Administrator Guide

Recommended (All Tiers)
The Recommended storage profile is available only when data progression is licensed. Cost and performance are optimized when all
volumes use the Recommended storage profile. The Recommended profile allows automatic data progression between and across all
storage tiers based on data type and usage.
When a volume uses the Recommended profile, all new data is written to Tier 1 RAID level 10 storage. Data progression moves less active
data to Tier 1 RAID 5/ RAID 6 or a slower tier based on how frequently the data is accessed. In this way, the most active blocks of data
remain on high-performance drives, while less active blocks automatically move to lower-cost, high-capacity SAS drives.
Because SSDs are automatically assigned to Storage Tier 1, profiles that include Storage Tier 1 allow volumes to use SSD storage. If you
have volumes that contain data that is not accessed frequently, and do not require the performance of Tier 1 SSDs, use a Medium or Low
Priority profile or create and apply a new profile that does not include Storage Tier 1.
High Priority (Tier 1)
The High Priority storage profile provides the highest performance by storing data on Tier 1. It is efficient in terms of using RAID 5 or 6,
but it uses more expensive media to store the data. A volume created using the High Priority profile stores written data on Tier 1 RAID 10.
Snapshot data is stored on Tier 1 RAID 5/RAID 6. Storage Center does not migrate data to lower storage tiers unless Tier 1 storage
becomes full.
If data progression is not licensed, the default storage profile is High Priority. Without data progression, you must configure volumes to use
a specific tier of storage, because data will not migrate between tiers.
Medium Priority (Tier 2)
The Medium Priority storage profile provides a balance between performance and cost efficiency. A volume created using the Medium
Priority profile stores written data on Tier 2 RAID 10. Snapshot data is stored on Tier 2 RAID 5/RAID 6. Storage Center does not migrate
data to other storage tiers unless Tier 2 storage becomes full.
Low Priority (Tier 3)
The Low Priority profile provides the most cost efficient storage. Creating a volume using the Low Priority profile stores written data on
Tier 3 RAID 10. Snapshot data is stored on Tier 3 RAID 5/6. Storage Center does not migrate data to higher tiers of storage unless Tier 3
storage becomes full.
Storage Profiles for Flash-Optimized Storage
The table below summarizes storage profiles available for flash-optimized storage types. Each profile is described in more detail following
the table.
Name
Initial Write Tier Tier (T) and RAID Levels Progression
Low Priority (Tier 3) 3 Writes: T3 RAID 10 snapshots:
T3 RAID 5/6
No
Flash Optimized with
Progression (Tier 1 to All Tiers)
1 Writes: T1 RAID 10 snapshots:
T2/T3 RAID 5/6
Yes to all tiers
Write Intensive (Tier 1) 1 Writes: T1 RAID 10 snapshots: T1
RAID 10
No
Flash Only with Progression
(Tier 1 to Tier 2)
1 Writes: T1 RAID 10 snapshots:
T2 RAID 5
Yes to Tier 2 only
Low Priority with Progression
(Tier 3 to Tier 2)
3 Writes: T3 RAID 10 snapshots:
T3 RAID 5/6 or T2 RAID 5
Yes to Tier 2 only
Low Priority (Tier 3)
The Low Priority profile provides the most cost efficient storage. Creating a volume using the Low Priority profile stores written data on
Tier 3 RAID 10. Snapshot data is stored on Tier 3 RAID 5/6. Storage Center does not migrate data to higher tiers of storage unless Tier 3
storage becomes full.
Flash-Optimized with Progression (Tier 1 to All Tiers)
The Flash Optimized with Progression storage profile provides the most efficient storage for an enclosure containing both read-intensive
and write-intensive SSDs. When a storage type uses this profile, all new data is written to write-intensive Tier 1 drives. Snapshot data is
moved to Tier 2, and less-active data progresses to Tier 3.
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Storage Center Overview