Front cover

IBM Storage FlashSystem

7300 Product Guide
(for IBM Storage Virtualize 8.6)

Vasfi Gucer
Jon Herd
Hartmut Lonzer

Redpaper
IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Family Product Guide
This IBM Redpaper Product Guide describes the IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300
(IBM FlashSystem 7300) solution, which is a next-generation IBM FlashSystem control
enclosure. It combines the performance of flash and a Non-Volatile Memory Express
(NVMe)-optimized architecture with the reliability and innovation of IBM FlashCore
technology and the rich feature set and high availability (HA) of IBM Storage Virtualize.

To take advantage of artificial intelligence (AI)-enhanced applications, real-time big data

analytics, and cloud architectures that require higher levels of system performance and
storage capacity, enterprises around the globe are rapidly moving to modernize established
IT infrastructures.

However, for many organizations, staff resources, and expertise are limited, and
cost-efficiency is a top priority. These organizations have important investments in existing
infrastructure that they want to maximize. They need enterprise-grade solutions that optimize
cost-efficiency and simplify the pathway to modernization.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 is designed specifically for these requirements and use cases. It also
delivers a cyber resilience without compromising application performance.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 provides a rich set of software-defined storage (SDS) features that
are delivered by IBM Storage Virtualize, including the following examples:
򐂰 Data reduction and deduplication
򐂰 Dynamic tiering
򐂰 Thin-provisioning
򐂰 Snapshots
򐂰 Cloning
򐂰 Replication and data copy services
򐂰 Cyber resilience
򐂰 Transparent Cloud Tiering (TCT)
򐂰 IBM HyperSwap® including 3-site replication for high availability
򐂰 Scale-out and scale-up configurations that further enhance capacity and throughput for
better availability
򐂰 Inline Data Corruption Detection

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2023, 2024. All rights reserved. ibm.com/redbooks 1

Overview
With the release of IBM® Storage Virtualize version 8.6.0, more functions and features are
available. The new features include support for new third-generation IBM FlashCore Modules
(FCMs) NVMe-type drives within the control enclosure, and 100 Gbps Ethernet adapters that
provide NVMe Remote Direct Memory Access (RDMA) options. New software features also
include GUI enhancements, Fibre Channel (FC) portsets, and security enhancements that
includes multifactor authentication and single sign-on.

Flash for less than the cost of disk

Integral to the IBM FlashSystem 7300 solution is the IBM FlashCore technology. The recent
evolution of this technology saw enhanced compression technology that enables up to
116 TB to be stored in a single drive.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system with IBM FCMs includes built-in hardware data
compression, and this data reduction is always on. This compression is implemented in
hardware by using field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) within each module and uses a
modified dynamic GZIP algorithm. With this approach, the solution can deliver the level of
performance that you expect without compression, with the added benefit of better use of the
physical storage.

IBM FCMs implement hardware-based compression without any performance penalty, and
performance scales linearly with the number of instances.

In addition, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure supports data reduction pool (DRP)
compression and deduplication that can increase the effective capacity of your flash memory
up to 5x, which decreases the cost of storing data up to 80%. DRPs support active data,
unlike other data reduction solutions.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure offers several features for DRP compression
workloads. These features include two 10 Intel core processors with up to 768 TB of memory
per node and a built-in compression accelerator for hardware-assisted compression. In
addition, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system with IBM FCMs NVMe-type drives applies
compression to any data that is not already compressed.

Agile integration
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system includes the following agile characteristics:
򐂰 Fully integrated system management.
򐂰 Application-aware data services.
򐂰 Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), data-at-rest encryption with all NVMe type drives,
and IBM FCMs with FIPS 140-3.
򐂰 In-line hardware compression with IBM Tivoli Storage FlashCopy Manager.
򐂰 Tiering or mirroring to existing and Public Cloud storage.
򐂰 Mixed workload consolidation.
򐂰 Nondisruptive data migrations.
򐂰 Concurrent code load.

2 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 By accelerating physical and virtual applications, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system can help
organizations reduce costs, increase revenue, and improve customer satisfaction for all types
of applications that include the following categories:
򐂰 Transactional
򐂰 Enterprise resource planning (ERP) and supply chain management
򐂰 Big data and analytics
򐂰 Server and desktop virtualization
򐂰 Cloud native
򐂰 Hybrid and multicloud

AI-empowered
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system includes the following AI characteristics:
򐂰 AI-based data placement for optimal data center performance and zero-downtime data
migration
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights, which includes AI-empowered predictive analytics, storage resource
management, and a support platform delivered over the cloud

Multicloud enabled
IBM Storage Virtualize on-premises and IBM Storage Virtualize for Public Cloud together
support mirroring between on-premises and cloud data centers or between cloud data
centers. These functions can be used to perform the following tasks:
򐂰 Migrate data between on-premises and public cloud data centers or between public cloud
data centers. Enjoy consistent data management between on-premises storage and the
public cloud.
򐂰 Implement disaster recovery strategies between on-premises and public cloud data
centers.
򐂰 Enable cloud-based DevOps to more easily replicate data from on-premises sources.
򐂰 Improve cyber resilience with copies on Amazon Web Services (AWS) by using air gap
snapshots to S3 and IBM Safeguarded Copy on Microsoft Azure.

Customers can create hybrid multicloud solutions for their traditional block data and
workloads by using built-in IP replication capabilities.

Deploy IBM Storage Virtualize for Public Cloud on AWS directly from AWS Marketplace
through a predefined Cloud Formation Template that automatically and securely installs the
software, and deploys a high availability two-node cluster on selected EC2 instances. Any
Amazon EBS block storage can be attached.

On Azure, deploy directly from the Azure Apps Marketplace through predefined Azure
Resource Manager templates that automatically and securely install the software, and deploy
an HA two-node cluster on selected Azure VMs. Attach shared Azure Managed Disk
solid-state drives (SSDs) to the cluster for HA.

On IBM Cloud®, automated installation scripts assist deployment of the software on bare
metal servers. IBM Performance or Endurance block storage is supported behind the cluster.
This setup enables clients to create clustered configurations, such as on-premises, and
includes the optimization and virtualization capabilities of IBM Storage Virtualize to public
cloud infrastructures.

3
 IBM Storage Virtualize on-premises and IBM Storage Virtualize for Public Cloud together
enable a hybrid multicloud deployment. The deployment provides a single data management
layer between on-premises systems and the cloud across heterogeneous storage pools that
might exist in the data center.

IBM Storage Virtualize provides the following functions:

򐂰 Storage pooling and automated allocation with thin provisioning
򐂰 IBM Easy Tier® automated tiering
򐂰 Deduplication and compression to reduce cloud storage costs
򐂰 IBM FlashCopy® and remote mirror for local snapshots and remote replication
򐂰 IBM Safeguarded Copy for cyber resiliency
򐂰 Support for virtualized and containerized server environments:
– VMware
– Microsoft Hyper-V
– IBM PowerVM®
– Red Hat OpenShift
– CRI-O
– Kubernetes

For more information about IBM FlashSystem systems and Hybrid Multicloud, see Embracing
Hybrid Cloud: Storage Edition.

Data resilience
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 provides advanced capabilities that can help maximize data
protection, security, and HA to significantly reduce the risk of disruption and financial losses
because of user errors, malicious destruction, or ransomware attacks. The FlashSystem 7300
delivers the capability to enable this level of protection while also delivering high performance
for applications.

With Safeguarded Copy, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 adds a line of defense against
cyberthreats by protecting your valued data from cyberattacks with immutable and isolated
copies that are hidden, nonaddressable, and cannot be altered. If an attack occurs, these
copies can be restored quickly to support recovery. Customized to your specific application
mix, IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault builds on IBM Safeguarded Copy to help reduce
cyberattack recovery times.

A Cyber Vault solution runs continuously and monitors snapshots as they are created
automatically by Safeguarded Copy. By using standard database tools and automation
software, Cyber Vault checks Safeguarded Copy snapshots for corruption. If Cyber Vault finds
such changes, then that is an immediate sign that an attack might be occurring.

When preparing a response, knowing the last snapshots with no evidence of an attack
speeds determining which snapshot to use. Because Safeguarded Copy snapshots are on
the same FlashSystem storage as operational data, recovery is fast by using the same
snapshot technology. With these advantages, Cyber Vault is designed to help reduce
cyberattack recovery time from days to just hours.

4 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Advanced data services
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system provides the following advanced data services:
򐂰 Business continuity with replication services across up to three sites
򐂰 Data protection with IBM FlashCopy services
򐂰 HA with IBM HyperSwap
򐂰 Higher storage efficiency with thin provisioning
򐂰 DRPs that provide compression with deduplication
򐂰 Data-at-rest AES-XTS 256 encryption
򐂰 IBM Easy Tier
򐂰 External virtualization
򐂰 Data migration
򐂰 IP quorum support
򐂰 N_Port ID virtualization (NPIV) support
򐂰 VMware vSphere Virtual Volume (VVOL) support and space-efficient copies
򐂰 TCT
򐂰 Data and cyber resilience with IBM Safeguarded Copy
򐂰 Container support with the IBM block storage CSI driver
򐂰 Capacity and performance scaling through clustering

IBM FlashSystem 7300 enclosure overview

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system includes the following types of enclosures:
򐂰 A control enclosure manages your storage systems, communicates with the host, and
manages interfaces. It can also house up to 24 NVMe-capable flash drives. These drives
can be industry-standard NVMe types or the exclusive IBM FCM NVMe-type and up to 12
optional Storage Class Memory (SCM) type class drives.
򐂰 An expansion enclosure increases the available capacity of an IBM FlashSystem 7300
cluster. It communicates with the control enclosure through a dual pair of 12 Gbps SAS
connections. These expansion enclosures can house many flash (SSD) and hard-disk
drive (HDD) serial-attached SCSI (SAS) drives, depending on which enclosure model is
ordered.

Figure 1 shows the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure front view with an NVMe drive
partially removed.

Figure 1 IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure with one NVMe drive partially removed

5
 Control enclosures
Each control enclosure can have multiple attached expansion enclosures, which expand the
available capacity of the entire system. The IBM FlashSystem 7300 solution supports up to
four control enclosures and up to two chains of SAS expansion enclosures per control
enclosure.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure supports up to 24 NVMe-capable flash drives
in a 2U high form factor and consists of one machine type: 4657. The 4657 is available in two
models: 924 and U7D.

The 4657-U7D model is an IBM FlashSystem 7300 solution with a 1-year warranty, with
optional Storage Expert Care service offerings, and is intended for the Storage Utility Offering
space. This model is physically and functionally identical to the IBM FlashSystem 4657-924
model, except for target configurations and variable capacity billing. The variable capacity
billing uses IBM Spectrum Control or IBM Storage Insights to monitor the system usage,
which allows allocated storage use that is greater than a base subscription rate to be billed
per terabyte per month. Allocated storage is identified as storage that is allocated to a specific
host and unusable to other hosts, regardless of whether data is written. For thin-provisioning,
the data that is written is considered used. For thick-provisioning, the total allocated volume
space is considered used.

Expansion enclosures
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 expansion enclosures consist of one machine type, 4657, and
three models, 12G, 24G, and 92G.

The new SAS-based small form factor (SFF) and large form factor (LFF) expansion
enclosures support various flash and SSD MDisks in a storage pool, which can be used for
IBM Easy Tier.

Consider the following points:

򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF Expansion Enclosure Model 12G offers drive options with
SAS drives. Up to 144 drives in 12 SAS 12G expansions are supported per
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure. The expansion enclosure is 2U high.
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7000 SFF Expansion Enclosure Model 24G offers drive options with
SSD flash and SAS drives. Up to 288 drives in 12 SAS 24G expansions are supported per
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure. The expansion enclosure is 2U high.
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF Expansion Enclosure Model 92G offers drive options with
SSD flash and SAS drives. Up to 368 drives in 4 SAS 92G expansions are supported per
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure. The expansion enclosure is 5U high.

SAS chain maximums

Each SAS chain can have a maximum total chain weight of 5 or 6, depending on code
version. Each 92G enclosure has a chain weight of 2.5; each 12G or 24G enclosure has a
chain weight of 1.

For example, it is valid to have two 92G enclosures and one 24G enclosure (total chain weight
of 6). Each control enclosure supports 2 SAS chains.

For more information, see Enclosures.

Note: Attachment and intermixing of IBM Storwize® V7000 Expansion Enclosures Models
12F, 24F, and 92F with FlashSystem 7300 Expansion Enclosure Models 12G, 24G, and
92G is not supported.

6 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure can be identified by the labeling
“IBM FlashSystem 7300” on the left side of the bezel cover, which covers the rack-mounting
screws.

Figure 2 shows the IBM FlashSystem 7300 bezel and NVMe drive.

Figure 2 IBM FlashSystem 7300 bezel and IBM FCM description

Labeling on the NVMe drive provides the drive type, capacity, type of drive, and FRU number.
The example that is shown in Figure 2 is the IBM FCM NVMe 19.2 TB.

Placing your IBM FlashSystem 7300 in your infrastructure

Various use cases exist for the IBM FlashSystem 7300, all of which can address many
technical and business requirements. In addition, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 can be used to
simplify the overall storage architecture.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 can be used in the following scenarios:

򐂰 First tier storage repository for production data
򐂰 Primary or target system for Data Replication or Disaster Recovery (DR)
򐂰 HA storage within a HyperSwap configuration where two IBM FlashSystem 7300s are in a
synchronous replication relationship

7
 򐂰 Externally virtualizing IBM or non-IBM storage by using IBM Storage Virtualize, which
extends advanced functions such as data reduction, encryption, and replication to those
storage subsystems
򐂰 Data migration from IBM or non-IBM storage with IBM Storage Virtualize
򐂰 Hybrid cloud storage by:
– Enabling communication between an on-premises deployment of IBM Storage
Virtualize and IBM Storage Virtualize for Public Cloud
– Deploying the Container Storage Interface (CSI) driver for Red Hat OpenShift
Container Platform to provide persistent storage for on-premises or cloud-based
containerized applications
– Using TCT to convert data into an object store for back up to specific available cloud
instances
򐂰 Support and interoperability within the IBM Storage Software Suite, which include:
– IBM Storage Scale where the IBM FlashSystem 7300 can be used as the back-end
storage repository for metadata, primary data or in initial microprogram load (IML)
processing
– IBM Storage Protect and IBM Storage Protect Plus where the IBM FlashSystem 7300
can be used as a cache or data repository
– IBM Copy Data Management where the IBM FlashSystem 7300 can be used as a
cache or as a copy services target

Figure 3 shows an IBM FlashSystem 7300 that is fully deployed in a hybrid multicloud
environment where it is also externally virtualizing various on-premises storage subsystems.

Figure 3 Fully deployed IBM FlashSystem 7300 sample scenario

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 can support multiple Open System hosts and interoperability with
all the software from the IBM Storage Suite of products.

8 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 In this scenario, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 provides the following benefits:
򐂰 Investment protection of older storage by using IBM Storage Virtualize to enable migration
from older storage and external virtualization of heterogeneous storage
򐂰 A hybrid multicloud architecture by connecting to IBM Storage Virtualize for Public Cloud,
which is available in AWS, Azure, and IBM public cloud
򐂰 Data protection by extending HA and DR to externally virtualized heterogeneous storage
򐂰 Support for containerized workloads by interfacing with Red Hat OpenShift and
Kubernetes in on-premises and off-premises infrastructures
򐂰 Ease of management and seamless integration with the IBM Storage Insights and all the
products in the IBM Storage Software Suite

Features of IBM FlashSystem 7300

IBM FlashSystem 7300 runs on IBM Storage Virtualize V8.6 Licensed Machine Code, which
provides the following features:
򐂰 Control enclosure support for SSDs, including up to 24 industry 2.5-inch Small Form
Factor (SFF) standard NVMe drives and IBM FCMs and up to 12 SCM drives
The following NVMe drives are supported:
– 2.5-inch SFF 4.8 TB, 9.6 TB, 19.2 TB, or 38.4 TB IBM FCMs
– 1.92 TB, 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, or 30.72 TB industry-standard NVMe drives
– A mixture of both
– 1.6 TB SCM drives
򐂰 Autonomic tiering through Easy Tier, which enables workload data to be placed on the
most suitable storage media:
– various classes of NVMe drives for the control enclosure
– HDDs and commodity SSDs for the expansion enclosures and externally virtualized
storage
򐂰 Hardware-based data reduction and encryption from IBM FCMs with negligible effect on
system performance.
򐂰 Scale out capacity options with the 12 Gbps SAS-attached model 12G, 24G, and 92G
expansion enclosures.
򐂰 Software-based AES-256 data-at-rest encryption and key management through
IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager or USB key encryption. Up to four Security
Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager key servers are supported.
򐂰 Remote Support Assistance (RSA), which enables IBM support personnel to access the
system to complete troubleshooting tasks.
򐂰 Multiple data-protection solutions such as FlashCopy (point-in-time-copy), Metro Mirror
(synchronous replication), and Global Mirror (asynchronous replication).
򐂰 Cyber resiliency with Safeguarded Copy, which provides rapid ransomware recovery by
using immutable, untouchable snapshots that are based on FlashCopy technology.
򐂰 Multiple management modes by using a graphical user interface (GUI) or a Linux-based
command-line interface (CLI).
򐂰 Performance throttling that allows control of used resources when the system is
processing host I/O, advanced functions, or copy services.

9
 򐂰 TCT, which enables a FlashCopy volume that can be backed up to an S3 object store,
such as AWS or IBM Cloud.
򐂰 Support for 32 Gbps FC and 10/25 GBE or 100 Gbps Ethernet iSCSI and NVMe RDMA
connectivity. The ability to intermix these port options is also supported.
򐂰 Simplified connectivity by using portsets, which enable host connectivity ports to be
grouped for more effective zoning and management.
򐂰 Compatibility with IBM Storage Insights, which offers advanced performance monitoring
for one or more IBM FlashSystem 7300s.
򐂰 Extra access security through multi-factor authentication.

In addition to the base warranty, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 offers IBM Storage Expert Care
with three levels of support options. For more information, see “IBM Storage Expert Care” on
page 15.

Current release functions

This section describes several new functions and features that are available in the current
IBM FlashSystem 7300 release.

New in IBM FlashSystem 7300 Software V8.6.0

For a complete list of new features, see What’s new in 8.6.0. Version 8.6.0 includes the
following new features.
򐂰 Support for Non-Volatile Memory express (NVMe) over TCP host connectivity
The Ethernet-based hosts connect to the system through the node-to-node IP addresses.
These can be assigned based on the host attach functionality and port assignments of the
node. Depending on your system configuration, Ethernet configurations can include
iSCSI, NVMe over RDMA, or NVMe over TCP.
򐂰 Support for Node CLI to shutdown individual Fibre Channel ports
This command can enable or disable the Fibre Channel port features. The Fibre Channel
port supports features like fabric device management interface (FDMI) registration,
discovery, and port state.
򐂰 Support for iSCSI performance improvement.
򐂰 An I/O group is two nodes, which is a single enclosure of an IBM FlashSystem 7300.
Support for 1024 iSCSI hosts per I/O group with the following maximums:
– 1024 hosts per I/O group for all supported node types
– 1024 sessions per system iSCSI target from different iSCSI hosts
– 2048 sessions per I/O group from iSCSI host
– Four sessions from one iSCSI host to each system iSCSI target
򐂰 Support for migrating remote copy to policy-based replication
Policy-based replication uses volume groups and replication policies to automatically
deploy and manage replication. Policy-based replication can significantly simplify
configuring, managing, and monitoring replication between two systems. With
policy-based replication, you can replicate data between systems with minimal
management, higher throughput, and reduced latency compared to the remote-copy
function.
򐂰 Support for SMTP authentication

10 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 򐂰 Support for TLS 1.3
Security of all key server communications is governed by TLS 1.2 and TLS 1.3 protocols.
Encryption keys are distributed between nodes in the system that use TLS 1.2 and
TLS1.3. The system uses AES-256 encryption that uses OpenSSL library interfaces. To
establish a connection between the key server and the system, the key server or services
must support the configured TLS version.
򐂰 Support for DNS check to be turned off
򐂰 Support for FDMI information in Call Home
The Fabric Device Management Interface (FDMI) enables any storage endpoint to register
itself to the Fibre Channel (FC) fabric and query the HBA and port details of the entire
fabric.
򐂰 Support for version 2 metadata volume for VMware Virtual Volumes (vVols)
IBM Storage Virtualize version 8.6.0.0 and later support a version 2 metadata volume
when configuring VMware Virtual Volumes (vVols). A metadata volume that is created on
earlier versions uses a version 1 metadata format. It is a best practice that users migrate
the metadata volume from version 1 to version 2 to take advantage of future feature
updates for vVols.
򐂰 Enhancement to IBM Storage Insights for threat detection
A key part of monitoring your system includes the detection of potential ransomware
attacks. To ensure that you have the most recent storage metadata for detecting those
types of attacks, compression and cyber resiliency statistics for volumes are collected
every 5 minutes. With these statistics, IBM Storage Insights builds a historical model of a
storage system and uses its built-in intelligence and formulas to identify when and where
ransomware attacks might be occurring. For more information on statistics, see Starting
statistics collection.
򐂰 Support for non-superuser ability to manage the system.
Users can manage all functions of the system, including managing users, user groups,
user authentication, and configuring encryption. Users with the Security Administrator role
can run any system commands from the command-line interface (CLI). However, they
cannot run the satask command from the CLI. Only the superuser ID can run satask
command. Like the Administrator role, users with Security Administrator privileges can
also create and configure the Safeguarded Copy function and create and manage
Safeguarded policies. However, they can also change or remove existing Safeguarded
backup copies and child pools that are used as Safeguarded backup locations.
򐂰 Support for downloading software updates through Call Home by using Restful API.
򐂰 Support for 28 Ethernet ports per node
򐂰 For IBM Storage Virtualize version 8.6.0 and later, more than a single distributed raid
(DRAID) array can be used in the same storage pool that has compressing drives.

Highlights
IBM FlashSystem 7300, machine type 4657, offers IBM Storage Expert Care service and
support options with IBM Storage Virtualize software, IBM FCMs, IBM Storage Insights, and
storage-class memory to deliver an NVMe accelerated, hybrid cloud-enabled storage system.

IBM FCMs and the use of storage-class memory as a higher-level storage tier enables
IBM FlashSystem 7300 to deliver the highest available performance with the lowest latencies
in its class.

11
 IBM FlashSystem 7300 is the replacement for IBM FlashSystem 7200. It is a 2U, 24 NVMe,
dual controller drawer that uses the second release from Intel of the Cascade Lake processor
for greater performance.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 utility model U7D delivers a variable capacity system, where billing is
based on provisioned space that is greater than the base. The base subscription is covered
by a three-year lease that entitles you to use the base capacity at no extra cost. If storage
needs increase beyond the base capacity, usage is billed based on the average daily
provisioned capacity per terabyte, per month, on a quarterly basis.

IBM FlashCore technology

At the heart of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system is IBM FlashCore® technology, if the
IBM FCMs are ordered, which consists of the following key elements:
򐂰 Hardware-accelerated architecture that is engineered for flash, with a hardware-only data
path.

Table 0-1 The IBM FlashSystem® data compression and decompression algorithm is a modified dynamic GZIP
algorithm. Because it is implemented completely in hardware, no processor intervention is required.
򐂰 IBM FCMs, which are designed for low latency, density, and reliability.
򐂰 IBM Advanced Flash Management, which improves flash endurance over standard
implementations without sacrificing latency.

Figure 4 shows IBM FlashCore technology.

Figure 4 IBM FlashCore technology

12 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Storage Class Memory
SCM is an industry-wide statement for nonvolatile memory devices that perform faster
(~10 µs) than traditional NAND SSDs (100 µs) but slower than DRAM (100 ns).

The technology pricing sits between dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and traditional
NAND. Price is significantly more expensive than traditional NAND drives.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system supports the new low-latency, high-speed SCM drives in
any of the slots of the control enclosure. The control enclosure can contain up to 12 SCM
drives.

Note: SCM and other NVMe drive types can be installed in any drive slot. However, the
highest capacity drives must be installed in the lowest available drive slots.

SCM with Easy Tier

SCM with Easy Tier is designed to decrease latency and sometimes, improve IOPS. If you
want to realize the full benefit of SCM across all of your capacity, Easy Tier continually and
automatically moves the hottest data onto the SCM tier and leaves the rest of the data on the
lower tiers. This autonomic tiering can also benefit DRPs where the metadata is moved to the
SCM drives.

If you have a specific workload that requires the best performance and lowest latency, and it
fits in the limited SCM capacity available, use SCM as a separate pool and decide which
workloads use that pool. Because of their faster speed, SCM drives are placed in a new top
tier of Easy Tier. This new tier is ranked higher than the existing tier0_flash that is used for
NVMe NAND drives that are supported today.

The following Easy tier levels are available:

򐂰 SCM
This tier exists when the pool contains drives that use persistent memory technologies
that improve endurance and speed of current flash storage device technologies.
򐂰 Tier 0 flash
This tier exists when the pool contains high-performance flash drives.
򐂰 Tier 1 flash
This tier exists when the pool contains tier 1 flash drives. Tier 1 flash drives typically offer
larger capacities, but slightly slower performance and lower write endurance.
򐂰 Enterprise tier
This tier exists when the pool contains enterprise-class MDisks, which are disk drives that
are optimized for performance.
򐂰 Nearline tier
This tier exists when the pool contains nearline-class MDisks, which are disk drives that
are optimized for capacity.

Hot data is placed in the SCM tier when Easy Tier is enabled. DRP and VG extent allocation
was tuned to use SCM drives, especially for metadata such as directory volume lookups. This
use case is one of the main use cases for SCM drives with an IBM FlashSystem 7300
system.

13
 SCM and RAID configurations
SCM drives feature the following rules about RAID supported configurations:
򐂰 Distributed DRAID 1 with two drives or more (including distributed spare capacity) and is
the best practice configuration.
򐂰 Distributed DRAID 5 with four drives or more (including distributed spare capacity) is
supported. DRAID 5 is available as an RPQ only.
򐂰 Distributed DRAID 6 with six drives or more (including distributed spare capacity) is
supported.
򐂰 Traditional TRAID 1 and 10 with two drives is supported; however, no spare is available,
and performance might be limited.
򐂰 SCM drives have their own SCM technology type and drive class.
򐂰 SCM and Standard NVMe or SAS cannot intermix in the same array.
򐂰 Easy Tier tier_scm arrays can take lower tech types as spare drives when no tier_scm
drives are available.
򐂰 Lower-tier arrays can accept tier_scm drives as superior drives.

SCM drive formatting and UNMAPS

Because of its media technology, SCM drive formats take longer to format than a typical
NVMe drive. Formatting a drive can take 15 minutes until the process completes.

SCM drive formats occur when one of the following conditions exists:
򐂰 A drive is replaced
򐂰 An enclosure is managed
򐂰 An array or MDisk is removed

Note: Intel Optane drives do not support UNMAPs because it is not beneficial for these
drives. Instead, the system writes zeros to deallocate drive sectors.

14 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

IBM Storage Expert Care
IBM FlashSystem 7300 is a client-installed product and is being released with a one-year
warranty and the ability to include IBM Storage Expert Care Basic, Advanced, or Premium.

Figure 5 shows IBM Storage Expert Care levels.

Figure 5 IBM Storage Expert Care levels

IBM Storage Expert Care BASIC

The IBM Storage Expert Care BASIC option includes the following support features:
򐂰 Duration: 1–5 years
򐂰 IBM On-Site repair, which coverage includes 9–5 and Next Business Day Support that is
based on the duration that you choose
򐂰 Licensed Machine Code subscription and support
򐂰 IBM Storage Expert Care services:
– Installation, usage, and configuration support line. Physical installation is chargeable.
– Predictive alerting.
– Automated ticket management.

IBM Storage Expert Care ADVANCED

The IBM Storage Expert Care ADVANCED option includes the following support features:
򐂰 Duration: 1–5 years
򐂰 IBM On-site Repair coverage includes 24x7, Same Day Support that is based on the
duration that you choose
򐂰 Licensed Machine Code subscription and support

15
 򐂰 IBM Storage Expert Care services:
– Installation, usage, and configuration support line. Physical installation is chargeable.
– Proactive issue resolution.
– Predictive alerting.
– Automated ticket management.

IBM Storage Expert Care PREMIUM

The IBM Storage Expert Care PREMIUM option includes the following support features:
򐂰 Duration: 1–5 years
򐂰 IBM On-Site Repair coverage includes 24x7 Same Day Support that is based on the
duration that you choose
򐂰 Enhanced response time for defect support:
– Response time is defined as the elapsed time between technical support receipt of the
client problem submission and the acknowledgment of the submission.
– 30-minute targeted response time objectives for Severity 1 and Severity 2 problem
reports.
򐂰 Licensed Machine Code subscription and support
򐂰 IBM Storage Expert Care services:
– Installation, usage, and configuration support line. Physical installation is chargeable.
– Proactive issue resolution.
– Predictive alerting.
򐂰 Automated ticket management
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights Pro with more detailed reports and planning
򐂰 Remote Code Load including code upgrades that are provided by IBM remote support
representatives up to twice per year to keep your systems updated
򐂰 Onsite code load services that are available by ordering feature code #AHY2 - Remote
code load exception when required
򐂰 Dedicated Technical Account Manager

Note: The Technical Account Manager serves as the key client interface for in-scope
hardware and software. It delivers partnership and consultancy, and direct engagement on
high-priority support cases.

IBM FlashWatch overview

IBM FlashWatch is a new offering from IBM to complement the purchase of the
IBM FlashSystem 7300. It features three main focus areas:
򐂰 Acquisition:
– High availability guarantee:
• Proven 99.9999% availability.
• Optional 100% commitment when using HyperSwap.
– Data reduction guarantee:
• 3:1 self-certified.
• Up to 5:1 with workload profiling.

16 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 – All-inclusive licensing
All storage functions are included in the licensing cost for internal storage.
򐂰 Operation:
– Cloud analytics
Storage Insights is included at no extra cost to proactively manage your environment.
– Flash endurance guarantee
Flash media is covered for all workloads while under warranty or maintenance.
򐂰 Migration:
– IBM Flash Momentum - Storage Upgrade Program
Replace your controller and storage every three years with full flexibility.
– Cloud-like pricing
Storage Utility pricing features monthly payments for only the storage that you use.
– No cost migration
A total of 90 days no-cost data migration from over 500 storage controllers, IBM, and
non-IBM.

For more information about the IBM FlashWatch offering, see IBM Support’s IBM FlashWatch
FAQ.

The IBM FlashWatch offering is applicable across the IBM Storage Virtualize family, with the
Product Matrix in the FAQ detailing the elements that are applicable against which product.

IBM Storage Insights

IBM Storage Insights is an IBM Cloud Software as a Service offering that can help you
monitor and optimize the storage resources in the system and across your data center.

IBM strongly recommends that all customers install and use this no-charge, cloud-based
IBM application because it provides a single dashboard that gives you a clear view of all your
IBM block storage. You can make better decisions by seeing trends in performance and
capacity.

With storage of health information, you can focus on areas that need attention, and when
IBM support is needed. IBM Storage Insights simplifies uploading logs, speeds resolution
with online configuration data, and provides an overview of open tickets all in one place.

IBM Storage Insights includes the following features:

򐂰 A unified view of IBM systems:
– Provides a single view to see all your system’s characteristics
– Displays all of your IBM storage inventory
– Provides a live event feed so that you know in near real-time the status of your storage
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights collects telemetry data and Call Home data and provides real-time
system reporting of capacity and performance

17
 򐂰 Overall storage monitoring, which provides the following information:
– The overall health of the system.
– Monitoring of the configuration to see whether it meets preferred practices.
– System resource management to determine which system is overtaxed and provides
proactive recommendations to fix it.
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights provides advanced customer service with an event filter that you can
use to accomplish the following tasks:
– You and IBM Support can view, open, and close support tickets, and track trends.
– You can use the autolog collection capability to collect the logs and send them to
IBM before IBM Support looks into the problem. This capability can save as much as
50% of the time to resolve the case.
In addition to the no-charge version of IBM Storage Insights, IBM offers IBM Storage
Insights Pro, which is a subscription service that provides longer historical views of data,
more reporting and optimization options, and supports IBM file and block storage with
EMC VNX and VMAX.

Customer dashboard
Figure 6 shows a view of the IBM Storage Insights main dashboard and the systems that it
monitors.

Figure 6 IBM Storage Insights dashboard

For more information about dashboard displays, see “IBM Storage Insights: Information and
registration” on page 19.

For more information about the architecture and design overview of IBM Storage Insights, see
Implementation Guide for IBM Storage FlashSystem and IBM SAN Volume Controller Version
8.6, SG24-8542.

18 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 IBM Storage Insights: Information and registration
For more information about IBM Storage Insights, see the following resources:
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights Fact Sheet
򐂰 Product demonstration (log in required)
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights Security Guide, SC27-8774
򐂰 IBM Storage Insights
򐂰 Product registration (used to sign up and register for this no-charge service)

IBM Spectrum Connect

IBM FlashSystem 7300 Software V8.5.0 and later supports integrating VASA and VAAI by
using IBM Spectrum Connect V3.11.0 or later. For more information about this feature, see
IBM Spectrum Connect.

IBM Spectrum Control

IBM Spectrum Control consolidates a range of IBM storage provisioning, virtualization, cloud,
automation, and monitoring solutions through a unified server platform. IBM Spectrum
Control provides insight and awareness about the configuration capabilities, storage health,
and events of a storage system regarding VMware and vSphere. With this capability, VMware
administrators can independently and centrally manage their storage resources on IBM
storage systems. For more information, see IBM Spectrum Control.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 GUI

Multiple IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures can be connected to form a system, which
is sometimes called a cluster. A single management interface is used for the connected
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures. Each IBM FlashSystem 7300 node canister is an
individual server in an IBM FlashSystem 7300 clustered system, on which the
IBM FlashSystem 7300 software runs.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system includes an easy-to-use management GUI that runs on
the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure to help you monitor, manage, and configure
your system. You can access the GUI by opening any supported web browser and entering
the management IP addresses.

You can connect from any workstation that can communicate with the IBM FlashSystem 7300
system. The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure is delivered in a 2U 19 inch
rack-mount enclosure.

Figure 7 on page 20 shows the IBM FlashSystem 7300 GUI dashboard.

19
Figure 7 IBM FlashSystem 7300 GUI showing the dashboard

Figure 8 shows the control enclosure window. You can open this window by selecting
Monitoring → System Hardware from the left side menu.

Figure 8 IBM FlashSystem 7300 system overview of the control enclosure

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system includes a CLI, which is useful for scripting, and a GUI for
simple and familiar management of the product. The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system supports
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP), email forwarding that uses Simple Mail
Transfer Protocol (SMTP), and syslog redirection for complete enterprise management
access.

20 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 With the GUI, you can quickly deploy storage and manage it efficiently. The GUI runs on the
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure, so a separate console is not needed. Point your
web browser to the system IP address. You can manage all of the control and expansion
enclosures from the GUI.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure node canisters are configured for active-active
redundancy. The node canisters run a highly customized Linux-based operating system that
coordinates and monitors all significant functions in the system.

The node canisters provide a web interface, Secure Shell (SSH) access, and SNMP
connectivity through external Ethernet interfaces. By using the web and SSH interfaces,
administrators can monitor system performance and health metrics, configure storage, and
collect support data, among other features.

The storage configuration includes defining logical units with capacities, access policies, and
other parameters. Except for a web browser or a standard SSH client, no additional software
is required on host computers to administer the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system.

Supported platforms
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system features extensive interoperability and supports a wide
range of operating systems that includes Microsoft Windows Server, Linux, and IBM AIX®
and IBM i, hardware platforms (IBM Power Systems, and x86 & x86_64 servers), host bus
adapters (HBAs), and SAN fabrics. For more information, see this IBM Support web page and
the IBM System Storage Interoperation Center.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 hardware component overview

The following sections provide an overview of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 hardware
components.

Control enclosure
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure is a 2U rack-mounted NVMe flash memory
enclosure that is based on IBM flash technology and provides the primary management
interface (GUI) and the host interface configuration. The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosures support Fibre Channel Protocol (FCP), NVMeOF on FC, and iSCSI interfaces.
RoCE and iWARP protocols are supported by iSCSI and NVMe RDMA.

The IBM FlashSystem provides the following NVMe technologies:

򐂰 Supports unique world class IBM FCM drives with inline compression
򐂰 Supports industry-standard NVMe drives
򐂰 Option for Intel Optane or Samsung zSSD SCM type drives
򐂰 NVMe-oF on FC
򐂰 The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system is offered as two models:
– 4657 Model 924 - IBM FlashSystem 7300 SFF NVMe Control Enclosure
– 4657 Model U7D - IBM FlashSystem 7300 SFF NVMe Control Enclosure

Note: The U7D utility-based model uses fixed configurations because they are
Capacity on Demand (CoD)-based offerings.

21
 򐂰 Macroefficiency with up to 1380 TB of raw maximum protected capacity with inline
hardware data compression if you use IBM FCMs.
򐂰 Support for industry-standard NVMe drives with up to 368 TB of maximum raw capacity.
򐂰 Extreme performance with IBM MicroLatency FCMs.
򐂰 Optional expansion enclosures provide tiering options with SSD flash drives.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 configuration includes the following components:

򐂰 A total of 1–4 IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures.
򐂰 A total of 1–12 IBM FlashSystem 7000 SFF or Large Form Factor (LFF) 2U expansion
enclosures.
򐂰 A total of 1–4 IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF High Density (LFF HD) expansion enclosures
per 7300 control enclosure.

The control enclosure includes integrated AC power supplies and battery units inside each of
the node canisters. These batteries supply power to the control enclosure during a sudden
power loss or failure so that the system can correctly commit all transactions to the storage
medium.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure includes the following features:
򐂰 Full internal redundancy:
– Redundant and hot-swappable node canisters
– Redundant and hot-swappable batteries within each node canister
– Redundant and hot-swappable power supplies, DIMMs, and fans
򐂰 The control enclosure supports up to 24 NVMe 2.5-inch drives, which can be IBM FCMs
or industry-standard NVMe drives:
– The following 2.5-inch (SFF) IBM FCMs are supported in IBM FlashSystem 7300
control enclosures:
• 4.8 TB 2.5-inch NVMe FCM
• 9.6 TB 2.5-inch NVMe FCM
• 19.2 TB 2.5-inch NVMe FCM
• 38.4 TB 2.5-inch NVMe FCM
– The following 2.5-inch (SFF) NVMe industry-standard drives are supported in
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures:
• 1.92 TB 2.5-inch NVMe flash drive
• 3.84 TB 2.5-inch NVMe flash drive
• 7.68 TB 2.5-inch NVMe flash drive
• 15.36 TB 2.5-inch NVMe flash drive
• 30.72 TB 2.5-inch NVMe flash drive
– A maximum of twelve 1.6 TB NVMe Storage Class Memory Drives.
– All drives are dual-port and hot-swappable. Drives of the same form factor and
connector type can be intermixed within an enclosure.
– All flash modules must be of the same type and capacity within the same DRAID6
array.
򐂰 Some other considerations for DRAID:
– DRAID 1 is recommended for array configurations of three drives.
– DRAID 1 is recommended for array configurations of four or five drives depending on
capacity and performance requirements, with DRAID 5 alternatively as an RPQ.

22 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 – DRAID 1 and DRAID 6 are recommended for array configurations of 6 drives
depending on capacity and performance requirements.
– DRAID 6 is recommended for array configurations with seven or more drives.
– DRAID 5 is available through a SCORE request for array configurations of three to
eight drives.
򐂰 Each IBM flash memory module contains IBM enhanced flash chips, FPGA chips, an
IBM PowerPC® processor, and dynamic random access memory (DRAM) devices that
are connected to the flash controllers and processor.
򐂰 Total 40 cores (Two node canisters, each with two 10-core processors).
򐂰 Cache options from 256 GB (128 GB per canister) to 1.5 TB (768 GB per canister).
򐂰 Eight on-board 10 Gbps Ethernet ports standard for iSCSI connectivity.
򐂰 32 Gbps FC, 10/25 Gbps Ethernet, and 100 Gbps Ethernet ports for FC and iSCSI
connectivity.
򐂰 A PCIe adapter that provides 12 Gbps SAS ports for expansion enclosure attachment.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure supports FCP with point to point (FC-P2P),
arbitrated loop (FC-AL), and switched fabric (FC-SW) topologies. FC interfaces can be
configured as N_port or NL_port types.

The FC ports are configured in NPIV mode. Therefore, the user must check that this
configuration is preferred for their installation. If not, this configuration must be changed from
the default when you set up the SAN infrastructure.

Full active-active multipathing across all interfaces is supported, although host software
support for this function can vary.

Figure 9 shows the front view of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure.

Figure 9 IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure front view

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure also includes the following expansion features:
򐂰 Capability for adding into clustered systems with more IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosures.

Note: Machine type 4657 FlashSystem 7300 systems can be clustered with other
FlashSystem 7300 systems only. Clustering with machine types 2076, 4664, 4666,
9846, or 9848 is not supported.

򐂰 For expansion enclosure Model 12G and Model 24G, a maximum of 12 SAS-attached
expansion enclosures are supported per IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure. The
maximum number of supported drives is 144 SAS HDD type drives with expansion Model
12G and 288 SSD/SAS type drives with expansion Model 24G.
򐂰 For expansion enclosure Model 92G, a maximum of 4 HD LFF expansion enclosures per
7300 controller, which provides a maximum of 368 SAS HDD type drives.

23
 Figure 10 shows the components of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure from the
rear, which includes the interface cards, power supply units, and the USB and Ethernet ports.
All components are concurrently maintainable, except for the passive mid-plane and power
interposer board. All external connections are from the rear of the system.

Figure 10 Rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure

Note: The upper node canister is mounted upside down in the expansion enclosure.
Therefore, the port numbering must be read right to left.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 Utility Model U7D

The IBM 4657 Model U7D is the FlashSystem 7300 hardware component that is used in the
Storage Utility Offering space. It is physically and functionally identical to the FlashSystem
7300 Model 924, except for target configurations and variable capacity billing.

The variable capacity billing uses IBM Storage Insights to monitor the system usage, which
allows allocated storage usage that is greater than a base subscription rate to be billed per
TB, per month. Allocated storage is identified as storage that is allocated to a specific host
(and unusable to other hosts), whether data is written.

For thin-provisioning, the data that is written is considered used. For thick provisioning, the
total allocated volume space is considered used.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 Utility Model U7D provides a variable capacity storage offering.
These models offer a fixed capacity, with a base subscription of approximately 35% of the
total capacity.

24 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

IBM Storage Insights is used to monitor system usage, and capacity that is used. This usage
is billed on a capacity-used basis. With this billing structure, you can grow or shrink usage,
and pay for the configured capacity only.

IBM FlashSystem utility models are provided for customers who can benefit from a variable
capacity system, in which billing is based only on provisioned space. The hardware is leased
through IBM Global Finance on a three-year lease, which entitles the customer to use
approximately 30–40% of the total system capacity at no extra cost (customer individual
contract dependent). If storage needs increase beyond that initial capacity, usage is billed
based on the average daily provisioned capacity per terabyte per month, on a quarterly basis.

Example: A total system capacity of 115 TB

A customer has an IBM FlashSystem 7300 utility model with 4.8 TB NVMe drives for a total
system capacity of 115 TB. The base subscription for such a system is 40.25 TB. During the
months where the average daily usage is less than 40.25 TB, no extra billing occurs.

The system monitors daily provisioned capacity and averages those daily usage rates over
the month. The result is the average daily usage for the month.

If a customer uses 45 TB, 42.5 TB, and 50 TB in three consecutive months, IBM Storage
Insights calculates the overage as listed in Table 2 (rounding to the nearest terabyte).

Table 2 Billing calculations based on customer usage

Average daily Base Overage To be billed

45 TB 40.25 TB 4.75 TB 5 TB

42.5 TB 40.25 TB 2.25 TB 2 TB

50 TB 40.25 TB 9.75 TB 10 TB

The total capacity that is billed at the end of the quarter is 17 TB per month in this example.

Flash drive expansions can be ordered with the system in all supported configurations.
Table 3 lists the feature codes that are associated with the U7D utility model billing.

Table 3 7300 U7D utility model billing feature codes

Feature code Description

#AE00 Variable Usage 1 TB/month

#AE01 Variable Usage 10 TB/month

#AE02 Variable Usage 100 TB/month

These features are used to purchase the variable capacity that is used in the utility models.
The features (#AE00, #AE01, and #AE02) provide terabytes of capacity beyond the base
subscription on the system. Usage is based on the average capacity that is used per month.
The prior three months’ usage is totaled, and the corresponding number of #AE00, #AE01,
and #AE02 features ordered quarterly.

Billing
The local project office compiles the usage information from IBM Storage Insights on a
quarterly basis. This data is compared to the base system capacity subscription. Any
provisioned capacity beyond that base subscription is billed per terabyte per month on a
quarterly basis.

25
 The calculated usage is based on the average use over a month. In a highly variable
environment, such as managed or cloud service providers, this subscription enables the
system to use only as much as is necessary during any month. Usage can increase or
decrease and is billed based on the usage.

Provisioned capacity is considered capacity that is reserved by the system. Thick-provisioned

storage and thin-provisioned storage use flash drive space differently. For thick-provisioned
storage, the provisioned capacity is the amount that is allocated to a host, whether it has data
that is written. For thin-provisioned environments, the provisioned capacity is the amount of
data that is written.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 expansion enclosures

IBM FlashSystem 7300 expansion enclosures are 2U or 5U rack-mounted units. The
expansion enclosures are offered in the following models with several drive features:
򐂰 FlashSystem 7000 LFF Expansion Enclosure (4657 Model 12G):
Supports a maximum of 12 LFF 3.5-inch HDD drives that can be formatted as DRAID 1or
DRAID.
High-capacity, archival-class, nearline 7,200 rpm drives in: 6 TB, 8 TB, 10 TB, 12 TB,
14 TB, 16 TB, 18 TB, and 20 TB.
򐂰 FlashSystem 7000 SFF Expansion Enclosure (4657 Model 24G)
Supports a maximum of 24 SFF 2.5-inch drives that can be formatted as DRAID 1or
DRAID 6:
– 800 GB 3DWPD 2.5-inch drives
– High-performance, enterprise class disk 10,000 rpm drives in: 1.2 TB, 1.8 TB, and
2.4 TB
– Flash drives in: 1.92 TB, 3.2 TB, 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, and 30.72 TB
򐂰 FlashSystem 7000 HD LFF Expansion Enclosure (4657 Model 92G)
Supports a maximum of 92 LFF 2.5-inch High-Density Drives in a 3.5-inch carrier, and can
be formatted as DRAID 1or DRAID 6:
– High-capacity, archival-class, nearline 7,200 rpm drives in: 6 TB, 8 TB, 10 TB, 12 TB,
14 TB, 18 TB, and 20 TB.
– High-performance, enterprise class disk 10,000 rpm drives in: 1.2 TB, 1.8 TB, and
2.4 TB. These drives are 2.5-inch drives in 3.5-inch carriers.
– Flash drives in: 1.92 TB, 3.2 TB, 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, and 30.72 TB (these are
2.5-inch drives in 3.5-inch carriers)

Multiple expansion enclosures are supported per IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure,
which provides:
– A maximum of 144 drives with expansion enclosure 4657 Model 12G (12 drives in 12
expansion enclosures)
– A maximum of 288 drives with expansion enclosure 4657 Model 24G (24 drives in 12
expansion enclosures)
– A maximum of 368 drives with expansion enclosure 4657 Model 92G (92 drives in 4
expansion enclosures)

26 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

On each SAS chain, the systems can support a maximum SAS chain weight of 5 or 6
depending on code level:
򐂰 Each 4657-12G or 4657-24G expansion enclosure adds a value of 1 to the SAS chain
weight.
򐂰 Each 4657-92G expansion enclosure adds a value of 2.5 to the SAS chain weight.

Note: Each SAS chain can have a maximum total chain weight of 5 or 6 depending on
code level. Each 92G enclosure has a chain weight of 2.5; each 12G or 24G enclosure has
a chain weight of 1.

For example, it is valid to have two 92G enclosures and one 24G enclosure (total chain
weight of 6). For more information, see Enclosures.

Figure 11 shows the front view of the IBM FlashSystem 7000 Expansion Enclosure
Model 12G.

Figure 11 Front view of the IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF Expansion Enclosure Model 12G

The 12G model of the IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF expansion enclosure includes the
following features:
򐂰 Two expansion canisters
򐂰 12 Gbps SAS ports for attachment to the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures
򐂰 2U 19 inch rack-mount enclosure with AC power supplies

Figure 12 shows the rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF Expansion Enclosure Model
12G.

Figure 12 Rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 Expansion Enclosure Model 12G

27
 Figure 13 shows the front view of the IBM FlashSystem 7000 Expansion Enclosure Model
24G.

Figure 13 Front view of the IBM FlashSystem 7000 SFF Expansion Enclosure Model 24G

The 24G model of IBM FlashSystem 7000 SFF Expansion Enclosure includes the following
features:
򐂰 Two expansion canisters
򐂰 12 Gbps SAS ports for attachment to the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures
򐂰 2U 19 inch rack-mount enclosure with AC power supplies

Figure 14 shows the rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 SFF Expansion Enclosure Model
24G.

Figure 14 Rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 Expansion Enclosure Model 24G

IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF HD Expansion Enclosure Model 92G delivers the following
features:
򐂰 A maximum of 92 drives are top-loaded into drive slots of the expansion enclosure
򐂰 5U 19 inch rack-mount enclosure with slide rail and cable management assembly
򐂰 Redundant 200–240 V AC power supplies, new C19/C20 PDU power cord required

28 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Figure 15 shows the front view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF HD Model 92G Expansion
Enclosure.

Figure 15 Front view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF Model 92G Expansion Enclosure

Figure 16 shows the rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF model 92G Expansion
Enclosure.

Fan 1 & 2 Power connectors

Fan 3 & 4
PSU 1 & 2

Canister 1 & 2

Figure 16 Rear view of IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF model 92G Expansion Enclosure

29
Scalability and performance
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system includes the following scalability and performance
features:
򐂰 A maximum of 829.44 TB usable and 1.75 PB effective flash capacity in only 2U with 3:1
compression without Expansions.
򐂰 A maximum of 3.3 PB usable and 10.69 PB maximum flash capacity in only 8U with 5:1
compression without Expansions.
򐂰 Extra scalability through expansion enclosures models 12G, 24G, and 92G, and increased
raw capacity to a maximum of 32 PB.
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7300 can deliver a maximum of 2.3 million IOPS, with latency down to
70 microseconds (µs) and a maximum bandwidth of 35 GBps from a single system.
򐂰 A clustered FlashSystem 7300 can scale linearly and delivers 9.2 million IOPS and
140 GBps on a fully configured 4x IBM FlashSystem 7300 cluster.

Note: Performance and available bandwidth depend on the workload. Use the IBM
Storage Modeler (STORM) to retrieve the performance and bandwidth data for your
system. For more information, see STORM - Storage Memory Objects Report.

Advanced functions
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system provides the following advanced functions:
򐂰 HyperSwap for IBM FlashSystem 7300
򐂰 Safeguarded copy
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault
򐂰 Increased security features
򐂰 NVMe over Fabrics
򐂰 Portsets
򐂰 IP quorum base support
򐂰 Data reduction tools
򐂰 N-Port ID virtualization support
򐂰 VMware integration
򐂰 External virtualization

HyperSwap for IBM FlashSystem 7300

HyperSwap for IBM FlashSystem 7300 is available with IBM Storage Virtualize Software
V8.5.0 and later. You can use HyperSwap to present each volume to two I/O groups. The
configuration tolerates combinations of node and site failures by using the same flexible
choices of host multipathing driver interoperability as are available for the IBM FlashSystem
7300 system. The use of FlashCopy helps maintain a golden image during automatic
resynchronization.

Important: Because remote mirroring is used to support the HyperSwap capability, remote
mirroring licensing is required for HyperSwap. For more information, see “Software and
licensing” on page 56.

30 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 IBM Storage Virtualize software V8.5.0 or later includes remote mirroring of control
enclosures and expansion enclosures. IBM Storage Virtualize is used to provide functions for
externally virtualized storage.

The HyperSwap function uses a HyperSwap topology to spread the nodes of the system
across two sites, with storage at a third site that acts as a tie-breaking quorum device.

Consider the following points:

򐂰 The HyperSwap topology locates both nodes of an I/O group in the same site. Therefore,
to get a volume that is resiliently stored on both sites, at least two I/O groups are required.
򐂰 The HyperSwap topology uses extra system resources to support a fully independent
cache on each site. This configuration provides full performance, even if one site is lost. In
some environments, a HyperSwap topology provides better performance than a stretched
topology.
򐂰 The HyperSwap function can now be configured through a new CLI that can greatly
simplify the setup process to a handful of commands. The HyperSwap function also adds
the ability to configure and manage local HyperSwap through the GUI for simpler
configuration and operation.
򐂰 Hosts, IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures, and IBM FlashSystem 7000 expansion
enclosures are in one of two failure domains or sites.
򐂰 Volumes are visible as a single object across both sites (I/O groups).

Figure 17 shows how the HyperSwap function works.

Figure 17 HyperSwap function

31
 Each primary volume (“p” in Figure 17 on page 31) has a secondary volume (“s” in Figure 17
on page 31) on the opposite I/O group. The secondary volumes are not mapped to the hosts.
The dual-write to the secondary volumes is handled by the IBM FlashSystem 7300
HyperSwap function, and is transparent to the hosts.

HyperSwap features the following characteristics:

򐂰 The HyperSwap function is available on IBM Storage Virtualize software V8.5.0 and later,
and with two or more I/O groups.
򐂰 You can design a multiple-step CLI-based configuration on a single system by performing
simple object creation through the GUI and CLI.
򐂰 Data is stored on two sites in parallel.
򐂰 The maximum distance between sites is 300 km (186.4 miles). The limiting factor is the
roundtrip time of 80 ms.
򐂰 Two independent copies of data are maintained (four if you use extra volume mirroring to
two pools in each site).
򐂰 HyperSwap uses a standard host multipathing driver.
򐂰 Cache data is retained if only one site is online.
򐂰 Automatically synchronizes and resynchronizes copies.
򐂰 Automatic host-to-storage-system path optimization, based on the host site (requires
Asymmetric Logical Unit Access (ALUA) and Target Port Groups Support (TPGS) support
from the multipathing driver).
򐂰 Consistent state data is retained during resynchronization for DR.
򐂰 The maximum number of highly available volumes is 2000.
򐂰 Requires a remote mirroring license for volumes. Exact license requirements can vary
by product.

Safeguarded Copy
IBM Safeguarded Copy regularly creates isolated, separated from server, immutable
snapshots of data to help protect against cyberattacks, malware, acts of disgruntled
employees, and other data corruption. Because Safeguarded Copy snapshots are on the
same FlashSystem storage as operational data, recovery is faster than restoring from copies
stored separately.

The system integrates with IBM Copy Services Manager to provide automated backup copies
and data recovery.

The Safeguarded child-pool capability on the IBM Storage Virtualize family of products was
introduced in an earlier version. The IBM Storage Virtualize family of products includes
IBM FlashSystem products, IBM SAN Volume Controller, and IBM Storage Virtualize for
Public Cloud

HA configurations mitigate against physical component failure and provide small Recovery
Point Objective (RPO) and Recover Time Objective (RTO). Continuous protection and
operation occur if a component fails. IBM Storage Virtualize HA configurations, such as
HyperSwap and Stretch Cluster, provide such protection.

DR is designed to have a slightly higher RPO and RTO. Therefore, DR is in a position to

provide an airgap to protect against corruption to the data that is replicated immediately in an
IBM Storage Virtualize HA configuration, such as HyperSwap or Stretch Cluster.

32 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 However, because DR solutions at the storage layer are replicating only data, any logical
corruption eventually is replicated to the DR site as well.

One way to provide adequate protection against logical data corruption is to take periodic
snapshots of the data and to have that data stored in a nonmodifiable state that is
inaccessible to administrators, servers, and applications. These Safeguarded copies can then
serve as recovery points from which the data can be restored to a pre-corruption state. The
corruption can be the result of an errant batch job, a disgruntled employee, or a ransomware
attack.

For more information about Safeguarded Copy, see IBM FlashSystem Safeguarded Copy
Implementation Guide, REDP-5654.

IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault

The IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault solution complements IBM Safeguarded Copy.
IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault automatically scans the copies that are created regularly by
Safeguarded Copy, looking for signs of data corruption that are introduced by malware or
ransomware. This scan serves two purposes:
1. It can help identify a classic ransomware attack rapidly after an attack begins.
2. It is designed to help identify which data copies were unaffected by an attack.

Armed with this information, customers are positioned to more quickly identify that an attack
is underway and more rapidly identify and recover a clean copy of their data.

IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault features the following highlights:

򐂰 Detect cyberattacks early to minimize damage
򐂰 Speed recovery from an attack
򐂰 Reduce recovery time from days or weeks to just hours
򐂰 Enable forensic analysis of attack

The IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault solution is a blueprint that is implemented by IBM Lab
Services or IBM Business Partners that is designed to help speed cyberattack detection and
recovery.

For more information about IBM FlashSystem Cyber Vault, contact your IBM representative or
IBM Business Partner.

Increased security features

With IBM Storage Virtualize software V8.5.0 and later, administrators can enable Multifactor
Authentication (MFA) to increase security.

Single-factor authentication methods alone, such as username and password combinations,

do not provide the level of protection and security that is required in cloud and hybrid-cloud
environments. With multifactor authentication support, security administrators can reinforce
account protection, create granular access for users and user groups, and monitor access
more efficiently at a system level.

MFA requires users to provide multiple pieces of information when they log in to the system to
prove their identity. Multifactor authentication uses any combination of two or more methods,
called factors, to authenticate users to your resources and protect those resources from
unauthorized access. The system integrates with IBM Security® Verify to provide MFA for
system users.

33
 Also available with IBM Storage Virtualize software V8.5.0 and later is single sign-on (SSO).
With SSO, users must provide their credentials only once when they sign in to more systems,
rather than repeatedly providing the credentials for every individual system. The system
supports Microsoft Active Directory Federation Services (AD FS) to provide single sign-on.

For more information, see IBM Storage Virtualize, IBM FlashSystem, and IBM SAN Volume
Controller Security Feature Checklist, REDP-5678.

NVMe over Fabrics

The NVMe protocol is an open collection of standards and interfaces that fully uses the
benefits of nonvolatile memory in all types of computing environments, from mobile to data
center. It is designed to deliver high bandwidth and low latency storage access.

This section describes the NVMe protocol and interface as it relates particularly to
flash-based architectures.

The NVMe protocol is an interface specification for communicating with storage devices and it
is functionally the same as other protocols, such as SATA and SAS. However, the NVMe
interface was designed for fast storage media, such as flash-based SSDs and low-latency
nonvolatile storage technologies.

Typically, NVMe storage devices are directly attached to a host system over a PCIe bus, and
the NVMe controller is contained in the storage device. This architecture eliminates the need
for another I/O controller between the CPU and the storage device and results in reduced
latency, throughput scalability, and simpler system designs.

This design was implemented in the IBM FlashSystem 7300, with its dual-ported PCIe-based
NVMe drives.

However, the PCIe bus has a limit to the number of NVMe drives that can be attached to a
host over the bus to a few tens of devices. Also, because the maximum length of PCIe cabling
is a few meters, the flexibility of deploying PCIe NVMe drives outside the host server is limited
and data center level scalability is not feasible.

NVMe over Fabrics (NVMe-oF) overcomes the limitations of the SCSI protocol and the limited
number of concurrent queues by extending the benefits of low latency and high efficiency of
the NVMe technology across network fabrics. This feature supports sharing of NVMe storage
at a large scale of 100s or 1000s of devices and over distance.

Figure 18 on page 35 shows that the NVMe architecture supports many different network
fabric technologies.

The NVMe transport layer can be mapped to different network fabric technologies.

As of this writing, the NVMe transport layer supports the NVMe over Fabrics by using Fibre
Channel (referred to as FC-NVMe of NVMeFC) main fabric transport.

FC-NVMe uses FCP as its transport mechanism, which is similar to RDMA, because it places
the data transfer in control of the target and transfers data direct from host memory. In
addition, FC-NVMe allows for a host to send commands and data together (first burst), which
eliminates the first data read by the target and provides better performance at distances.

34 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 Figure 18 NVMe technology support options

The NVMe over Fabrics interface uses the same model of submission and completion queues
as PCIe NVMe. It maintains the same asynchronous submission and completion model and
achieves similar benefits in terms of latency, efficiency, and scalability as the NVMe
technology because of the shortened code paths and lockless concurrency in multi-core
environments.

IBM FlashSystem 7300 supports NVMe protocols by way of the various PCIe adapters that
can be ordered and installed in the control enclosure. For more information about these
options, see “Host I/O connectivity and expansion enclosure adapters” on page 49.

For more information about NVMeoF protocols and architecture, see IBM Storage and the
NVM Express Revolution, REDP-5437.

Portsets
IBM FlashSystem 7300 is designed for multi-tenancy where multiple clients can share
storage resources. In multitenancy environments, it might be a requirement that clients use
storage ports that are connected to different networks to isolate traffic from other clients.

Portsets are groupings of logical addresses that are associated with the specific traffic types.
The system supports IP portsets for host attachment, back-end storage connectivity, and IP
replication traffic. In addition, FC portsets can be configured for host attachment.

After you create portsets and assign IP addresses, you can assign hosts, host clusters, and
IP partnerships to the portset for those traffic types.

35
IP quorum base support
For reduced implementation and operation costs for a HA solution, you can use IP quorum
base support to use lower-cost IP network-attached hosts as a quorum disk. Up to 5
instances are supported. HyperSwap implementations require FC storage on a third site to
cope with tie-breaker situations if the intersite link fails, and when connectivity between sites 1
and 2 is lost. In a HyperSwap setup, a quorum disk at the third site is needed. The quorum
disk on the third site must be the active quorum disk. Only the active quorum disk acts as a tie
breaker.

A quorum device is also used to store a backup copy of important system configuration data.
Just over 256 MB is reserved for this purpose on each quorum device.

A system can have only one active quorum device that is used for a tie-break situation.
However, the system uses up to three quorum devices to record a backup of system
configuration data to be used if a disaster occurs. The system automatically selects one
quorum device to be the active quorum device.

For more information about configuring quorum disks within two or three sites, see
Configuring quorum.

Note: Fibre Channel over IP (FCIP) connectivity is not supported between nodes when a
HyperSwap system is configured without the use of inter-switch links (ISLs).

Data reduction tools

Compression and de-duplication are a key part of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system.
IBM Comprestimator and Data Reduction Estimator Tool is the key sizing tool that is used to
estimate how much capacity savings that a client can expect. IBM Comprestimator and Data
Reduction Estimator Tool can recognize the patterns of the client data and estimate the
compressibility of data per volume.

IBM FlashSystem models are supported by the IBM Comprestimator, which is available as a
stand-alone tool and found in the IBM FlashSystem 7300 GUI. IBM FlashSystem models also
support the stand-alone Data Reduction Estimator Tool (DRET). The DRET is a host-based
application that is used to estimate the amount of compression and de-duplication on the IBM
FlashSystem 7300 system for specific workloads.

Choose your data reduction approach and use the tools to estimate the amount of usable
storage that is required by reviewing the following tools.

Figure 19 on page 37 shows how to start the Estimate Compression Saving option from the
GUI.

From the main menu, click Volumes → Volumes and select one volume. Then, right-click to
open the menu and select Capacity Savings → Estimate Compression Saving.

36 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Figure 19 Estimate Compression Saving from the GUI

The following methods can be used to estimate compression and savings on FCM and DRP
approaches:
򐂰 IBM FCM - IBM FCM Compression:
– Use the FCM option.
– Do not use the Estimate Compression Saving option in the GUI to calculate the
IBM FCM savings.
򐂰 DRP compression:
– Use the DRP option.
– Workloads that are on any IBM Storage Virtualize platform can use the Estimate
Compression Saving option in the GUI.
򐂰 DRP compression and deduplication:
– IBM Comprestimator and Data Reduction Estimator Tool shows the savings for
thin-provisioning, compression, and deduplication.
– IBM Comprestimator and Data Reduction Estimator Tool reads entire volumes to
identify de-duplicated data, so it takes longer to run.

For more information about DRP compression and setup, see Introduction and
Implementation of Data Reduction Pools and Deduplication, SG24-8430.

N-Port ID virtualization support

IBM Storage Virtualize software offers NPIV support. Use NPIV to virtualize WWPNs, which
increases redundancy during firmware updates and scheduled maintenance where WWPNs
transparently move to the controller that is not being maintained. As a consequence,
FC-attached hosts experience zero path reduction during controller outages.

Important: On the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system NPIV is enabled by default. Therefore, if
the customer does not want to use it, they must disable it before configuring FC ports for
host communications.

37
VMware integration
IBM Storage Virtualize software V8.5.0 and higher includes the following features, which
enable tight integration with VMware:
򐂰 vCenter plug-in
Enables monitoring and self-service provisioning of the system from within VMware
vCenter.
򐂰 vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) support
This function supports hardware-accelerated virtual machine (VM) copy and migration and
hardware-accelerated VM initiation, and accelerates VMware Virtual Machine File System
(VMFS).
򐂰 Microsoft Windows System Resource Manager (SRM) for VMware Site Recovery
Manager
Supports automated storage and host failover, failover testing, and failback.
򐂰 VVOL integration for better usability
The migration of space-efficient volumes between storage containers maintains the space
efficiency of volumes. Cloning a VM achieves a full independent set of VVOLs. Resiliency
is also improved for VMs if volumes start running out of space.

Before the availability of VVOLs, a VM in a VMware environment was presented as a VMware

disk that was called a VMware Virtual Machine Disk (VMDK). The VMDK file represented a
physical disk to the VM. The operating system that is installed on the VM accessed the
VMDK.

The VMDK file was placed in a file system that is called VMFS, which is hosted by a standard
volume (LUN). For example, it can be implemented on an external storage system, such as
the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system. With the availability of the VVOL technology, each VM
disk can now be mapped to an external storage volume, such as an IBM FlashSystem 7300
volume.

With VVOL, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 solution recognizes individual VMDK files. Therefore,
data operations, such as snapshot and replication, can be performed directly by the
IBM FlashSystem 7300 system at the VMDK level rather than the entire VMFS data store.

Note: The integration of VVOL with the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system is based on the
VMware APIs for Storage Awareness (VASA). IBM support for VASA is delivered as part of
IBM Spectrum® Connect. VASA V2 is required to use the VVOL capability.

For more information about VMware integration, see IBM FlashSystem and VMware
Implementation and Best Practices Guide.

External virtualization
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system offers external virtualization technology that helps you
manage other IBM or third-party storage arrays with thin-provisioning, space-efficient copies,
and DR tools, such as Data Replication. External virtualization also makes the migration of
data from one storage device to another easier.

You can use the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system to manage the capacity of other disk systems
with external storage virtualization. When the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system virtualizes a

38 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 storage system, its capacity becomes part of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system and is
managed in the same manner as the capacity on internal flash modules within the
IBM FlashSystem 7300 system. Capacity in external storage systems inherits all the rich
functions and ease of use of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system.

You can use the IBM FlashSystem 7300 to preserve your investments in storage, centralize
management, and make storage migrations easier with storage virtualization and Easy Tier.
IBM FlashSystem 7300 system provides nondisruptive operations because of storage
virtualization. Virtualization helps insulate applications from changes that are made to the
physical storage infrastructure. For example, when you add storage capacity or a new tier of
storage, the changes are transparent to applications, which results in minimal downtime.

Any externally virtualized storage needs extra licenses to be purchased and are charged on a
capacity basis of the storage added.

Scaling up and scaling out

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system has a scalable architecture that enables flash capacity to
be added, or scaled up, to support multiple applications by adding expansion enclosures.
Scale out expands NVMe capacity, with the processing power to use that capacity to linearly
scale IOPS and bandwidth. As a result, your organization can gain a competitive advantage
through a more flexible, responsive, and efficient storage environment.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system has the following flexible scalability configuration options:
򐂰 Base configuration
򐂰 Scale up: Add capacity
򐂰 Scale out: Add control enclosures and capacity

Each IBM FlashSystem 7300 has two canisters, which are also called nodes or controllers.
Each canister contains the CPUs, cache memory, PCIe adapters, and other hardware to
communicate to the NVMe drives and connected hosts. These canisters are housed in a
chassis that is known as a control enclosure.

It is possible to connect up to a maximum of four control enclosures to form a cluster.

Table 4 lists the values of the CPUs, cache memory, raw NVMe drive size, and PCIe adapters
for each number of control enclosures.

Table 4 Maximum values for each canister and control enclosure n

Element Number of Maximum Maximum NVMe 24 Inclusive Maximum PCIe
CPUs cache memory drive capacity raw onboard ports (FC or
(GiB) (TiB) Ethernet ports Ethernet)

One Canister 2 768 N/A 4 12

One Enclosure 4 1536 922 8 24

Two Enclosures 8 3072 1844 16 48

Three Enclosures 12 4608 2766 24 72

Four Enclosures 16 6144 3688 32 96

39
 A basic configuration of an IBM FlashSystem 7300 storage platform consists of one
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure. For a balanced increase of performance and scale,
up to four IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures can be clustered into a single storage
system, which multiplies performance and capacity with each addition.

The clustered IBM FlashSystem 7300 system can include dedicated internal FC switches for
internal communications. However, other methods are available to configure the switches and
ports to provide performance improvements.

For more information about how to restrict the FC ports for control enclosure inter-node
connections and host connections, see SAN configuration and zoning rules summary.

With the scalable IBM FlashSystem 7300 configurations, you can add up to three
IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures to the storage system.
A single IBM FlashSystem 7300 enclosure can provide up to 829 TiB in usable
capacity when using all recommended settings (DRAID6 and a 10+P+Q stripe layout).
These default settings are used when an array is defined by using the GUI wizard.

The following RAID types are available on the IBM FlashSystem 7300:
򐂰 DRAID 1
򐂰 DRAID 5 (RPQ only)
򐂰 DRAID 6

All RAID types are now DRAID, which was developed to support larger arrays and especially
arrays of larger drive modules. The technology can significantly shorten the rebuild time by
distributing data, parity, and spare capacity over all member drives of an array. By using
DRAID arrays, you can dynamically expand an array with newly added drives to the system.

IBM FCMs provide hardware compression at no extra cost. It is integrated into the drive
module and is always enabled. The compression effectiveness depends on the type and
structure of user data. Overall, IBM expects a compression ratio up to 3:1, which achieves an
effective capacity in a single enclosure of 1382 TiB.

When incorporating DRPs with deduplication and compression, potentially an even higher
data reduction ration of a maximum of 5:1 is achievable, depending on the data structure.

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system is expandable to 32 PB by using SSDs and HDDs in
expansion enclosures as tiered capacity. More FlashSystem expansion enclosures are
attached through the optional SAS Expansion Enclosure Attach card (FC# ADBA).

Maximum capacity configurations

Table 5 lists the maximum usable capacity, and maximum effective capacity for scalable
configurations that are built on the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures.

Table 5 IBM FlashSystem 7300 maximum usable and effective capacity.

Number of Maximum usable capacity Maximum effective Maximum effective
control enclosures by using DRAID6 with 24 capacity (TiB) with inline capacity (TiB) with
drives (TiB) FCM Drive compression software data reduction
3:1 ratio 5:1 ratio

One 663 1989 3315

Two 1326 3978 6630

40 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Number of Maximum usable capacity Maximum effective Maximum effective
control enclosures by using DRAID6 with 24 capacity (TiB) with inline capacity (TiB) with
drives (TiB) FCM Drive compression software data reduction
3:1 ratio 5:1 ratio

Three 1989 5967 9945

Four 2652 7956 13260

Note: IBM FCM inline compression is hardware-based and operates at line speed, having
no effect on the performance.

Capacity expansion by using expansion enclosures

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system supports the addition of expansion enclosures to extend
capacity.

Note: The IBM Storage Virtualize maximum storage limit is 32 PB.

The list of available drive module options to be installed in expansion enclosures can be found
in “IBM FlashSystem 7300 hardware component overview” on page 21.

High-density (HD) Enclosure Model 92G accepts SAS SSDs and HDDs. With these tiering
options, you can have four enclosures per control enclosure, with a maximum capacity of
998 TB each using 30.72 TB flash drives.

Note: To support SAS-attached expansion enclosures, a SAS Enclosure Attachment

adapter, feature code an ADBA, must be installed in the control enclosure of the IBM
FlashSystem 7300 system.

Figure 20 shows the maximum enclosure configuration with 92G expansions.

Figure 20 Maximum configuration for model 92G enclosures

41
 IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF Expansion Enclosure Model 12G offers new tiering options with
HDDs. Each LFF expansion enclosure supports up to 12 3.5-inch HDDs.

IBM FlashSystem 7000 SFF Expansion Enclosure Model 24G offers new tiering options with
HDD or SSD flash drives. Each SFF expansion enclosure supports a maximum of 24 2.5-inch
flash SSD or HDDs.

A maximum of 12 expansion enclosures are supported per IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosure, which supports a maximum of 288 SAS SSD and HDD drives.

Figure 21 shows the maximum configuration of 20 expansion enclosures in the 12G or 24G
models.

Figure 21 Maximum configuration for model 12 G / 24 G enclosures

RAID types
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system supports DRAD 1 and DRAID 6. Traditional RAID is not
supported.

The following rules apply for DRAID building:

򐂰 DRAID 6 is used for all drive types:
– SCM Class drives
– FCMs
– Industry-standard flash drives
򐂰 DRAID 1 is used if in any drive class 6 or fewer drives are present.
򐂰 All drives in a single array must be of the same type, technology, and size.
򐂰 Only one DRAID array is used per pool.

For more information about the types of supported RAID configurations, see Array
Configurations.

42 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Manageability and security
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system offers many improvements on the manageability and
security features as compared to previous models.

In general, the manageability and security of the range of systems. The changes that are
implemented in version 8.6 code on these systems include the following examples:
򐂰 Safeguarded copy is a technology that is derived from the technology that is used in the
IBM DS8000® line. It consists of a copy that cannot be changed or deleted after it is
created. Also, storing sensitive copies in immutable storage, cloud environments, or offline
write-once read many (WORM) tape devices is an option to provide physical air-gap
protection.
򐂰 Advanced security for data at rest with hardware-accelerated AES-XTS 256 encryption.
򐂰 IBM has applied for FIPS 140-3 Level 1 certification for IBM FCMs generation 3 in the
IBM FlashSystem 7300. At the time of writing, the application is on the NIST
modules-in-progress list.
򐂰 A GUI and a CLI are available to manage the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures
and the IBM FlashSystem 7000 expansion enclosures:
– The GUI is supported in any supported browser.
– The IBM FlashSystem 7300 CLI supports a collection of commands that you can use
to manage the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system.
– In the 7300 system, the GUI and the command-line support MFA for increased security.
򐂰 The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system running IBM Storage Virtualize 8.6.0 software
supports the Representational State Transfer (REST) model API. The REST API consists
of command targets that are used to retrieve system information and to create, modify,
and delete system resources.
򐂰 Secure Remote Access (SRA) provides a secure connection for IBM Remote Support,
which can perform remote troubleshooting and code load, and obtain diagnostic logs.
򐂰 Email and SNMP alerts are part of the standard alerting options.
򐂰 Syslog redirect to send system log messages to another host.
򐂰 Combined password and SSH key authentication is now supported as a first factor for
local users.
򐂰 By using role-based access control, methods of access to the system are restricted at a
user group level. GUI, CLI, and REST API access can now be restricted.
򐂰 The log-in grace time and session timeout duration can now be configured according to
the customer’s policies.
򐂰 The following MFA options can be used:
– Cloud-based IBM Security Verify Integration supports a wide range of secondary
authentication factors because it uses an industry-standard protocol, OpenID Connect.
It also aligns with other products that support this solution, such as IBM Storage Scale.
– Single sign-on support by using Microsoft’s Active Directory Federation Services can
be used on-premises to support access cards and dark sites.

43
 򐂰 Cyber Vault solution
IBM Cyber Vault is a combination of hardware and software to provide a comprehensive
approach to cyber resiliency and includes the following features:
– Immutable copies of data can be created by IBM Safeguarded Copies,
– Pro-active monitoring by using IBM Storage Insights, a recommended service from
IBM, can provide early warnings of a possible attack. Integration with IBM’s QRadar®
is also recommended.
– Rapid Recovery
The monitoring of the Cyber Vault snapshots that are created by Safeguarded copies is
a continuous process. Monitoring is done by using standard database tools and other
software. In this way, Cyber Vault checks Safeguarded Copy snapshots for corruption.
If any corruption is found, it is considered a sign of a possible attack.
– Data Copy Test and Validation
Data copies are in an isolated environment to verify they are uncorrupted and to
ensure recovery procedures are in place. Also, forensics and diagnostics services are
available to check the validity of the data copies.
All of these features can be implemented by IBM Lab services or an IBM Business Partner
by using the IBM Frameworks for IT Cyber Resiliency. However, more software such as
IBM QRadar and IBM Security Guardium® Data Protection, might be required.
򐂰 An interactive management GUI is included with excellent management and monitoring
features.
򐂰 For native scheduler for snapshots, external software is no longer required to create and
manage crash-consistent copies of data. You can schedule taking snapshots.
For application-consistent copies, an external, third-party orchestrator with application
awareness is still needed.

Encryption
Like its predecessors, IBM FlashSystem 7300 data encryption is based on the industry
standard AES-XTS 256 encryption, as defined in the IEEE 1619-2007 standard and NIST
Special Publication 800-38E as XTS-AES-256.

The data encryption key is protected by a 256-bit AES key wrap of a key that is derived from
the access key that is stored on the USB flash drive. The wrapped key is stored in the system
in nonvolatile form.

Encryption on the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system requires the following feature codes:
򐂰 Encryption Enablement (#ACE8)
This feature enables the encryption function. A single instance of this feature enables the
function on the entire IBM FlashSystem 7300 system, also known as a cluster, which
includes the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure and all attached IBM FlashSystem
7300 expansion enclosures, and on externally virtualized storage subsystems.
򐂰 USB flash drives (#ACEA)
IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager or Gemalto Safenet Keysecure are
required for encryption key management.

44 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

򐂰 Encryption USB Flash Drives (Four Pack) Optional (#ACEA)
This feature provides four USB flash drives for storing the encryption master access key.
Unless IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager or Gemalto Safenet Keysecure is
used for encryption keys management, a total of three USB flash drives are required per
IBM FlashSystem 7300 cluster when encryption is enabled in the cluster, regardless of the
number of systems in the cluster. If encryption is used in a cluster, this feature should be
ordered on one IBM FlashSystem 7300 system, which results in a shipment of four USB
flash drives.
򐂰 Encryption using key servers
A key server is a centralized system that generates, stores, and sends encryption keys to
the system. Some key server providers support replication of keys among multiple key
servers. If multiple key servers are supported, you can specify up to four key servers that
connect to the system over both a public network or a separate private network. The
system supports IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager, Thales CipherTrust
Manager, or Gemalto SafeNet Key Secure key servers to handle key management on the
system. These supported key server management applications create and manage
cryptographic keys for the system and provide access to these keys through a certificate.
Only one type of key server management application can be enabled on the system at a
time. Authentication takes place when certificates are exchanged between the system and
the key server. Certificates must be managed closely because expired certificates can
cause system outages. Key servers must be installed and configured before they are
defined on the system.
IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager key servers support Key Management
Interoperability Protocol (KMIP), which is a standard for encryption of stored data and
management of cryptographic keys. For more information, see Encryption.

Encryption can be applied to virtualized storage arrays, even if the virtualized array does not
include encryption capabilities. In this scenario, the encryption is done by using IBM Storage
Virtualize software. Encrypted volumes do not affect applications, which eases
implementation and operation.

In addition, the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system features the following functions, which require
that you purchase Encryption Enablement Pack #ACE9:
򐂰 Encryption Activation
Adding an encryption license to a system is not concurrent and must be done at array
initialization time.
򐂰 Encryption Deactivation
Removing encryption is not concurrent and destroys any data that is on the array.
򐂰 Encryption Rekey
Changing the encryption key on a previously initialized system is concurrent and can be
done while the array is in use.

45
 Self-encrypting drives
The IBM FCMs and NVMe drives, including the SCMs, in the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosure are self-encrypting drives (SEDs). With SEDs, you can encrypt the data on the
drive within the hardware.

These types of flash drives include the following features:

򐂰 Encryption of data is done in the electrical circuit of the drive. Therefore, it is not affected
by performance issues from software encryption.
򐂰 Data encryption keys never leave the confines of the SED, and are never loaded into CPU
or memory.
򐂰 You can perform a fast cryptographic erasure of an SED by using a single CLI command to
replace the data encryption key or revert the entire device to factory settings.
򐂰 Supports a security feature that is called auto-lock, which protects against someone
inserting your drive into another system and accessing your data.
򐂰 Drives automatically lock themselves on power loss and require an access key at start
time to unlock and allow I/O operations.
򐂰 If an SED is taken from a system with encryption and placed in another system, the drive
data is not readable. The system posts an error message that indicates that it is locked.
The only way to use the drive is to format it. This formatting also performs a cryptographic
erase by removing any encryption keys; therefore, all of the data on the drive is destroyed.

Combining system encryption with self-encrypting drives

Important: You can use SEDs without enabling encryption on the system, but, unless they
are configured with extra protection, SEDs are unlocked by default at start time.

With system level encryption in IBM Storage Virtualize you can use USB flash drives or
IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager to manage access to encrypted objects on the
system. This feature ensures that when a system is powered, this extra encryption key is
required to read the data on the drives.

Consider the following points:

򐂰 SEDs are always encrypting, and you cannot stop them from being encrypted.
򐂰 You can use SEDs without enabling encryption on the system; however, SEDs are
unlocked by default unless they are configured with extra protection.
򐂰 With system encryption in IBM Storage Virtualize, you can use USB flash drives or
IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager to manage access to encrypted objects on
the system.
򐂰 Software in the operating system is required to manage an access key that can be used to
lock and unlock the SEDs and bring them online for I/O.

Therefore, the best solution is to use the SEDs with the Encryption Enablement Pack and
USB or IBM Security Guardium Key Lifecycle Manager encryption, or a mixture of both. This
configuration ensures the maximum level of encrypting for your data that is on the system.

46 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Transparent Cloud Tiering and encryption
TCT is a licensed function that enables volume data to be copied and transferred to cloud
storage. The system supports creating connections to cloud service providers to store copies
of volume data in private or public cloud storage.

With TCT, administrators can move older data to cloud storage to increase available capacity
on the system. Point-in-time snapshots of data can be created on the system and then copied
and stored on cloud storage.

An external cloud service provider manages the cloud storage, which reduces storage costs
for the system. At the time of this writing, IBM supports the OpenStack Swift and Amazon S3
cloud service providers.

The following considerations apply to TCT and encryption:

򐂰 When a cloud account is created, it must continue to use the same encryption type
throughout the life of the data in that cloud account. Even if the cloud account object is
removed and remade on the system, the encryption type for that cloud account might not
be changed while back up data for that system exists in the cloud provider.
򐂰 When performing rekeying operations on a system that has an encryption-enabled cloud
account, perform the commit operation immediately after the prepare operation. Retain
the previous system master key on a USB or in the keyserver because this key might be
needed to retrieve your cloud backup data when performing a T4 recovery or an import.
򐂰 The restore_uid option is not used when the backup is imported to a new cluster.
򐂰 Importing TCT data is supported from only systems whose backup data was created at
V7.8.0.1 or later.
򐂰 TCT uses Sig V2 when connecting to Amazon regions, and does not currently support
regions that require Sig V4.

For more information, see Transparent Cloud Tiering.

Secure drive erasure process

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system running IBM Storage Virtualize V8.5.0 or later provides
methods to securely erase data from a drive or boot drive when a control enclosure is
decommissioned or before a drive is removed from the system during a repair activity.

Secure data deletion erases or overwrites all traces of data from a data storage device. The
original data on that device becomes inaccessible and cannot be reconstructed. You can
securely delete data on individual drives and on a boot drive of a control enclosure. The
methods and commands that are used to securely delete data enable the system to be used
in compliance with European Regulation EU2019/424.

The following types of drives can be used for this process:

򐂰 Expansion enclosure SAS SSDs
򐂰 IBM FCMs and industry-standard NVMe drives
򐂰 Control enclosure node canister SSD boot drives

The methods that the system uses to securely delete data from the drives varies according to
the CLI commands that each type of drive can support. The completion time for the erase
procedure also varies, depending on the amount of data and the method that is used to delete
the data. In each case, when the operation completes, the result is that the data on the drive
is inaccessible.

47
 Table 6 lists the types of erasure, methods that are used, and time that is taken to securely
delete data from drives.

Table 6 Comparison of methods to securely delete data from drives

Priority Deletion type Method Completion time

1 Cryptographic Changes the encryption key and makes the Instant

erase data inaccessible.

2 Block erase Quickly raises and lowers the voltage level Fast
of the storage element. Physical blocks are
altered with a vendor-specific value.

3 Data Overwrite Replaces data with random data. Slow

The methods that are used to securely delete data vary according to manufacture, drive type,
and drive firmware. For more information, see the documentation that is provided by the drive
manufacturer.

If a drive supports more than one data deletion method, the system uses the highest-priority
method.

For more information about the CLI commands that are used to run this secure erase
function, see Secure data deletion.

Reliability, availability, and serviceability

IBM FlashSystem 7300 delivers the following enterprise-class reliability features, much like its
predecessors:
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures support concurrent code load. Onsite and
remote code upgrades are supported. However, for onsite code loads, an extra feature
#AHY2 must be purchased. For code loads to the FCM drives, you must also purchase
#AHY2.
򐂰 The components of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 are one of the following configurations:
– Hot-swappable. All system functions remain the same.
– Concurrently replaceable. All functions remain, but elements might be offline.
Performance or availability might be affected.
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure includes two clustered node canisters that
contain hot-swappable and concurrently replaceable components:
– Hot-swappable:
• Secure boot drives
• Batteries
• PSUs (2 per canister)
• NVMe or FCM drives
– Concurrently replaceable:
• Fan modules
• Memory DIMMs
• Trusted Platform Module (TPM)
• PCIe adapters
• Node canister

48 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 If an IBM FCM failure occurs, critical customer applications can remain online while the
defective module is replaced because a spare module is available.
򐂰 IBM enhanced technology in the SCM drives for higher storage density and improved
performance can coexist with FCM3 drives in the IBM FlashSystem 7300 for even more
demanding workloads.
򐂰 By using 3-site data copies with synchronous and asynchronous data copies, greater
flexibility is available in creating DR and HA solutions.

Options and feature codes

This section describes the options and feature codes of the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosure.

Memory options
Table 7 lists the various memory option feature codes.

Table 7 IBM FlashSystem 7300 memory options per control enclosure

Base memory (GB) #ACGJ Plant or Field #ACGB Plant or Field Total memory (GB)
Upgrade (GB) Upgrade (GB)

256 N/A N/A 256

256 512 N/A 768

256 512 768 1536

The following feature codes are available:

򐂰 (#ACGJ) - 512 GB Cache upgrade.
This feature indicates that the base machine is configured with 512 GB (256 GB for each
node canister). Selecting this feature determines the cache upgrade paths of the machine.
򐂰 (#ACGB) - 768 GB Cache upgrade.
This feature provides another 768 GB of cache (384 GB for each node canister) to
increase the total system cache by 768 GB.

Note: A quantity of one ACGJ must be ordered with this feature if not already fitted.

Mandatory feature: Boot Drive Pair

The #ACGV - 240 GB M.2 Boot drive Pair feature is mandatory and indicates that each
canister of the base machine is configured with dual 240 GB M.2 boot drives.

Host I/O connectivity and expansion enclosure adapters

Six PCIe slots are available for port expansions in the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosure. Each canister has three PCIe adapter slots and both canisters must have the
same configuration. The PCIe adapter feature codes offer a pair of adapters to ensure that
they are supplied symmetrically in each canister.

49
 The IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure can be configured with three I/O adapter
features to provide up to twenty-four 32 Gbps FC ports or up to twelve 10/25 Gbps or twelve
100 Gbps Ethernet ports. The control enclosure also includes eight 10 Gbps Ethernet ports
as standard for iSCSI connectivity and two 1 Gbps Ethernet ports for system management. A
feature code is also available to include the SAS expansion adapter if the user wants to
implement the optional expansion enclosures.

Note: The SAS Expansion adapter does not support SAS hosts.

Figure 22 shows the connectivity options for the different adapters that are available at time of
this writing.

Figure 22 Connectivity options

For more information about the limits and rules for adapter placement to ensure correct best
practices, see IBM Storage Virtualize FAQ: IBM Storage Virtualize with the IBM FlashSystem
family and IBM SAN Volume Controller.

Table 8 lists the maximum host port count per building block configuration (1, 2, 3, or 4 control
enclosures.)

Note: All connectivity ports are NVMe-oF hardware-ready.

Table 8 Maximum host port count per control enclosure

Number of control 32 Gbps Onboard 25 Gbps 25 Gbps 100 Gbps
enclosures FC 10 Gbps iSCSI (RoCE) iSCSI iSCSI
iSCSi ports (iWARP) (RoCE)

One 24 8 12 12 12

Two 48 16 24 24 24

Three 72 24 36 36 36

Four 96 32 48 48 48

50 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 Table 9 lists the current features for host connectivity for the IBM FlashSystem 7300 control
enclosure 4657-924 and 4657-U7D machine types.

Table 9 Supported expansion enclosure and interface components MTMs 4657-924 and 4657-U7D
Item Feature Description Ports
code

32 Gbps FC 4 Port #ADBE This feature provides two I/O Each adapter has four 32 Gbps FC
Adapter (Pair) adapters. It is used to add 32 Gbps ports and shortwave SFP
FC connectivity. transceivers.

25 Gbps Ethernet #ADBB This feature provides two I/O Each adapter has two 25 Gbps
(RoCE) Adapter (Pair) adapters. It is used to add 25 Gbps Ethernet ports without SFP28
Ethernet connectivity. Supports transceivers.
RoCE V2.

25 Gbps Ethernet #ADBC This feature provides two I/O Each adapter has two 25 Gbps
(iWARP) Adapter (Pair) adapters. It is used to add 25 Gbps Ethernet ports without SFP28
Ethernet connectivity. Supports transceivers.
RDMA with iWARP.

100 Gbps Ethernet #ADB8 This feature provides two I/O adapter Each adapter has two 100 Gbps
(RoCE) Adapter Cards cards, each with two 100 Gbps Ethernet Ports. Supplied without
(Pair) Ethernet ports. It is used to add 100 optics or cables.
Gbps Ethernet connectivity to the
FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure
and is designed to support RDMA
with RoCE 2.

SAS Expansion #ADBA This feature provides two 4-port Each adapter has two active out of
Enclosure Attach Card 12 Gbps SAS expansion enclosure the four SAS ports.
(Pair) attachment adapters. This feature is
used to attach up to 12 expansion
enclosures.

25 Gbps Ethernet SW #ACHP This feature provides four 25 Gbps Requires feature ADBB, or ADBC.
SFP28 Transceivers shortwave SFP28 transceivers to
(Four) populate a pair of 25/10 Gbps
Ethernet host interface cards. These
transceivers are used to set the card
ports to 25 Gbps.

10 Gbps Ethernet SW #ACHQ This feature provides four 10 Gbps Requires feature ADBB or ADBC.
SFP+ Transceivers shortwave SFP+ transceivers to
(Four) populate a pair of 25/10 Gbps
Ethernet host interface cards. These
transceivers are used to set the card
ports to 10 Gbps.

32 Gbps FC LW SFP #ACHV This feature provides two 32 Gbps Feature ADBE is a prerequisite.
Transceivers (Pair) longwave SFP transceivers for use The maximum allowed is eight for
with 32 Gbps FC I/O ports. each instance of #ADBE.

100 Gbps Ethernet #ACHX This feature provides four 100 Gbps Requires feature ADB8.
QSFP28 SR4 Ethernet QSFP28 SR4 transceivers;
Transceivers (Four) enough for 1 pair of 100 Gbps
Ethernet cards.

10 Gbps Ethernet SFP+ #ACJ2 This feature provides four 10Gbe Requires feature ADBB or ADBC.
RJ45 Transceivers (Four) SFP+ to RJ45 transceivers; enough
for 1 pair of Gbps Ethernet cards.

51
 Cables
The following cables are available:
򐂰 (#ACSQ): 1 m OM3 Fibre Cable (LC)
򐂰 (#ACSR): 5 m OM3 Fibre Cable (LC)
򐂰 (#ACSS): 10 m OM3 Fibre Cable (LC)
򐂰 (#ACST): 25 m OM3 Fibre Cable (LC)
򐂰 (#ACUA): 0.6 m 12 Gbps SAS Cable (mSAS HD)
򐂰 (#ACUB): 1.5 m 12 Gbps SAS Cable (mSAS HD)
򐂰 (#ACUC): 3 m 12 Gbps SAS Cable (mSAS HD)
򐂰 (#ACUD): 6 m 12 Gbps SAS Cable (mSAS HD)

IBM Storage Class Memory, FCMs, and industry-standard NVMe drive options
The IBM FlashSystem 7300 system supports SCM drives, IBM FCMs, industry-standard flash
drives, and an intermix of all three.

IBM FCMs combine IBM MicroLatency technology, advanced flash management, and
reliability into a 2.5-inch SFF NVMe with built-in, performance-neutral hardware compression
and encryption.

For improved flexibility, IBM FlashSystem 7300 systems also support various
industry-standard self-encrypting NVMe flash drives.

The available NVMe flash drive uses the following feature codes:
򐂰 (#ADSA): 4.8 TB NVMe FCM
򐂰 (#ADSB): 9.6 TB NVMe FCM
򐂰 (#ADSC): 19.2 TB NVMe FCM
򐂰 (#ADSD): 38.4 TB NVMe FCM
򐂰 (#ADT2): 1.92 TB NVMe Flash Drive
򐂰 (#ADT3): 3.84 TB NVMe Flash Drive
򐂰 (#ADT4): 7.68 TB NVMe Flash Drive
򐂰 (#ADTC): 1.6 TB NVMe Storage Class Memory Drive

Consider the following limitations and points about drives on the IBM FlashSystem 7300:

Note: DRAID 5 is supported only by way of RPQ.

򐂰 IBM FCMs:
– DRAID 6 (minimum 6, maximum 128)
– DRAID 5 (minimum 4, maximum 128) RPQ only
– DRAID 1 (minimum 2, maximum 16)
– Only DRAID1 and DRAID6 are supported for compressed drives
– IBM FCMs in the same RAID array must be of the same capacity
򐂰 Industry-standard NVMe drives:
– DRAID 6 (minimum 6, maximum 128)
– DRAID 5 (minimum 4, maximum 128) RPQ only
– DRAID 1 (minimum 2, maximum 16)
– Industry-standard NVMe drives in the same RAID array must be of the same capacity
򐂰 SCM NVMe drives:
– Two drive minimum (varies by RAID type), 12 drives maximum
– DRAID 6 (minimum 6, maximum 12)

52 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 – DRAID 5 (minimum 4, maximum 12) RPQ only
– DRAID 0 (minimum 2, maximum 12)
– SCM NVMe drives in the same RAID array must be of the same capacity

IBM FlashSystem 7000 Expansion Enclosure options (Models 12G, 24G, and
92G)
The following SAS flash SSD and HDD drive feature codes are available:
򐂰 Supported on Model 12G only (maximum of 12):
– (#AHD4): 6 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch HDD
– (#AHD5): 8 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AHD6): 10 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AHD7): 12 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AHD8): 14 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AHD9): 16 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AHDA): 18 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AHDB): 20 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
򐂰 Supported on Model 24G only (maximum of 24):
– (#AHF3): 1.2 TB 10K 2.5-inch HDD
– (#AHF4): 1.8 TB 10K 2.5-inch HDD
– (#AHF5): 2.4 TB 10K 2.5-inch HDD
– (#AHH9): 800 GB 3DWPD 12 Gbps SAS 2.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AHHG): 1.92 TB 12 Gbps SAS 2.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AHHH): 3.84 TB 12 Gbps SAS 2.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AHHJ): 7.68 TB 12 Gbps SAS 2.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AHHK): 15.36 TB 12 Gbps SAS 2.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AHHL): 30.72 TB 12 Gbps SAS 2.5-inch Flash Drive
򐂰 Supported on Model 92G only (maximum of 92):
– (#AH73): 1.2 TB 10K 3.5-inch HDD
– (#AH74): 1.8 TB 10K 3.5-inch HDD
– (#AH75): 2.4 TB 10K 3.5-inch HDD
– (#AH77): 6 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AH78): 8 TB 7.2 K 3.5 NL HDD
– (#AH79): 10 TB 7.2 K 3.5 NL HDD
– (#AH7A): 12 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AH7B): 14 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AH7C): 16 TB 7.2 K 3.5-inch NL HDD
– (#AH7J): 1.92 TB 12 Gbps SAS 3.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AH7K) 3.84TB 12 Gbps SAS 3.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AH7L): 7.68 TB 12 Gbps SAS 3.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AH7M): 15.36 TB 12 Gbps SAS 3.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AH7N): 30.72 TB 12 Gbps SAS 3.5-inch Flash Drive
– (#AH7X): 18 TB 7.2k 12 Gbps SAS NL 3.5-inch Flash Drive

Note: For more information about Expert Care Features, see Sales Manual Family
4657+01 IBM FlashSystem 7300.

53
Physical and electrical specifications
Specifications for the control and expansion enclosures are listed in the following sections.

IBM FlashSystem 7000 control enclosure (4657-924 and 4657-U7D)

The IBM FlashSystem 7000 control enclosure features the following specifications:
򐂰 Physical:
– Height: 8.8 cm (3.5 in.)
– Width: 48.3 cm (19.0 in.)
– Depth: 85.0 cm (33.5 in.)
– Approximate weight:
• Empty: 38.5 kg (84.7 lb.)
• Fully configured: 44 kg (97 lb.) without rails
򐂰 Air temperature:
– Operating: 5–35° C (41–95° F) 0–3048 m (0–10,000 ft.). Above 900 m, decrease
maximum air temperature 1° per 300 m
– Nonoperating: 1–50° C (34–122° F)
򐂰 Relative humidity:
– Operating: 8–80% noncondensing
– Nonoperating: 8–80% noncondensing
򐂰 Electrical power:
– Voltage range: 200–240 V AC
– Frequency: 50–60 Hz
– Power: 2000 W (power varies with configuration and system usage; the maximum is
shown)
– Heat dissipation (BTU per hour): 6825
– Acoustical noise emission: 8.1 bels (idling), 8.1 bels (operating)

IBM FlashSystem 7000 LFF and SFF Expansion Enclosure (4657 Model 12G
and 4657 Model 24G)
The IBM FlashSystem 7000 Expansion Enclosure 12G/24G features the following
specifications:
򐂰 Physical:
– Height: 8.7 cm (3.4 in.)
– Width: 48.3 cm (19.0 in.)
– Depth: 55.6 cm (21.9 in.)
– Approximate weight:
• Empty: 16.7 kg (36.8 lb)
• Fully configured: 25.0 kg (55.1 lb)
򐂰 Air temperature:
– Operating: 5–35° C (41–95° F) 0–3048 m (0–10,000 ft). Above 900 m, decrease
maximum air temperature 1° per 175 m
– Nonoperating: 1–50° C (34–122° F)

54 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 򐂰 Relative humidity:
– Operating: 8–80% noncondensing
– Nonoperating: 8–80% noncondensing
򐂰 Electrical power:
– Voltage range: 100–240 V AC
– Frequency: 50–60 Hz
– Power: 800 W
– Heat dissipation (BTU per hour): 1,037
– Acoustical noise emission: 6.2 bels (idling), 6.2 bels (operating)

IBM FlashSystem 7000 High Density LFF Expansion Enclosure (4657 Model
92G)
The IBM FlashSystem 7000 High Density Expansion Enclosure 92G has the following
specifications:
򐂰 Physical specifications:
– Height: 22.2 cm (8.75 in.)
– Width: 48.3 cm (19.0 in.)
– Depth: 96.8 cm (38.1 in.)
– Approximate weight:
• Empty: 67.0 kg (147.7 lb)
• Fully configured: 135.0 kg (297.0 lb)
򐂰 Air temperature:
– Operating: 5–35° C (41–95° F) 0–3048 m (0–10,000 ft). Above 900 m, decrease
maximum air temperature 1° per 300 m
– Nonoperating: 1–50° C (34–122 degrees F)
򐂰 Relative humidity:
– Operating: 8–80% noncondensing
– Nonoperating: 8–80% noncondensing
򐂰 Electrical power:
– Voltage range: 180–264 V AC
– Frequency: 47–63 Hz
– Power: 2400 W
– Heat dissipation (BTU per hour): 8,189
– Acoustical noise emission: 8.5 bels (idling), 8.5 bels (operating)

Note: All noise emission levels that are stated are the declared (upper limit) sound power
level in bels, for a random sample of machines. All measurements are made in accordance
with ISO 7779 and reported in conformance with ISO 9296.

55
Software and licensing
All IBM FlashSystem 7300 systems feature IBM Storage Virtualize Software V8.5 or later
preinstalled. The IBM FlashSystem 7300 is licensed machine code. All features are inclusive
except for external virtualization and encryption, which is a feature code that is enabled for
those countries that allow it.

Any connected storage that is not an IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosure requires the
External Virtualization license per storage capacity unit (SCU) that is based on the tier of
storage that is available on the external storage system. In addition, if you use FlashCopy and
Remote Mirroring on an external storage system, you must purchase a per-tebibyte license to
use these functions.

Consider the following points:

򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7300 control enclosures support external storage virtualization. The use
of the external virtualization capability is entitled through the acquisition of IBM Storage
Virtualize Software for SAN Volume Controller (PID 5641-VC8 in AAS and PID 5725-M19
in IBM Passport Advantage®).
򐂰 With the IBM FlashSystem 7300 system, a license also is needed for the
hardware-assisted encryption, Encryption Enablement #ACE8, if it is purchased. This
feature code is needed if you want to use USB-Key encryption, Security Key Lifecycle
Manager-based encryption, or both on the control enclosure.
It is a best practice to use the Encryption USB Drive Pack feature (#ACEA). This feature
provides four USB flash drives for storing the encryption master access key. A total of
three USB flash drives are required per FlashSystem cluster when encryption is enabled
in the cluster, regardless of the number of systems in the cluster. If encryption is to be
used in a cluster, this feature is ordered on one FlashSystem, which results in a shipment
of four USB flash drives.
򐂰 External virtualization licenses from the IBM SAN Volume Controller can be used for the
IBM FlashSystem 7300.
򐂰 A storage system that is used only as a quorum device does not require a software
license.

To set these licenses, use the Licensed Function page in the System Setup wizard. If you are
adding these licenses to a system, select Settings → System → Licensed Function in the
management GUI. You can also use the chlicense CLI command to update current license
settings on the system.

For more information about IBM Storage Virtualize licensing, see Licensed functions.

IBM Storage Virtualize External Licensing

The IBM FlashSystem 7300 supports differential, capacity, and key-based licensing. For
example, with external virtualization, differential licensing charges different rates for different
types of storage. This paradigm provides cost-effective management of capacity across
multiple tiers of storage. Licensing for these functions is based on the number of storage
capacity units (SCUs) that are purchased.

With other functions, such as remote mirroring and FlashCopy, the license grants a specific
number of terabytes of capacity for that function. Key-based licenses require an authorization
code and key to be downloaded to the system before the function can be used.

56 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

 Note: SCUs are needed only for virtualized storage that does not have the 5641-VC8
license.

The SCU is defined in terms of the category of the storage capacity, as listed in Table 10.

Table 10 SCU category definitions

License Drive class SCU ratio

SCM Storage Class Memory (SCM) devices SCU equates to 1.00 TB usable of
Category 1 storage

Flash All flash devices, other than SCM SCU equates to 1.18 TB usable of
drives Category 1 storage

Enterprise 10 K or 15 K rpm drives SCU equates to 2 TB usable of

Category 2 storage

Nearline Nearline Serial ATA (SATA) drives SCU equates to 4.00 TB usable of
Category 3 storage

Table 11 shows an example of calculating SCUs. The example is a customer who virtualizes
external disk arrays with 5 TB SCM devices, 30 TB SSD flash drives, 400 TB Enterprise
drives, and 800 TB Nearline capacity.

Table 11 Example of calculating SCUs

Category Type Capacity Rule Number of SCUs

Category 1 SCM 5 /1 5

Category 1 SSD 30 / 1.18 26

Category 2 Enterprise 400 /2 200

Category 3 Nearline 800 /4 200

Total 1235 431

As shown in Table 11, 431SCUs are required for the example. When you calculate the
number of SCUs per category, fractions must be rounded up to the next higher integer
number.

For more information about IBM Storage Virtualize Differential Licensing, see Licensed
functions and search for “7X00 licensed functions”.

IBM Global Financing

IBM Global Financing offers competitive financing to credit-qualified customers and
IBM Business Partners to assist them in acquiring IT solutions. The offerings include
financing for IT acquisition and includes hardware, software, and services from IBM and other
manufacturers or vendors. Also included is commercial financing for IBM Business Partners,
such as revolving lines of credit, term loans, acquisition facilities, and inventory financing
credit lines.

57
 Offerings for small, medium, and large enterprise customer segments, rates, terms, and
availability can vary by country. For more information, contact your local IBM Global Financing
organization or see the IBM Global Financing website.

Ordering information
For more information about ordering IBM FlashSystem 7300 expansions, see “Scaling up and
scaling out” on page 39.

For more information about ordering hardware features, see “IBM FlashSystem 7300 GUI” on
page 19.

For more information about ordering software licenses, see “Software and licensing” on
page 56.

Related information
For more information, see the following resources:
򐂰 Implementation Guide for IBM Storage FlashSystem and IBM SAN Volume Controller
Version 8.6, SG24-8542:
https://www.redbooks.ibm.com/redpieces/abstracts/sg248542.html
򐂰 Introduction and Implementation of Data Reduction Pools and Deduplication, SG24-8430:
http://www.redbooks.ibm.com/abstracts/sg248430.html
򐂰 IBM Documentation for IBM FlashSystem:
https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/flashsystem-7x00/8.6.x?topic=flashsystem-7300-7200-860x
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem 7300 product page:
https://www.ibm.com/products/flashsystem-7300
򐂰 IBM Offering Information page (announcement letters and sales manuals):
http://www.ibm.com/common/ssi/index.wss?request_locale=en
򐂰 IBM FlashSystems & SAN Volume Controller FAQ
https://www.ibm.com/downloads/cas/2DWAMWRB
򐂰 IBM FlashSystem Family FAQ
Overview of the IBM FlashSystem family with guidance on how to select the product that is
right for you:
https://www.ibm.com/downloads/cas/9OGKVW2R
򐂰 IBM FlashWatch FAQ
Guidance about the IBM FlashWatch programs:
https://www.ibm.com/downloads/cas/YVMYPEDE
򐂰 Sales Accelerator Tools Portal for IBM Storage (IBMers only):
https://w3.ibm.com/w3publisher/ibm-systems-storage-sales-accelerator-tools-portal

58 IBM Storage FlashSystem 7300 Product Guide

Authors
Hartmut Lonzer is the IBM Storwize Territory Account Manager for DACH. In addition, he
covers the SAN portfolio as Offering Manager DACH. Before this position, he was OEM
Alliance Manager for Lenovo in IBM Germany. His working location is at the IBM German
headquarters in Ehningen. His main focus is on the IBM FlashSystem family and the
IBM SAN Volume Controller. His experience with the IBM SAN Volume Controller and
IBM FlashSystem products goes back to the beginning of these products. Hartmut has been
with IBM in various technical and sales roles for 45 years.

Jon Herd is an IBM Executive Technical Advocate working for the European Storage
Competency Center (ESCC), Germany. He covers the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Europe,
advising customers on a portfolio of IBM storage products, including IBM FlashSystem
products. He also leads special projects for senior and executive management and is the
SME lead for new product introduction in the ESCC. Jon has been with IBM for more than 47
years, and has held various technical roles, including Europe, Middle East, and Africa
(EMEA) level support on mainframe servers and technical education development. He has
written many IBM Redbooks® publications about IBM FlashSystem products and is an
IBM Redbooks Platinum level author. He holds IBM certifications in Product Services at a
Thought Leader L3 level, and Technical Specialist at an experienced L1 level. He is also a
certified Chartered Member of the British Computer Society (MBCS - CITP), a Certified
Member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (MIET), and a Certified Technical
Specialist of the Open Group (TOG).

Vasfi Gucer works as the Storage Team Leader on the IBM Redbooks Team. He has more
than 30 years of experience in the areas of systems management, networking hardware, and
software. He writes extensively and teaches IBM classes worldwide about IBM products. His
focus has been primarily on storage, cloud computing, and cloud storage technologies for the
last 8 years. Vasfi is also an IBM Certified Senior IT Specialist, Project Management
Professional (PMP), IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) V2 Manager, and ITIL V3 Expert.

The team would like to thank the authors of the previous edition of this publication: Corne
Lottering, Douwe van Terwisga, Kendall Williams, Konrad Trojok, and Shu Mookerjee

59
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