Reference Guide

1 System Components and Specifications
This chapter provides detailed system specifications for the HP 3PAR S-Class and T-Class Storage
systems and serves as a quick reference for other relevant specifications that are described in more
detail in other chapters of this manual.
HP 3PAR Storage System Components
HP 3PAR Storage systems are based on the HP 3PAR architecture, a cluster-based approach that
incorporates sophisticated data management and fault tolerance technologies that can meet the
storage needs of smaller sites and can easily be scaled for global organizations.
The HP 3PAR S-Class and T-Class Storage systems are housed in a 2 meter cabinet and are
comprised of the following components:
• Controller Nodes are high-performance, data movement engines that provide the caching
capabilities and manage the flow of data in a storage system. HP 3PAR Storage systems
contain two, four, six, or eight controller nodes depending on the backplane model and current
system configuration.
• HP 3PAR Storage System Backplane works in conjunction with the controller nodes to route
data. This passive, full-mesh backplane enables high-bandwidth and low-latency internal
pathing that supersedes bus-, switch-, and even InfiniBand-based architectures.
• Drive Chassis houses the drive cages that, in turn, contain the drive bays. Each drive bay can
accommodate a single drive magazine that holds an array of four hard disk drives. These are
intelligent, compact, extremely dense storage units, where each is capable of holding a large
numbers of disk drives in a small rack space (EIA-standard rack units).
• Fibre Channel Adapters and FC-AL modules provide high speed routing of data and enable
granular and potentially massive connectivity to hosts and to the drive chassis.
• Storage System Service Processor (SP) provides the remote error detection and reporting
capabilities that support diagnostic and maintenance activities involving HP 3PAR Storage
systems. In general, one SP is required per storage system.
Figure 1 (page 6) and Figure 2 (page 7) show the front and rear views of a fully populated 2M
(40U) 3PAR cabinet with the various components installed:
HP 3PAR Storage System Components 5