), and high-performance SAS flash SSDs. These drives are compatible with the supported SAS expansion models (e.g., 4662-12G LFF, 4662-24G SFF, 4662-92G HD LFF), enabling tiered storage for capacity optimization and hybrid configurations with the NVMe control enclosure. Drives are dual-port, hot-swappable, and can be intermixed within an enclosure if they share the same form factor and technology class. Formatted primarily in DRAID 6 for reliability and faster rebuilds (DRAID 1 supported with restrictions for smaller arrays), these options allow scaling to hundreds of drives and petabyte-scale capacity. FCMs are not permitted in expansion enclosures; only SAS HDDs and SAS SSDs are supported. Specific drive feature codes and capacities align with those for similar FlashSystem 5x00 series expansions, configured at order time via IBM options.

Key Features

• SAS 12 Gbps interface for high throughput and dual redundant paths.
• Mix of nearline HDDs for cost-effective bulk storage, enterprise HDDs for balanced performance, and SAS SSDs for faster access tiers.
• Model-specific support: 12G for LFF nearline-focused, 24G for SFF mixed options, 92G for high-density hybrid tiers.
• Intermixing of compatible drives within the same enclosure (same form factor and class).
• Hot-swappable and dual-port design for high availability.
• Optimized for IBM Storage Virtualize tiering (Easy Tier) with NVMe control enclosure drives and advanced data services.

Technical Specifications

• Interface: 12 Gbps SAS (dual-port, hot-swappable).
• Drive Classes:
  • Nearline HDD: 7.2K RPM, high-capacity 3.5-inch.
  • Enterprise HDD: 10K RPM, 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch.
  • SAS Flash SSD: Various capacities with endurance ratings (e.g., 3DWPD where specified).
• Enclosure-Specific Limits:
  • 4662-12G: Up to 12 x 3.5-inch drives.
  • 4662-24G: Up to 24 x 2.5-inch drives.
  • 4662-92G: Up to 92 x 2.5-inch or 3.5-inch drives (in carriers).
• RAID: DRAID 1 (limited, 2-6 members) or DRAID 6 (recommended).
• Encryption: Self-encrypting options available on select drives.

Available Drive Options

Drives are listed by supported expansion enclosure model with feature codes (aligned with IBM-supported options for 4662 series expansions):

Supported on Model 12G only (maximum 12 drives):

Supported on Model 24G only (maximum 24 drives):

Supported on Model 92G only (maximum 92 drives):

Drives are configured at order time; specific endurance (DWPD) and sector details vary by model.

Compatibility

• Exclusively for IBM FlashSystem 5200 control enclosures (e.g., 4662-6H2, 4662-UH6) via SAS attachment (requires quad-port 12 Gbps SAS expansion adapter in slot 2).
• Supports intermixing of expansion models (12G, 24G, 92G) within the same system, subject to chain weight limits (max weight 10 per chain for some configs; e.g., AFF=1, A9F/92G=2.5) and up to two chains per control enclosure.
• Compatible with IBM Storage Virtualize for Easy Tier automated tiering (with NVMe control drives), virtualization, compression (on flash), deduplication, and advanced copy services.
• Integrates with environments like VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, Red Hat OpenShift, and Kubernetes through the control enclosure.
• No support for intermixing FCMs in expansions or with older/incompatible series.
• Drives must match enclosure form factor requirements; same-type intermixing allowed within enclosure.

This system comes with a 60-day warranty from Data Tech Computer.