KIOXIA in collaboration with the Linux Foundation has founded a new open source project, the Software-Enabled Flash project. The mission of this project is to develop open source Software-Enabled Flash technology APIs, applications and libraries to support flash storage devices in hyperscale data centers. KIOXIA, the inventor of Software-Enabled Flash, created this project as a dedicated place for open collaboration between flash vendors, controller developers, drive manufacturers, and storage developers. Learn more at the Software-Enabled Flash project.
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Software-Enabled Flash™ Technology, Invented by KIOXIA
Storage developers are always looking to make the most of flash in their data centers. Hyperscalers, managed service providers, and storage array manufacturers are demanding tools that can let them leverage the digital nature of flash, while providing the ease and flexibility of software-defined storage. The development of Software-Enabled Flash™ technology meets this demand by fundamentally redefining the relationship between the host and solid-state storage. It does this with a purpose-built, media-centric flash hardware platform focused on hyperscale requirements, tightly coupled with an open source API and libraries now under the auspices of the Software-Enabled Flash project.
Overhead from Traditional Industry Solutions
- Firmware induced ‘long tail latency’
- DRAM buffers
- Device-level RAID
- Overprovisioning limiting capacity
- Device-level power protection
Challenges of Current HDD Driven Approach
- Legacy of HDD paradigms for storage
- Fixed functionality by the standards
- IO blender approach to block and wear leveling creates tenant workload conflicts
- Limits flash to fit the standards used
Software-Enabled Flash Technology
- Enables host to control latency optimizations
- Offers DRAM, no-DRAM and hybrid solutions
- RAID becomes a host control decision
- Gives access to full capacity of each flash die
- Power loss protection option
- API delivers needed tools to adapt flash at the speed developers require
- Sheds the legacy HDD paradigm
- Adapt single IO or multiple IO modes
- Die-level workload isolation that also enables multiple IO modes to run simultaneously
- Maximizes flash flexibility, scalability, performance, parallelism and speed
Simply put: Software-Enabled Flash technology brings software flexibility and scalability to flash.
Open Source API and Libraries Accelerate and Ease Innovation in Hyperscale Storage
- Delivers on the promise of storage developed at the speed of software
- The API gives Hyperscale developers tools and freedom to innovate and customize according to their needs
- Accelerate flash development time to create a competitive advantage
- Free to use, adapt and develop to flash storage requirements
- Flash-native API puts all the tools in the hands of storage developers
Literature (Last updated: March 17, 2022)
Videos (Last updated: May 4, 2022)
The Linux Foundation and Software-Enabled Flash Project logos are trademarks of LF Projects, LLC and its licensors.
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