Sonnet Fusion RX1600RAID with RAID Controller (64TB)

HD Optimized Performance

Sonnet’s Fusion RAID storage systems are widely recognized for their performance and dependability, providing users the data throughput and protection critical in high definition video editing work. Fusion RX1600RAID takes these attributes to a new level. Building on proven technologies, this 32TB, 48TB, or 64TB 3U rackmount 16-drive SATA storage system offers the fastest performance and biggest capacity yet of any Sonnet direct-attached storage system, plus the easy expandability featured in the Fusion DX800RAID, and adds Enterprise-class features to the mix. Fusion RX1600RAID storage systems are designed for work environments where performance and fault tolerance are critical, and maximum availability a must. Fusion RX1600RAID storage systems easily handle uncompressed HD while protecting the data at the same time, yet are flexible enough to be configured for any workflow.

Under real world use (drives 85% filled and fragmented) with its drives formatted as a RAID 5 group (sixteen drives striped with parity across all group members), a Fusion RX1600RAID system is capable of 2K (2048 x 1556) LOG RGB capture and playback. A Fusion RX1600RAID system can achieve up to 1750 MB/sec read and 1250 MB/sec write (AJA Kona 1080HD test), fast enough to handle uncompressed 10-bit 1080 4:4:4 HD, or multiple streams of ProRes 422 HD, uncompressed 8-bit 1080 HD, DV, HDV, and DVCPRO video.

Raw data transfer rates are just one measure of a storage system’s abilities, but they don’t tell the whole story. How many video streams can be transferred at the same time without dropping frames is another measure critical in determining overall performance, and one that can greatly impact your workflow. Fusion RX1600RAID achieves high stream counts because of its ability to consistently and efficiently sustain data throughput, a result of incorporating ATTO Technologies’ exclusive Advanced Data Streaming (ADS™) Technology in the included Sonnet PCI Express® (PCIe) RAID controller card. ADS provides controlled acceleration of data transfers, compensating for transfer speed peaks and drops to maintain a consistent data flow, allowing more streams without dropped frames for the bandwidth available.

Enhanced Data Security

With drives formatted as a RAID 4, 5, 6, or DVRAID™ protected group, Fusion RX1600RAID systems offer data protection in the event of a drive failure (two drives when formatted as a RAID 6 group). You can configure your system to provide visual and audible alerts, including e-mail notification in the event of a drive failure. A drive can be swapped out and the RAID group rebuilt in hours, or you can tune the rebuild priority to deliver full read performance during the process to keep you working while the RAID group rebuilds in the background.

Fusion RX1600RAID storage systems provide additional protection beyond basic data security. The Sonnet 6Gb/s SAS/SATA RAID controller employs ATTO Technologies’ exclusive DriveAssure™ Technology, which monitors drives’ I/O performance and performs periodic drive scans to map out and repair bad sectors and slow spots without failing the drive. This proactive maintenance enables the controller to compensate for when a RAID group does not respond to a command within a specified time, which could lead to degraded performance (e.g., dropped frames), or worse, the RAID group being failed.

What happens if a drive does fail? In most instances, a protected RAID group rebuilds using data on the remaining drives. Protected RAID groups using high capacity drives face a greater risk of a second or third drive failure during a RAID group rebuild. When this occurs, most storage systems fail the RAID group and take it offline, making the data inaccessible. DriveAssure can recover data when other methods have failed. Its data recovery modes enable access to data in offline RAID groups so you can copy it to a new RAID group or continue working with it in the case of a soft drive failure. This ability can potentially mean the difference between the loss of a single file versus all the files stored on the RAID group’s drives.

Master Controller

The heart of a Fusion RX1600RAID storage system is the Sonnet 6 Gb/s SAS/SATA RAID controller. Offering eight lanes of PCIe 2.0 connectivity, this powerhouse adapter is based on the latest-generation Marvell® 88RC9580 RAID-on-Chip (ROC) processor, which handles the throughput from all the drives with plenty of overhead. The Sonnet 6 Gb/s SAS/SATA RAID controller is configured with 512MB of ECC-protected cache memory, especially important to maintain data stream writes as the disk array nears capacity.

RAID Flexibility

Fusion RX1600RAID systems support RAID 4, 5, 6, 10, and DVRAID for balanced performance and protection; RAID 1 for ultimate redundancy; and RAID 0 for pure, unadulterated speed; JBOD support is available, too. Fusion RX1600RAID systems even support hot spares—you can set up your RAID group so that one or more designated hot spare drives wait unused in the background to automatically replace a failed drive without you having to lift a finger. All this flexibility is accomplished without switches—a simple to use configuration utility enables you to optimize your setup for specific workflow requirements.

Easy Expandability

When your job calls for access to more than 64TB of files, Sonnet offers an economical upgrade path that is simple to deploy with your Fusion RX1600RAID—Fusion RX1600RAID Expansion systems. Each RX1600RAID storage system features internal SAS (Serial Attached SCSI) expanders that enable you to connect additional RX1600RAID enclosures in a daisy chain, no additional RAID controller card needed. This simplifies installation and significantly reduces your cost to expand capacity. Of course, if your needs are simpler, each system includes user-swappable drive modules so you can easily change sets of drives as you go.

Status Supervisor

The reliability of the Fusion RX1600RAID is further enhanced through SES (SCSI Enclosure Services) 2.0 compliance and enhanced S.M.A.R.T (Self-Monitoring Analysis and Reporting Technology) data reporting for each hard drive installed in the system. Built into the Fusion RX1600RAID enclosure, SES functionality provides enhanced real-time monitoring and reporting of drive, power supply, and temperature status, with real time results displayed in utility application screens and the illumination of conveniently placed LEDs on the enclosure. Warning alarms sound in case of a power supply or fan issue, too. S.M.A.R.T. data criteria can be used to notify you of an impending drive failure and enable you to minimize downtime as a result.

Driving Force

Fusion storage systems employ Enterprise/RAID Edition hard drives that have been selected for their superior performance, error handling, and reliability characteristics, especially when used in RAID groups. These drives are subjected to hours of additional, stringent testing to check for soft errors, vibration, and other reliability predictors. Just the sturdiest drives pass these tests and are prepared with special RAID-optimized firmware to become the building blocks of a super-reliable Fusion storage system.

Versatile Performance

These systems are ideal for use in mixed environments—various operating systems, editing applications and output demands requiring the flexibility and interoperability that Fusion RX1600RAID storage systems provide. Fusion RX1600RAID systems support OS® X, Windows®, and Linux systems. They are compatible with capture cards from AJA, Blackmagic Design, Matrox, and Bluefish444, and work with all mainstream video editing applications.

Hardware Compatibility

Mac⁽²⁾, Windows, or Linux computer

Available PCIe 2.0 slot (x8 or x16)⁽³⁾

OS Compatibility

OS X 10.4.8+

OS X Mountain Lion & Server compatible

Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista®, Windows XP Pro, and Windows Server: 2008, 2003

Linux (RedHat ES 3, 4; Suse RedHat ES 3, 4; Suse Linux 9, 9.1, 9.2, 9.3, 10, 10.1 and the following architectures: i386; x86_64 (AMD64, Intel EM64T)

Technical Notes

1. Although hard drive manufacturers and Mac OS X 10.6 define 1 gigabyte as 1,000,000,000 byte, many other computer operating systems calculate a gigabyte by dividing the bytes by 1,073,741,824 (). This distinction may be a cause of confusion, as a hard disk with a manufacturer rating of 1000GB may have its capacity reported by the operating system as 915GB.
2. Not compatible with Power Mac G5.
3. PCI Express 1.0 compatible, and x4 slot compatible, but may have decreased overall performance when used.

Specifications subject to change without notice.