IT Dog getting down and dirty today because that’s what it is going to
take to deal with the dirty world of “vendor lock-in.” There is
really no way to dress this up and make it smell nice because it just stinks
and although I would roll in something this nasty down at the dog park, I
wouldn’t want you to have to live with the smell.
I read an excellent article by Chris Mellor at The Register discussing the
need to develop a standard for the server flash-storage array interface and
it really got me thinking about the vendor lock in issue.
“What is EMC up to with Project Lightning?”
We all are kind of waiting to find that out now aren’t we? EMC
announced Project Lightning as their foray into the server side flash
business, putting it sites on the nice people at FusionI/O, STEC and others.
I am wagging my tail to see EMC recogn... (more)
Disruptive technology is a term used to describe an idea or invention that
typically disrupts an existing market, often completely displacing an earlier
technology. Sometimes disruptive is great (e.g. digital cameras and cell
phones), and sometimes disruptive is not so great (e.g. laser video disks).
SSDs are a disruptive technology in that they are clearly changing the
enterprise storage market. The verdict is still out on just how disruptive
SSDs will be; as is the case with many disruptive technologies, it is going
to take some time to figure out exactly what to do with SSD... (more)
Dr Dog Says “You Need More RAM In Your Cache Diet”
Well, I am not really a doctor, but I play one on TV. You may remember (if
you are old enough) that line from the 1986 Vicks-44 TV commercial. Anyway,
while I may not be a real doctor, I can certainly tell you about why you need
more RAM in you cache diet.
“I Think My Cache Diet Is Great”
If you were happily running your IT system but needed some additional
performance, chances are you turned to some kind of SSD caching solution to
improve performance at a lower cost point than adding more servers or
storage. You went on what I a... (more)
Whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of your IT
manager or to take up cache against a sea of data. With apologies to Bill
Shakespeare, the IT Dog is discussing two different cache write policies:
write through and write back. Let me take a run at telling you what they are,
why they are different and what you need to think about when you decide what
policy to use.
Cache Write Through
This is the easier to explain and understand of the two policies discussed
here. Cache write through is like having your cake and eating it too. Data is
written into cache ... (more)
George Crump from Storage Switzerland recently wrote an article, arguing that
it is better to deploy SSDs in a storage array instead of as a server cache.
The article was sponsored by Pure Storage which happens to sell SSD based
storage arrays.
George identifies challenges with SSD caching and tiering solutions. While
some of the topics he raised in the article are valid, he does not present
all sides of these topics. As a result, the article contains positions that
overstate the magnitude of the problems and may lead the reader to the wrong
conclusion. I would like to present ... (more)
Peter Velikin has 12 years of experience creating new markets and commercializing products in multiple high tech industries. Prior to VeloBit, he was VP Marketing at Zmags, a SaaS-based digital content platform for e-commerce and mobile devices, where he managed all aspects of marketing, product management, and business development. Prior to that, Peter was Director of Product and Market Strategy at PTC, responsible for PTC’s publishing, content management, and services solutions. Prior to PTC, Peter was at EMC Corporation, where he held roles in product management, business development, and engineering program management. 
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