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Rock-Solid Server Drive Puts IBM Back On The Top

IBM delivers an industrial-strength server hard disk drive to take on the most intensive business environments. The Ultrastar 146Z10 is built with rock-solid reliability, backed by rigorous quality-assurance testing. It also debuts with new rotational vibration sensors, code named "Gibraltar," to improve performance in large disk arrays.

The new Ultrastar 146Z10 is the first 10,000 RPM hard drive of its generation to ship in volume and has a top capacity of 146 gigabytes (GB). To enhance performance the drive comes with a large eight megabyte (MB) cache.

Gibraltar solves a problem inherent to multi-drive systems: rotational vibration. As rotational speeds have increased and multiple drives are housed in powerful disk arrays, vibration is exacerbated and results in performance degradation. Gibraltar represents advanced servo technology that autonomically compensates for vibration caused by multiple disk drives operating simultaneously. It intelligently identifies the direction and intensity of the vibration and cancels out the deleterious effects of the vibration. IBM is the first to perfect the technology for mass-production.

"We have the utmost confidence that the Ultrastar 146Z10 will give customers what they need and break the strides of our competitors," said Doug Grose, general manager, IBM Storage Technology Division. "Combined technology leadership and comprehensive qualification testing in the new Ultrastar put us in great position to succeed in the server hard drive segment."

To enhance business-critical reliability and performance, IBM has reinforced the Ultrastar with advanced software for disk drive intelligence and selfanalysis; antiferromagnetically-coupled media (AKA "pixie dust") for temperature and data stability; and sophisticated read/write component designs for high-speed recording and data access. IBM's new server drive has undergone extensive testing -- in a variety of simulated customer environments -- with overwhelmingly positive results. In laboratory stress tests, the Ultrastar 146Z10 has demonstrated a reliability rate consistent with the most demanding customer requirements for server hard drives.

"We've worked to ensure the integrity of the Ultrastar 146Z10 as a trusted work horse and data backbone for businesses worldwide, and are delighted with the reliability results," added Grose. The Ultrastar 146Z10 shows more than 15-percent increase in sustained data throughput and 10-percent improvement in WinBench metrics over previous generation drives. IBM's new server drive is available at the industry's broadest range of capacity points: 18, 36, 73 and 146 GB. The drive also delivers low acoustics and continues IBM's focus on power efficiency. With industry-leading glass media and load/unload technology, the 146Z10 also provides outstanding shock tolerance. IBM's new server hard drive supports the industry's leading interfaces, including Ultra 320 SCSI and 2 Gb Fibre Channel with backward compatibility to previous generation.

The Ultrastar 146Z10's technical excellence is advanced by worldwide product integration support through IBM's Systems Integration Test (SIT) Labs. The SIT Labs ease customers' integration process by providing tailored offerings for customers, testing and assistance on integration.

Technical Specifications

Ultrastar 146Z10 146/73/36/18 GB 780 grams (max) 10,000 RPM 3 ms average latency 825 Mbps max media transfer rate 26.3 billion bits per square inch maximum areal density 6/3/2/1 glass disk platter(s) 12/6/3/2 GMR recording head(s) 225 Gs (1ms) nonoperating shock, 45 Gs (2 ms) operating shock 4.7 ms average seek time 25.4 mm (+/-0.4) 3.7 Bels typical idle acoustics 4.5 Bels typical operating acoustics 8 MB buffer Power: 10.2 watts (idle), 16.0 (max) Ultra320 SCSI compatible; backward compatible to Ultra160 SCSI 2Gb Fibre Channel compatible; backward compatible to 1Gb gigabyte = 1 billion bytes

About IBM

IBM develops and manufactures the industry's most advanced information technologies, including computer systems, software, networking systems, storage devices and microelectronics. IBM Storage Technology Division offers customers worldwide the most comprehensive range of industry-leading storage products available today. These storage solutions are offered through IBM as well as a large network of IBM Business Partners and Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).