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PowerMax 2500 All-Flash Storage

The Dell PowerMax 2500 All-Flash Storage is a scale-out all-flash enterprise storage array with 1 to 2 node pairs, up to 8 PiBe / 8.8 PBe of effective capacity and 100 Gb/s InfiniBand dynamic fabric. It delivers sub-60-microsecond response times with a 5:1 data reduction guarantee for open systems and 3:1 for mainframe.

Category: Brand:
Array Family

PowerMax 2500

Array Type

Scale-out all-flash enterprise storage array

Operating System

PowerMaxOS 10

Node Pairs

1 to 2

Node Pair Module

3U

Processor

Memory config 1-3: Intel Xeon Gold 5218 2.8 GHz, 16 cores per CPU
Memory config 4-5: Intel Xeon Gold 6240L

Cores per CPU / Node Pair / System

Memory config 1-3: 16 / 64 / 128
Memory config 4-5: 18 / 72 / 144

Dynamic Fabric

Direct connection InfiniBand: 100 Gbps per port

Cache per Node Pair

896 GB, 1.792 TB, 3.584 TB, 7.680 TB

Cache per System (Raw)

Minimum 896 GB raw, maximum 15.36 TB raw

Vault Strategy

Vault to Flash

Vault Implementation

2 to 4 NVMe SED flash modules per node pair

Maximum Front-End I/O Modules per Node Pair

8

Maximum Capacity per Array (Open Systems)

8 PiBe / 8.8 PBe maximum per array

Base Capacity (Open Systems)

30.72 TBu

Maximum Capacity per Array (Mainframe)

3.8 PiBe / 4.1 PBe maximum per array

Base Capacity (Mainframe)

15.36 TBu

Data Reduction Guarantee

5:1 open systems / 3:1 mainframe

Response Time

Under 60 microseconds

Maximum Drives per Array

96

Maximum Drives per System Bay

96 / 192 / 288

Minimum Drive Count per System

6 (mainframe) / 10 (open systems)

NVMe Drive Capacities

3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, 30.72 TB (2.5 inch)

Incremental Flash Capacity Upgrades

TLC: 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, 30.72 TB
QLC: 15.36 TB, 30.72 TB

Drive Interface

Dual PCIe Gen 3 x8 NVMe attached interface; NVMe and NVMe-oF over a dual 100 Gb InfiniBand fabric

RAID Support

RAID 1 (1+1)
RAID 5 (4+1) – mainframe only, 3.84 TB drives only
RAID 5 (8+1)
RAID 5 (12+1)
RAID 6 (12+2)
RAID 6 (24+2) – 15.36 TB and 30.72 TB drives only

Mixed RAID Group Support

No

Support for Mixed Drive Capacities

Yes, up to two consecutive compatible capacities

Dynamic Media Enclosure

48 x 2.5-inch drive DME

Host Support

Open systems, mainframe, and mixed mainframe and open systems

100 Gb/s Ethernet / iSCSI / NVMe-TCP / SRDF Ports

16 per node pair / 32 per array

64 Gb/s FC / NVMe / SRDF Ports

32 per node pair / 64 per array

32 Gb/s FC / FICON / SRDF Ports

32 per node pair / 64 per array

25 Gb/s Ethernet / iSCSI / NVMe-TCP Ports

32 per node pair / 64 per array

10 Gb/s Ethernet / iSCSI / NVMe-TCP Ports

32 per node pair / 64 per array

Maximum File I/O Modules per Array

4

File I/O Modules Supported

10 Gb/s: 4 x 10Gb/s file; 25 Gb/s: 4 x 25Gb/s file

Software File Nodes

4 software file nodes (1 per node, 2 per node pair)

Maximum File Capacity per Array

8 PiBe maximum file capacity per array

Max Devices / Secure Snapshots

64K LUNs / 65M snapshots

Thin Provisioning

100% thin provisioned pre-configured from factory

Availability

Designed for six nines of availability

Pre-Configuration from Factory

100% thin provisioned

System Bay Configuration

Up to 3 systems per bay

System Bay Dispersion

Not applicable – the PowerMax 2500 is a single floor tile, single-bay solution

Standard 19 inch Bays

Yes, third-party rack mount option available

Height

78.4 inch (199.2 cm)

Width

23.5 inch (60 cm)

Depth

45.2 inch (114.8 cm)

Weight

675 lb (306 kg) – single node pair, single DME
813 lb (369 kg) – dual node pair, single DME
900 lb (408 kg) – dual node pair, dual DME
1125 lb (510 kg) – three node pair, three DME
1375 lb (624 kg) – four node pair, four DME
1838 lb (834 kg) – six node pair, six DME

Power Options

Single phase or three-phase; delta or wye

Intelligent PDU

Included by default with PowerMaxOS 10.1

Single Phase Input

200 – 240 VAC +/- 10% L-L or 220 – 240 VAC +/- 10% L-N; 50 – 60 Hz; 30 A (or 30/32 A) circuit breakers; two power zones

Three Phase Input

200 – 240 VAC +/- 10% L-L (delta 4-wire, 50 A) or 220 – 240 VAC +/- 10% L-N (wye 5-wire, 30/32 A); 50 – 60 Hz; two power zones

Operating Environment

ASHRAE 2-level operating condition class, 10 C to 35 C with corresponding relative humidity

Services and Warranty

Dell ProDeploy Enterprise Suite, ProSupport Enterprise Suite, Managed Services for Storage and Cyber Recovery Services for PowerMax (Cyber Vault)

PowerMax 2500 All-Flash Storage Overview

The PowerMax 2500 delivers up to 7x more effective capacity (8 PBe) in half the footprint of previous models. With the industry’s most comprehensive data services, it is designed to handle demanding mixed workloads – block, file and mainframe – while ensuring the highest levels of data availability and cyber resiliency.

PowerMax is built from modular storage components. The compute modules are packaged as node
pairs, each containing two PowerMax compute nodes with complete software and licensing, cache
memory, redundant power and connectivity modules. These are combined with 48-slot Dynamic Media
Enclosures (DMEs) to configure NVMe flash drives. Arrays are delivered with the Inclusive Software
package, and NVMe drive capacity can be added in single-drive increments to scale up to 8 PiBe / 8.8 PBe maximum per array.
Both models carry an industry-leading data reduction guarantee of 5:1 for open systems and 3:1 for
mainframe.

Compute, Cache and Vault

  • Node pairs: 1 to 2
  • Node pair module: 3U
  • Processor options: Memory config 1-3: Intel Xeon Gold 5218 2.8 GHz, 16 cores per CPU
    Memory config 4-5: Intel Xeon Gold 6240L
  • Cores per CPU / node pair / system: Memory config 1-3: 16 / 64 / 128
    Memory config 4-5: 18 / 72 / 144
  • Dynamic fabric: Direct connection InfiniBand: 100 Gbps per port
  • Cache per node pair: 896 GB, 1.792 TB, 3.584 TB, 7.680 TB
  • Cache per system (raw): Minimum 896 GB raw, maximum 15.36 TB raw
  • Vault strategy: Vault to Flash
  • Vault implementation: 2 to 4 NVMe SED flash modules per node pair
  • Maximum front-end I/O modules per node pair: 8

Capacity and Drives

  • Maximum capacity per array (open systems): 8 PiBe / 8.8 PBe maximum per array based on 5:1 data
    reduction
  • Base capacity (open systems): 30.72 TBu
  • Maximum capacity per array (mainframe): 3.8 PiBe / 4.1 PBe maximum per array based on 3:1 data
    reduction
  • Base capacity (mainframe): 15.36 TBu
  • Maximum drives per array: 96
  • Maximum drives per system bay: 96 / 192 / 288
  • Minimum drive count per system: 6 (mainframe) / 10 (open systems)
  • NVMe drive capacities: 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, 30.72 TB (2.5 inch)
  • Incremental flash capacity upgrades: TLC: 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB, 30.72 TB
    QLC: 15.36 TB, 30.72 TB
  • Dynamic media enclosure: 48 x 2.5-inch drive DME, supported on both models
  • Drive interface: dual PCIe Gen 3 x8 NVMe attached; NVMe and NVMe-oF over a
    dual 100 Gb InfiniBand fabric
  • Flexible RAID options: RAID 1 (1+1)
    RAID 5 (4+1) – mainframe only, 3.84 TB drives only
    RAID 5 (8+1)
    RAID 5 (12+1)
    RAID 6 (12+2)
    RAID 6 (24+2) – 15.36 TB and 30.72 TB drives only
  • Mixed RAID group support: no
  • Support for mixed drive capacities: yes, up to two consecutive compatible
    capacities per storage resource pool

Front-End Connectivity

  • Protocols supported: 2 x 100 Gb/s Ethernet, iSCSI, SRDF and NVMe/TCP;
    4 x 64 Gb/s Fibre Channel, NVMe and SRDF; 4 x 32 Gb/s Fibre Channel, NVMe/FC, FICON and SRDF;
    4 x 25 Gb/s Ethernet, iSCSI, SRDF and NVMe/TCP; 4 x 10 Gb/s Ethernet, iSCSI, SRDF and NVMe/TCP;
    1 x zHyperlink port for mainframe and zHyperlink
  • 100 Gb/s Ethernet, iSCSI, NVMe/TCP and SRDF ports: 16 per node pair / 32 per array
  • 64 Gb/s Fibre Channel, NVMe and SRDF ports: 32 per node pair / 64 per array
  • 32 Gb/s Fibre Channel, FICON and SRDF ports: 32 per node pair / 64 per array
  • 25 Gb/s Ethernet, iSCSI and NVMe/TCP ports: 32 per node pair / 64 per array
  • 10 Gb/s Ethernet, iSCSI and NVMe/TCP ports: 32 per node pair / 64 per array
  • zHyperlink ports: 2 per node pair / 4 per array

PowerMax File

  • Maximum file I/O modules per array: 4
  • File I/O modules supported: 10 Gb/s – 4 x 10Gb/s file; 25 Gb/s – 4 x 25Gb/s
    file
  • Software file nodes: 4 software file nodes (1 per node, 2 per node pair)
  • Maximum file capacity per array: 8 PiBe maximum file capacity per array

Availability, Data Services and Security

  • Architecture: end-to-end NVMe, InfiniBand 100 Gb/s, dual-ported NVMe flash
    drives, NVMe/TCP connectivity and hardware-based data reduction, designed for six nines of
    availability
  • Data reduction: advanced global inline data reduction, with a 5:1 guarantee
    for open systems and 3:1 for mainframe
  • Operating system: PowerMaxOS 10
  • Host support: open systems, mainframe, and mixed mainframe and open systems
  • Pre-configuration from factory: 100% thin provisioned
  • Cyber resiliency: Cyber Recovery Service for PowerMax (cyber vault) available
    through Dell Professional Services
  • Scalability: independent growth of nodes and storage capacity in single-drive
    increments with Dynamic Fabric architecture and Flexible RAID

Physical and Power Specifications

  • System bay configurations: Up to 3 systems per bay
  • System bay dispersion: Not applicable – the PowerMax 2500 is a single floor tile, single-bay solution
  • Standard 19 inch bays: yes, third-party rack mount option available
  • Height: 78.4 inch (199.2 cm)
  • Width: 23.5 inch (60 cm)
  • Depth: 45.2 inch (114.8 cm)
  • Weight: 675 lb (306 kg) – single node pair, single DME
    813 lb (369 kg) – dual node pair, single DME
    900 lb (408 kg) – dual node pair, dual DME
    1125 lb (510 kg) – three node pair, three DME
    1375 lb (624 kg) – four node pair, four DME
    1838 lb (834 kg) – six node pair, six DME
  • Power options: single phase or three-phase, delta or wye
  • Intelligent PDU: included by default with PowerMaxOS 10.1, enabling real-time
    telemetry and monitoring of power, voltage, current, external temperature and humidity
  • Single phase input: 200 – 240 VAC +/- 10% line-to-line nominal (North
    American 3-wire) or 220 – 240 VAC +/- 10% line-to-neutral nominal (international and Australian
    3-wire); 50 – 60 Hz; 30 A circuit breakers (30 or 32 A international); two power zones
  • Three-phase input: 200 – 240 VAC +/- 10% line-to-line nominal (North American
    delta, 4-wire, 50 A) or 220 – 240 VAC +/- 10% line-to-neutral nominal (international wye, 5-wire,
    30/32 A); 50 – 60 Hz; two power zones
  • Radio frequency interference: certified to EN61000-4-3; maximum ambient RF
    field strength should not exceed 3 volts per metre in data centers with intentional radiators

Operating Environment

Tested and verified to work within the permitted range of the ASHRAE 2-level operating condition
class between 10 C and 35 C and within the corresponding relative humidity range.

Services and Warranty

  • Implementation: Dell ProDeploy Enterprise Suite, Dell Data Migration Services,
    Dell Residency Services, Dell Data Sanitization Services for Enterprise
  • Support: Dell ProSupport Enterprise Suite, Dell Keep Your Hard Drive for
    Enterprise
  • Managed and consulting: Dell Managed Services for Storage; Cyber Recovery
    Services for PowerMax (Cyber Vault); advisory services workshops
  • Support technology: MyService360, Secure Remote Services, SupportAssist
    Enterprise

Ordering

Configuration, availability and lead time depend on the required model, drive mix, protocols and delivery destination. Send your requirement to receive a quotation.

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