HP SmartCache technology

Technical white paper | HP SmartCache
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Abstract
As an IT professional, you are seeking cost effective ways to increase the performance of applications. With CPU core counts
growing and addressable memory space increasing, storage can become the main bottleneck for virtualized and data-
intensive environments. HP ProLiant Gen8 servers address application performance with Dynamic Workload Acceleration,
an architectural innovation that employs HP SmartCache technology for accelerating access to multi-terabytes of data in
either a Direct-Attached Storage (DAS) or Storage Area Network (SAN) environment.
This paper describes HP SmartCache technology—how converging solid-state and hard disk drive technologies with
intelligent control can offer high performance and high capacity without incurring the cost burden of an all-solid state drive
(SSD) configuration.
Introduction
Storage needs for enterprise systems are advancing rapidly in both performance and capacity and most applications require
a balance of those attributes. However, certain applications emphasize one attribute over another. For instance,
applications that process many read and write requests to the storage subsystem make performance a priority. For
applications that manage archival data that grows continuously, capacity is vital.
Two storage technologies commonly address application needs. The SSD, with its very low latency, is the answer for
performance-conscious applications. The hard disk drive (HDD), with its long-term reliability and economical per-GB cost,
meets large capacity needs. Figure 1 illustrates the suitability of SSDs and HDDs for meeting the needs of different
applications.
• High frequency trading applications require very lower latency. An all-SSD solution would provide the performance this
environment requires.
• Online transaction processing (OLTP) and analytics push the boundaries of both performance and capacity growth. A mix
of SSDs and HDDs best meets those needs.
• Archival and smartphone applications require unstructured data growth, a need suitably addressed with high capacity
HDDs.
Figure 1. Different applications have varying storage needs.