Infortrend – RAID with MAC OS X?

[Bob Zelin]

The Infortrend is a drive array – no different than any drive array from HUGE, Medea, Rorke, StorCase or so many others. I first discovered Infortrend when AVID chose them to be the AVID Media RAID 8, which was a RAID 5 SCSI product (using ATA drives). I have used the Infortrend (not Fibre) on many products. It is a fine product – just remember, this is a Taiwanese company with relatively limited support in the US (they like to OEM their products).

With that said, please don’t think that by buying this Infortrend will give you shared storage – no different than buying an XServe RAID will give you shared storage. It’s all the same insanity currently – you need the Fibre switch, the metadata server, the 2 ethernet busses – the usual. Is Infortrend an alternate to the cranky Apple XServe RAID – absolutely – but no different than any other third party Fibre channel array.

Bob Zelin

[Rory Hinds]

Thanks Bob

This information is really useful.

I’m looking at getting the Infortrend box and with a Qlocic Switch and Apples Fibre Channel cards which will hopefully work with XSAN.

I’m still researching it all and can’t work out what the benefit for a Dual Controller is as Infortrend make to models, one has a Single Controler and the other has Dual Redundant.

EonStor A16F-G2422 – Single
EonStor A16F-R2422 – Dual Redundant

They also seem to come with a small build in Fibre Switch, which would be cool if I can use it with XSAN and avoid purchasing a seperate SWITCH.

Do you know a good source of info where I could learn about the difference between Redundant and Single.

The cost difference is around

[Bob Zelin]

I am not a SAN expert, but I do know that if you are going to try to “cheap out”, you will never get even 2 clients to share SDI uncompressed video, least not HD. Cheap SAN does DV25, and since you are using Blackmagic hardware, I am sure that you are using hi quality video. There is no “cheap” solution.

bob zelin

[Rory Hinds]

Hey Bob

By ‘Cheap’ I mean cost effective. Like Decklink is Uncompressed 10bit amazing quality but very cost effective.

Things don’t need to be expensive to be any good 🙂

Infortrend do a 4Gb RAID, Apple’s Xserve is only 2Gb. I’m just seem a better future path with the Build Your Own Raid option without being tied into a maxed out capacity.

Rory Hinds
http://www.whatismine.com

[Bob Zelin]

Decklink’s pricepoint is amazing. You would be surprised at how many people believe that if they spend $12,995 for Apple XServe RAID, they can instantly have the ability to do shared storage. When XSAN came out (for $995), I was asked by countless numbers of people, that if they bought XSAN for each of their G5’s, could they simply plug the G5’s into the single XServe RAID to do shared storage. All of these people did not think that $13,000 was cheap at all, and had a hard time believing that you need ALL THIS STUFF to do shared storage with uncompressed video.

Don’t worry – 10Gig ethernet will change all of this. Just wait.

bob Zelin

[Bob Zelin]

I just had to add this. I have been approached by MANY large company IT departments, that can’t understand why their company 100baseT servers can’t act as a shared storage enviornment for the video media. And these IT guys know a HELL of alot more than I do about networking. Everyone expects something for free. Only Blackmagic delivers on that.

Bob Zelin

[Nasher]

Hey Rory, long time no speak.

Digistor here in Australia (https://www.digistor.com.au) rebadge Infotrend arrays with their own Sanman branding. These Sanman arrays have been tested and approved by Matt and the boys at BMD, so the answer could very well be ‘yes’.

Perhaps you could contact Digistor to enquire what alterations, if any, they make to the arrays before on-selling them.

Cheers
Bettsy
Burra Films

[Tom Bridges]

Hi Rory,

I know that Video Rescue here in the UK spec Infortrend boxes. The downside, as always, with building it yourself is the support issue.

That said, we’ve already taken the plunge. I’ve got a 4TB box sitting in front of me! Our Quad has just shipped, so I’ll let you know how we get on with it.

Hope all’s well with you,

Tom

Split Image
http://www.split-image.co.uk

[Olivier Jean]

Indeed

Regards
Olivier Jean
Powermedia Systems
Sydney Australia

[Olivier Jean]

Hi,

we’ve installed and sold many of these Infortrend Boxes and they are great indeed,
not as easy to configure as an Xserve Raid but much more flexible,
in fact with enough drives you could turn this box into a 2 seats san with Fibrejet software
running 10 Bit uncompressed Sd.( and no swith need for a 2 seats san !! )

Regards
Olivier Jean
Video Sales Consultant
Apple Certified Trainer Final Cut Pro 5
Powermedia Systems
Sydney Australia