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The IBM TotalStorage (TM) Enterprise Tape System 3590 provides high levels of capacity, performance, and reliability for IBM e(logo)server iSeries (AS/400*), IBM e(logo)server pSeries (RS/6000*), IBM e(logo)server xSeries (NUMA-Q*), IBM e(logo)server zSeries (S/390*), and a variety non-IBM UNIX and Microsoft Windows** systems. It offers significant enhancements over previous IBM 3480, 3490, or 3490E tape drives and demonstrates IBM's continued leadership in storage solutions. The Enterprise Tape System 3590 includes tape drives and controllers that can be flexibly configured in a broad range of solutions that includes stand-alone frames or racks, or in automated library solutions to meet a broad set of customer requirements. The 3590 Tape Drives can be attached to a SCSI host interface or Fibre Channel interface of selected IBM and non-IBM midrange and open systems. The tape drives can also attach to ESCON and FICON channels on host systems through a 3590 controller.
Model Abstract 3590-B1A
The IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape Drive 3590 Model B1A comes without the ACF and is designed to go into the IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Automated Tape Library 3494. It can also go in the IBM TotalStorage Silo Compatible Tape Drive Frame 3590 Model C12 or C14 for attachment to a StorageTek Automated Cartridge System (ACS). This model includes an integrated SCSI-3 controller with two ports that support a 16-bit, fast-and-wide, Ultra SCSI differential interface. The 3590 Model B1A Tape Drive has a 9 MB/second native date rate (with compression up to 27 MB/second sustained data rate).
Highlights
Offers multiple attachment options, including Fibre Channel, Ultra SCSI, ESCON, and FICON
Includes large capacity cartridges, which can reduce the number of cartridges required and tape mounts
Provides an 10-cartridge random-access library with magazine for quicker loading and unattended operations
Extends the capacity and performance of automated tape libraries, such as the IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Automated Tape Library 3494
Can be configured in stand-alone frames or racks, or in automated library solutions including StorageTek Automated Cartridge Systems
Supported by the industry-leading IBM TotalStorage Virtual Tape Server
Provides significant improvement in reliability
Reduces floor space required
Can reduce overall operations costs
Has become a 1/2" tape industry standard
Description
The Enterprise Tape System 3590 demonstrates IBM's continued commitment to providing advanced tape solutions to meet the growing demands of the enterprise. The IBM 3590 offers attachment to the iSeries (AS/400), pSeries (RS/6000), xSeries (NUMA-Q), zSeries (S/390), Hewlett Packard ** HP, Linux **, Microsoft ** Windows NT/2000, and Sun ** servers. It provides new levels of function, performance, reliability, and cartridge capacity and is an extension to IBM's family of 3480, 3490, and 3490E high performance tape drives. The 3590 utilizes a 16-track serpentine longitudinal recording technique along with improved compaction technology to deliver improvements in capacity and performance. It builds on the proven reliability of the IBM 3490E tape path and is designed for highly reliable start-stop or streaming operation. The tape drive utilizes a cartridge similar in size to the 3480/3490 cartridge and thus is compatible with the Enterprise Tape Library 3494. Compared to the 3490E tape drives, it is designed to offer:
Higher performance - with a 40 MB/second Ultra SCSI interface on the tape drive (9 MB/second device data rate)
Larger capacity cartridge - 10 GB or 20 GB uncompressed
LZ1 compression that provides up to 3:1 capacity improvement
Significantly increased reliability
Reduced overall operations costs
Availability in frame and rack mounting
Higher Performance
The IBM 3590 offers a new level of performance for tape subsystems. The drive data rate of 9 MB/sec is three times faster than previous IBM 3480, 3490, or 3490E tape drives allowing tape applications to read or write data more quickly. Using the built-in data compression capability, it can more effectively utilize the full capability of the 40 MB per second Ultra SCSI interface.
Note: The actual throughput a customer may achieve is a function of many components, such as system processor, disk data rate, data block size, data compressibility, I/O attachments, and the system or application software used. Thus, although the drive is capable of a 9-40 MB/sec instantaneous data rate, other components of the system may limit the actual effective data rate.
Growth Enablement - Improved Efficiency
Since data transfer rates and throughput have been greatly enhanced, customers can process more tape applications and run tape-related workloads more quickly. Customers with limited time for systems backup or with large amounts of disk storage need a high-performance tape solution to back up their systems within the time available. The 3590 can provide greater efficiency of tape operations and may provide relief to customers who have difficulty achieving their batch window. In the event of loss or damage to files on disk storage, the performance of the 3590 can speed up system recovery. Improved tape efficiency will also enable the growth of new applications across the enterprise.
Business Solutions - Enable Customers Competitive Advantage
Customers who run applications that are highly dependent upon tape processing speed will be able to take advantage of the significant performance improvements in the IBM 3590. Businesses that have engineering /scientific applications that record or analyze large amounts of tape data will benefit from improved subsystem performance. Those customers who rely on the processing of large amounts of tape data as a critical component of their business can become more productive and can in effect gain a competitive advantage by producing more work in less time.
Expanded Capacity
The 3590 uses a metal particle media and an enhanced compression technique to deliver vastly superior capacity as compared to the 3490E. The 3590 cartridges have an uncompressed data capacity of 10 GB or 20 GB. The capacity of an individual Model B11 drive has further been increased by the addition of the Automatic Cartridge Facility (ACF), which allows an operator to mount ten cartridges at a time via a magazine. The 3590 Model B11 or B1A Tape Drives shipped on or after March 3, 2000, or with feature #5780 (Extended Media Support - BXX), will support two 3590 cartridge types:
The 3590 High Performance Cartridge Tape, which provides up to 10 GB uncompressed
The 3590 Extended High Performance Cartridge Tape, which provides up to 20 GB uncompressed
With LZ1 data compression, the cartridges can contain up to three times these capacities. Exploitation of the capacity is a function of data characteristics.
Systems Management - Reduces Operations Costs
The increased capacity of the IBM 3590 greatly reduces the number of cartridges that must be purchased and managed by the operations staff and systems programmers. For customers with larger storage requirements, the new cartridge dramatically expands the capacity of the Enterprise Tape Library 3494. The Model B1A Tape Drive can be used for attachment in those libraries.
Growth Enablement - Increased Automation
In an Enterprise Tape Library 3494 , or in a 3590 Model C12 Silo Compatible Frame attached to a StorageTek ACS, the new cartridge is designed to significantly reduce the cost per megabyte of an automated storage slot. This provides a cost-effective means to automate shelf data which was previously too expensive to place inside the library. Customers will be able to justify automation of a greater portion of their total tape inventory, with this reduced cost of storage. The increased capacity of the 3590 cartridge enables more data to reside in a single library than ever before. Many customers will be able to put their entire tape storage in a single 3494. Customers who wish to achieve a true "lights out" operation will be able to do so more cost effectively because of the enhanced cartridge capacity.
Business Solutions - Competitive Advantage
The expanded capacity of the 3590 cartridge can lower the cost of tape storage. Fewer cartridges are required to store data, thus reducing space and storage costs significantly. The expense of an automated storage slot often limited the amount of data that could be cost- justifiably placed within a tape library. With the reduced cost per megabyte of an automated storage slot, customers can automate a greater portion of their data, improving their competitive advantage.
Improved Reliability and Data Integrity
The 3590 Tape Drive is designed for even higher reliability than the already highly reliable 3490E tape drives. With the increased data on a 3590 cartridge, the need to increase the data integrity was apparent. The 3590 incorporates many features to improve its reliability such as an improved Error Correction Code (ECC) and servo tracks written on each tape cartridge to ensure accurate reading and writing of the data. The new media has also been designed to improve the reliability and archive life. A portion of the cartridge has been reserved for an error history that is continually updated after each use to aid in early identification of potential media problems. In addition, each 3590 contains resident advanced diagnostics that dynamically monitor the operation of the drive to detect potential problems and aid in fast resolution should they occur.
Systems Management - Improved Availability
Data integrity is important to all customers. The reliability of tape systems is of increased importance for customers who do unattended backup of their systems. The tape drives need to reliably complete the backup of the system without problems, as no operators are present to deal with hardware problems or restart the backup process. In the event of a catastrophe, requiring the restoration of disk data, the tape must be reliable to ensure successful restoration. Advance identification of potential drive or media problems enable operators to avoid critical outages when they can least afford them. Better diagnostics allow a quicker resolution when they occur. More reliable tape drives improve the availability of the entire system.
Systems Management - IS Productivity
The 3590 and MVS exploitation will significantly reduce the amount of time for the detection and recovery of errors (hang conditions). This is achieved by the new asynchronous operation of long-running commands as well as the implementation of the reset allegiance function. Detection and recovery times of typically over 20 minutes for the 3490 tape subsystem will be reduced to 3-6 minutes with the 3590.
Enterprise Tape Library 3494 Attachment
The 3590 Model B1A Tape Drive was designed for easy attachment in models of the Enterprise Tape Library 3494. The IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape Drive Expansion Frame 3494 Model D12 can contain up to six 3590 Tape Drives while an IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape Library Base Frame 3494 Model L12 can contain up to two 3590 Tape Drives. The IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape Drive Expansion Frame 3494 Model D14 can contain up to four 3590 drives and an IBM TotalStorage Enterprise Tape Controller 3590 Model A60. If a 3494 Model L14 or D14 Frame contains one or more 3590 Model B1A drives, a 3590 Model A60 Controller must also be installed in that frame, or the drives must be attached to a Model A60 in an adjacent Model D14 frame. The 3590 drives can be installed in the same libraries with 3490E drives.
Investment Protection - Upgradability
Customers with existing 3494 libraries will be able to add the IBM 3590 drives to their library and take advantage of their increased speed and capacity. The 3494 Model L12 or L14 can attach either Model D12 or D14 frames, with 3590 drives inside, or attach Model D10 frames with 3490E drives. Likewise, a 3494 Model L10, with 3490E drives, can attach a Model D12 or D14 with the new 3590 drives. Customers can also choose to replace 3490E drives with the 3590 in existing 3494 frames. As a customer converts the cartridge inventory from 3480 or 3490E cartridges to the new 3590 cartridges, the 3494 frames can be converted to new models with 3590 drives. Thus, the customer's investment in an Enterprise Tape Library 3494 is enhanced.
Systems Management - Operations Productivity
In the past, integration of new technology often required a significant conversion effort. With 3490E drives and 3590 drives in the same library, customers will be able to copy data sets from the older drives to new 3590 drives inside the library without requiring operators to mount or dismount any cartridges. Operations will be able to convert data to the new cartridges much easier and faster and be able to take advantage of the new 3590 technology sooner.
The 3590 Model B1A is a 3590 tape subsystem that can be mounted in an Enterprise Tape Library 3494, a 3590 Model A14 Frame, a 3590 Model C12 Frame, or a 3590 Model C14 Frame. It includes one 3590 1/2-inch cartridge tape drive and an integrated SCSI-3 controller with two Ultra SCSI differential adapter ports. Shipments of the 3590 Model B11 and B1A Tape Drives prior to January 29, 1999 only supported a 20 MB/sec SCSI interface. The 3590 tape drives with the 40 MB/sec Ultra SCSI interface are identified by a "Magstar Ultra" label on the rear cover near the power supply switch. Also, "ULTRA" is displayed on the operator panel during operation. No Automatic Cartridge Facility (ACF) is used.
Supported Platforms: AS/400 iSeries RS/6000 S/390 zSeries NT Windows 2000 SUN HP NUMA-Q
Supported Platforms: AS/400 iSeries RS/6000 S/390 zSeries NT Windows 2000 SUN HP NUMA-Q [PDF SPEC SHEET]
