IBM XIV Storage System
| Company type | Product line |
|---|---|
| Industry | Data storage |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Moshe Yanai |
| Fate | Acquired by IBM in December 2007 |
| Headquarters | Israel |
| Products | Disk storage server units |
The IBM XIV Storage System represented a series of cabinet-sized disk storage server units constructed from multiple modules—each functioning as an autonomous computer equipped with its own memory, interconnects, and disk drives—organized in a matrix and linked in parallel through InfiniBand (third generation) or Ethernet (second generation). Each module operates on an x86 processor and utilizes a software platform derived from a customized Linux kernel alongside open source elements.
Description
In contrast to conventional storage architectures that allocate volumes over selected groups of drives, the XIV system divides data into 1 MiB segments and evenly disperses them across all modules to optimize resource usage. To ensure data resilience, every segment is duplicated on at least two distinct modules, providing fault tolerance against disk or module failures.
System capacity can be expanded by incorporating additional modules, which automatically triggers data rebalancing to enhance I/O throughput. Depending on the setup, total storage capacity varies from 27 TB up to 324 TB.
Notable software capabilities encompass remote mirroring, thin provisioning, quality of service management, LDAP authentication, integration with VMware, writable snapshots, live volume migration between XIV arrays, and encryption for data stored at rest.
Management interfaces include a graphical user interface compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac OS platforms, as well as the XIV Mobile Dashboard application available for Android and iOS, facilitating remote system monitoring and administration.
History
The IBM XIV Storage System originated in 2002 through an Israeli startup founded by engineer and entrepreneur Moshe Yanai. Their initial product, named Nextra, was delivered in 2005.
IBM acquired the technology in December 2007 and subsequently rebranded it as the IBM XIV Storage System. The first IBM-branded release was publicly introduced on September 8, 2008, internally designated as Generation 2. This iteration brought hardware enhancements including upgraded disks, controllers, interconnects, improved management tools, and expanded software functionality compared to the original Generation 1.
In September 2011, IBM upgraded the system by implementing larger capacity disk drives and replacing Ethernet with InfiniBand for inter-module communication. From 2012 to 2013, additional support was incorporated for SSD devices and 10GbE host connectivity.