Name
Abstract | ||
|---|---|---|
Disk subsystems span the range of configuration complexity from single disk drives to large installations of disk arrays. They can be directly attached to individual computer systems or configured as larger, shared access Storage Area Networks (SANs). It is a significant task to evaluate the performance of these subsystems especially when considering the range of performance requirements of any particular installation and application. Storage subsystems can be designed to meet different performance criteria such as bandwidth, transactions per second, latency, capacity, connectivity, …etc. but the question of how the subsystem will perform depends on the software and hardware layering and the number of layers an I/O request must traverse in order to perform the actual operation. As an I/O request traverses more and more software and hardware layers, alignment and request size fragmentation can result in performance anomalies that can degrade the overall bandwidth and transaction rates. Layer traversal can have a significant negative impact on the observed performance of even the fastest hardware components. This paper walks through the Storage Subsystem Hierarchy, defining these layers, presents a method for testing in single and multiple computer environments, and demonstrates the significance of careful, in-depth evaluation of Storage Subsystem Performance. 1 Introduction Disk subsystem manufacturers make many claims about the performance of their products. However, these performance claims cannot be taken out of context of the final implementation. Rather, it is necessary to evaluate the performance of disk subsystems within a configuration that is as close as possible to the actual configuration in which the subsystem will ultimately be employed. Such an evaluation requires a benchmark program that can closely mimic the access patterns of the intended applications and provide results that are meaningful and reproducible. This paper presents examples of disk I/O performance anomalies and describes the cause of these problems as well as strategies to minimize their effects. The paper begins by describing the hardware and software components that an I/O request must traverse in order to move data between the computer system memory and the storage media. The Testing Philosophy and Methodology is then presented that describes how and why the individual components are evaluated as well as basic assumptions and tradeoffs that must |
Year | Venue | Keywords |
|---|---|---|
2000 | IEEE Symposium on Mass Storage Systems | software component,disk array,storage area network |
Field | DocType | Citations |
Disk array,Computer science,Disk encryption hardware,Software,Transactions per second,Component-based software engineering,Computer hardware,Disk array controller,Storage area network,Traverse | Conference | 3 |
PageRank | References | Authors |
0.79 | 2 | 1 |
Name | Order | Citations | PageRank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Ruwart | 1 | 21 | 3.11 |