SandForce-based SSDs demo record breaking price-performance on IBM POWER7 systems

SARATOGA, USA: SandForce Inc., a pioneer of SSD processors that enable standard NAND Flash deployment in enterprise and client computing applications, announced a record performance benchmark of IBM POWER7 systems with SandForce-based SSDs. The benchmark results showed dramatic improvements in processing efficiency and price/performance, using "multi-level cell" (MLC) flash technology.

MLC flash is a solid state technology traditionally used in consumer devices because it is dramatically more affordable than single level cell (SLC) flash. Many enterprise clients have found the cost of SLC flash to be prohibitive, while the reliability of the more affordable MLC flash was an issue for the enterprise.

Unique DuraClass technology integrated in SandForce SSD Processors brings enterprise-class reliability to MLC flash so enterprises can now take advantage of the speed of SSDs at an affordable price.

An IBM POWER7 system with MLC SSDs based on SandForce Processors recently achieved an unprecedented 150,000 transactions per minute per CPU core running the TPC-C Online Transaction Processing benchmark -- nearly a 50 percent improvement in processing efficiency per core as compared to the next leading system.

In addition, the benchmark delivers a 36 percent advantage in price/performance compared to the next leading system with the same number of CPU cores. This record setting performance showcases the ability of IBM Power Systems to deliver leadership performance for transactional workloads like smart utility grids.

IBM POWER7 is the first enterprise server in the industry to use SandForce SSD Processor technology. By bringing lower cost flash technology to the enterprise, POWER7 provides enterprise clients fast access to data so it can be more quickly analyzed for insight to provide competitive advantage.

“The record IBM TPC-C benchmark results demonstrate that SandForce and IBM are transforming enterprise server data storage with the enablement of cost-effective MLC flash as the storage media workhorse for highly scalable compute platforms,” said Thad Omura, Vice President of Marketing for SandForce.

“By dramatically lowering the cost structure and power envelope of enterprise server storage media while maintaining breakthrough performance and reliability, data centers worldwide are ultimately empowered to do more with less.”

SandForce SSD Processors address the inherent endurance, reliability, and data retention issues associated with MLC flash memory, making it possible to build SSDs that deliver unprecedented performance and reliability over the life of the drive while reducing the cost compared to SLC.