SAN on CC4

[Tallwood_6]

Anyone here using a SAN on CC4 or even CC3 which isn't RM supplied? Looking at implementing a SAN this year but having received budgetary quotes from RM but they want a criminal £50k plus for a 6TB EMC offering and thats without any real backup in the form of a Disk to Disk to Tape or similar which is simply way off the kind of money i was thinking of spending.

I has asked if they would be willing to commission a slightly more reasonable 3rd part solution but they dont seem to want to know. So basically i'd be interested to here from anyone that as either managed to get RM to commission a 3rd party SAN or implemented one themselves that has been used to house user home directories?

[webman]

Ask them about the Hitachi SMS100, that's what we've gone for.

[Tallwood_6]

Looked at this, but future expansion looked a little limited, what kind of figures did they come back with for the hitachi. I.e. would i have change from 15k?

[webman]

The idea is that once you run out of space, you just buy another one.

 

With backup including D2D2T and LTO, I don't think there was much change from £15k, no.

[Tallwood_6]

With the D2D2T thats not to bad at all i may enquire, i was looking at the Dell EqualLogics, HP storage works units and even the Sun 7110's, i just get a little bit tired of being told what hardware i can and cant use, if RM can commission 3rd party servers why cant they do the same for SAN's.

Just out of curiosity did you go with SATA for SAS drives in your Hitachi?

[webman]

When we first approached RM about CC4 and a SAN, they actually recommended the SMS100 (with SATA disks) as an alternative to the more-expensive EMC. But we told them we'd use our own servers (Dell PE 2950s) - they obviously wanted us to buy their own more-expensive servers, but didn't enforce it.

[soapyfish]

I have just had quotes from RM for both the 6tb EMC and the "mini san" (SMS 100) the EMC was 60k inc VAT and the SMS 100 was best part of 30k that said they both come with the D2DT backup device and the backup exec licences and required switching we are still deciding on what we are going to install but I have to say the cost of both is extreme really.

 

I did wonder about placing my enitre domain on a Sun Microsystems X4540

as that holds upto 48TB in one 4u box it also supports windows and model with less storage are cheaper and Sun were and I think still are offering upto 60% off list prices for education.

 

I do not think RM would not install it after all they have comissioned 3 dell servers for me as RM CC3 DC's

 

Sun Fire X4540 Server - Overview

[PiqueABoo]

Never touched one but Equilogic sounds like an easy (to manage) choice.

[Tallwood_6]

I have put the idea of implementing a SAN at least from RM on hold. I've since asked them to price me up a user storage server to replace an older DC and a D2D2T system which we could then use with a if we where to go ahead with one the following year. They are apparently looking into different SAN options for me and apparently they may be offering the EMC AX4 as an option for summer but i'm not sure what kind of pricing for that if they do offer it.

Spoken with one of my local suppliers/ solution providers and they seem to think they should be sort us out with a SAN install, either HP, Dell or SUN for the money we are looking to spend as well as possibly virtualizing a number of servers at the same time so i'm weighing up my options.

With the mess RM have made commissioning servers installing CC4 etc the last couple of years i'm of the opinion i may as well give someone else a shot, may even sort something else myself but i'd quite like a holiday this summer so will have to see!