Global high-performance computing (HPC) integration specialists Boston Limited (Boston) has completed testing and certification of the Panasas® ActiveStor® Ultra product line, readying the turnkey HPC storage appliance for distribution to its customer base throughout the US, EMEA and APAC. ActiveStor Ultra features PanFS®, the fastest parallel file system at any price point. Boston is a strategic distributor and integrator for ActiveStor Ultra, providing customized HPC product and service solutions including installation, configuration and support services globally.
The ActiveStor Ultra HPC appliance runs the PanFS parallel file system on Supermicro commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) hardware, using a carefully balanced set of HDDs, a SATA SSD, an NVMe SSD, DRAM, and an NVDIMM to deliver a fully integrated HPC storage solution that optimizes performance and cost per GB. PanFS utilizes Adaptive Small Component Acceleration (ASCA) to intelligently place files on the optimal storage tier based on file size, and adjusts dynamically as the workload evolves, meaning the system automatically adapts to workload and user changes without any tuning.
“We help our clients make informed decisions about new technologies by thoroughly testing and evaluating the latest high-performance server and storage solutions,” said David Power, CTO at Boston Limited. “Panasas has changed the HPC storage landscape with the reengineered PanFS on ActiveStor Ultra delivered on Supermicro COTS hardware, by providing a combination of superior price performance and industry-leading reliability in a plug-and-play storage appliance.”
Boston confirmed the performance of the PanFS parallel file system on ActiveStor Ultra using Interleaved or Random (IOR) benchmarks and also ran real world application tests to verify production readiness of the Panasas solution. Using OpenFOAM Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software, Boston compared the execution times of 50 iterations of a 125 million cell external aerodynamics simulation. Analysis of the log files allowed the I/O performance to be separated from the compute time, showing that PanFS on ActiveStor Ultra outperformed a traditional network-attached storage (NAS) by a factor of four, practically halving the simulation run time and approaching speeds typically associated with non-resilient solid-state scratch systems.
ActiveStor Ultra Specifications
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Per 4U |
ActiveStor Ultra |
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Performance |
4GB/s building blocks |
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Hardware |
Industry standard hardware 4 nodes / 4U |
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Capacity |
HDD: 96TB – 384TB |
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Network |
8 x 25 GbE, 4 x FDR or EDR IB |
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Protocols |
DirectFlow, NFS, SMB |
“We are very pleased to advance our strategic partnership with Boston Limited, one of the leading HPC integrators,” said Phil Crocker, senior director, business development and global channels at Panasas. “Boston’s strong technical skills combined with their reputation for delivering quality HPC solutions to their customers makes them an ideal partner for Panasas.”
ActiveStor Ultra Special Offer – 2PB, 20GB/S, 200k € or £175k
Boston is offering the ActiveStor Ultra HPC storage appliance for an introductory price of 200.000 € or £175,000 for 2PB and 20GB/s through September 30, 2020, including three years of support. Reap the benefits of a modular architecture that offers unlimited performance scalability and capacity in a low-touch appliance solution that goes from dock-to-data in a day and is easy to administer.
To inquire about ActiveStor Ultra system configurations tailored to meet your unique workload requirements, contact Boston Limited at sales@boston.co.uk.
About Boston Limited
Boston Limited has been providing cutting-edge technology since 1992 using Supermicro® building blocks. Our high performance, mission-critical server and storage solutions can be tailored for each specific client, helping you to create your ideal solution. From the initial specification, solution design and even full custom branding – we can help you solve your toughest business challenges simply and effectively. For more information, visit Boston.co.uk
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About Panasas
Panasas delivers high-performance computing (HPC) data storage solutions that support industry and research innovation around the world. Whether it’s building the next Dreamliner, winning a Formula One race, creating mind-bending visual effects, curing disease, or modeling climate change, the world’s leading companies trust Panasas to support their most innovative HPC projects. For more information, visit www.panasas.com.
Follow Panasas: Twitter and LinkedIn.
© 2020 Panasas, Inc. Panasas, the Panasas logo, ActiveStor and PanFS are trademarks or registered trademarks of Panasas, Inc., in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks, registered trademarks, trade names, company names and service marks are the property of their respective holders.
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