IBM FlashSystem 5015 models 2072-2N2 and 2072-2N4 are compact, dual-controller block-storage systems designed for organizations requiring reliable enterprise storage, flexible capacity and IBM Spectrum Virtualize data services at an affordable price. The IBM FlashSystem 5015 model 2072-2N2 is large form factor SAN and the 2072-2N4 small form factor SAN, of which both IBM FlashSystem models support enterprise flash storage, high-performance SAS and high-capacity nearline SAS storage options.
- Compact 2U dual-controller architecture
- Choice of twelve LFF or twenty-four SFF drive slots
- 32 GB or 64 GB of system cache
- Support for up to 392 drives per system
- IBM Spectrum Virtualize storage services
- Fibre Channel, iSCSI and SAS connectivity options
Other FlashSystem Models include:
IBM FlashSystem 5600 5127-A20
IBM FlashSystem 9600 5078-A40
IBM FlashSystem 5015 2072-2N2 2072-2N4
IBM FlashSystem 5010 2072-2H4
IBM FlashSystem 5100
IBM FlashSystem 5035 2072-3N2 2072-3N4
IBM FlashSystem 5200 4662-6H2
IBM FlashSystem 5300 4662-7H2
IBM FlashSystem 5045 4680-3P2 4680-3P4
IBM FlashSystem 7200 2076-824 2076-U7C
IBM FlashSystem 7300 4657-924
IBM FlashSystem 9100 9150-AF8 9848-AF8 9846-AF8 9110-AF7 9848-AF7 9846-AF7
IBM FlashSystem 9500 4666-AH8
IBM FlashSystem 9500R 4666-AH8
The IBM FlashSystem 5015 provides enterprise storage functionality in a space-efficient 2U rack-mounted enclosure. It is designed for small and midsized businesses, distributed locations and application environments that require dependable shared storage without the cost or complexity of a larger high-end storage platform.
Two active intelligent node canisters provide controller redundancy, mirrored cache and continued access to storage if a supported component or data path becomes unavailable. The system also includes redundant power supplies, cooling components and dual-port drives to help reduce single points of hardware failure.
IBM Spectrum Virtualize software provides the FlashSystem 5015 with a consistent storage-management platform for provisioning, thin provisioning, snapshots, tiering, migration and remote replication. Administrators can manage capacity through an intuitive web-based interface instead of relying on separate management tools for each storage function.
IBM FlashSystem 5015 Models
The FlashSystem 5015 is available in two control-enclosure configurations. Both models use the same dual-controller architecture but support different drive form factors.
IBM FlashSystem 5015 2072-2N2
The 2072-2N2 is the large form factor version of the FlashSystem 5015. Its control enclosure includes twelve 3.5-inch SAS drive slots and is well suited for hybrid configurations that emphasize economical capacity.
- Twelve 3.5-inch LFF drive slots
- Support for SAS hard disk and compatible flash options
- Up to 380 drives with supported expansion
- Designed for capacity-focused and mixed workloads
IBM FlashSystem 5015 2072-2N4
The 2072-2N4 is the small form factor version of the FlashSystem 5015. Its control enclosure includes twenty-four 2.5-inch SAS drive slots, making it a strong choice for flash-intensive, performance-oriented and high-density configurations.
- Twenty-four 2.5-inch SFF drive slots
- Support for SAS SSD, enterprise HDD and nearline HDD options
- Up to 392 drives with supported expansion
- Designed for greater drive density in the base enclosure
IBM 2072-2N2 vs. IBM 2072-2N4
| Specification | 2072-2N2 | 2072-2N4 |
|---|---|---|
| Enclosure type | Large form factor | Small form factor |
| Base drive slots | 12 × 3.5-inch SAS | 24 × 2.5-inch SAS |
| Node canisters | Two active node canisters | Two active node canisters |
| Processors | Two-core processor per node | Two-core processor per node |
| System cache | 32 GB or 64 GB | 32 GB or 64 GB |
| Standard host connectivity | 1 Gb iSCSI | 1 Gb iSCSI |
| Optional connectivity | 16 Gb FC, 12 Gb SAS, 10 Gb or 25 Gb iSCSI | 16 Gb FC, 12 Gb SAS, 10 Gb or 25 Gb iSCSI |
| Maximum drives | Up to 380 | Up to 392 |
| Typical use | Capacity-focused hybrid storage | Flash, performance and high-density storage |
Cost-Effective Enterprise Storage
The FlashSystem 5015 provides shared enterprise storage functions in a compact platform appropriate for small and midsized environments, remote offices and departmental applications.
Flexible Drive Selection
Businesses can select flash drives, performance-oriented SAS drives or high-capacity nearline SAS drives according to workload, response-time and budget requirements.
Expandable Capacity
Supported expansion enclosures allow the system to grow beyond the drive capacity of the base 2U control enclosure without requiring an immediate replacement of the storage platform.
High Availability
Dual controllers, mirrored cache, redundant power and cooling, dual-port drives and automated path failover help maintain access to business data during supported component failures.
Simplified Management
IBM Spectrum Virtualize provides centralized storage administration through a browser-based graphical interface, reducing the complexity of everyday provisioning and management.
Broad Platform Support
FlashSystem storage can support a wide range of server, virtualization and operating-system environments when configured with compatible adapters, software and SAN infrastructure.
Dual-Controller Storage Architecture
Each FlashSystem 5015 control enclosure contains two intelligent node canisters. Each node includes a two-core processor and either 16 GB or 32 GB of cache, providing a total system cache capacity of 32 GB or 64 GB.
The dual-active design allows both controllers to participate in storage operations. Cache is mirrored between the controllers so that a supported controller failure does not leave acknowledged write data available only in the failed node.
Redundant power supplies and fans, hot-swappable drives and automated multipath failover further support availability. This architecture makes the FlashSystem 5015 suitable for production applications that require more resilience than direct-attached or single-controller storage.
IBM Spectrum Virtualize Storage Software
IBM Spectrum Virtualize is the software foundation of the FlashSystem 5015. It abstracts physical storage resources and presents capacity to connected servers as centrally managed logical volumes.
This software-defined approach helps administrators allocate storage, adjust volume capacity and migrate data without rebuilding the physical storage configuration for every application change. It also provides a consistent management experience across the FlashSystem environment.
Depending on installed licensing and configuration, organizations can use storage-efficiency, snapshot, tiering and replication functions to support backup, testing, workload optimization and disaster-recovery requirements.
Storage Efficiency and Data Reduction
Data reduction pools help improve storage utilization by allowing the FlashSystem 5015 to allocate physical capacity according to actual application consumption. Thin provisioning can reduce the need to assign all anticipated capacity to a volume at the time it is created.
The system can reclaim supported storage capacity after data has been deleted and released by the host environment. This allows reclaimed capacity to be made available to other volumes instead of remaining unnecessarily reserved.
The FlashSystem 5015 supports thin provisioning but does not provide the same controller-based compression, deduplication, encryption or HyperSwap capabilities associated with the higher-performing FlashSystem 5035 model. Product pages and quotations should not represent those FlashSystem 5035 capabilities as standard FlashSystem 5015 functions.
Flash, SAS and Nearline Storage Options
The FlashSystem 5015 supports multiple SAS drive classes, allowing storage configurations to be designed around performance, capacity or a balance of both.
SAS Flash Drives
Solid-state drives provide lower latency and faster application response than mechanical disk drives. They are appropriate for databases, virtual machines and frequently accessed business data. SFF 2.5-inch Flash Drives supported: 800 GB, 1.92 TB, 3.84 TB, 7.68 TB, 15.36 TB and 30.72 TB
Enterprise SAS Drives
10,000 rpm SAS drives offer a balance between transaction performance and acquisition cost for mixed application and general-purpose storage workloads. LFF 3.5-inch 10k RPM SAS disk drives supported: 900 GB, 1.2 TB, 1.8 TB and 2.4 TB
Nearline SAS Drives
High-capacity 7,200 rpm nearline SAS drives are designed for capacity-oriented data, archives, backup repositories and workloads that do not require flash-level response times. SFF 2.5-inch 10k RPM SAS nearline drives supported: 900 GB, 1.2 TB, 1.8 TB and 2.4 TB @ 10k rpm SFF 2.5-inch 7.2k RPM SAS nearline drives supported: 2 TB
Supported drive capacities vary by enclosure type, software level and product configuration. All drives are tested and verified as IBM parts before they are sold.
IBM FlashSystem 5015 Capacity and Expansion
A FlashSystem 5015 can be expanded through supported FlashSystem 5000 SAS expansion enclosures. The system supports up to ten 2U expansion enclosures or up to four high-density 5U expansion enclosures.
Expansion capacity depends on the selected control enclosure and expansion-enclosure combination. The 2072-2N2 supports up to 380 drives, while the 2072-2N4 supports up to 392 drives.
Large form factor and small form factor expansion enclosures can be intermixed in a supported configuration. This enables organizations to combine high-capacity drives, high-performance drives and flash storage according to workload requirements.
Host and Storage Connectivity
Both FlashSystem 5015 models include standard 1 Gb Ethernet iSCSI connectivity. Optional adapter configurations can add faster Ethernet, Fibre Channel or SAS connectivity.
- Standard 1 Gb Ethernet iSCSI host attachment
- Optional 10 Gb Ethernet iSCSI
- Optional 25 Gb Ethernet iSCSI
- Optional 16 Gb Fibre Channel
- Optional 12 Gb SAS host attachment
- 12 Gb SAS connectivity for supported expansion enclosures
The correct host interface should be selected according to the existing SAN architecture, server adapters, operating systems, performance requirements and future infrastructure plans.
Supported Applications and Workloads
The IBM FlashSystem 5015 can provide shared block storage for a variety of business applications and infrastructure platforms, subject to IBM interoperability requirements.
IBM FlashSystem 5015 Technical Specifications
| Product family | IBM FlashSystem 5000 |
|---|---|
| Product model | IBM FlashSystem 5015 |
| Machine type | 2072 |
| Models | 2072-2N2 and 2072-2N4 |
| Form factor | 2U, 19-inch rack-mounted control enclosure |
| Controllers | Two dual-active intelligent node canisters |
| Processor configuration | One two-core processor per node canister |
| System cache | 32 GB standard or 64 GB with cache upgrade |
| 2072-2N2 drive slots | 12 × 3.5-inch LFF SAS |
| 2072-2N4 drive slots | 24 × 2.5-inch SFF SAS |
| Maximum 2N2 drives | Up to 380 with supported expansion enclosures |
| Maximum 2N4 drives | Up to 392 with supported expansion enclosures |
| Maximum expansion | Up to ten supported 2U expansion enclosures or four supported high-density 5U expansion enclosures |
| Drive protocol | 12 Gb SAS |
| Supported storage media | SAS SSD, enterprise SAS HDD and nearline SAS HDD, depending on enclosure and configuration |
| Standard host connectivity | Four 1 Gb Ethernet iSCSI ports |
| Optional host connectivity | 16 Gb Fibre Channel, 12 Gb SAS, 10 Gb Ethernet iSCSI or 25 Gb Ethernet iSCSI |
| Expansion connectivity | 12 Gb SAS |
| RAID support | Distributed RAID 1, 5 and 6 |
| Storage software | IBM Spectrum Virtualize |
| Management | Web-based graphical management interface |
| Power options | 100–240 V AC or supported -48 V DC configuration |
| Maximum power rating | 800 watts |
| Height | 8.7 cm / 3.4 inches |
| Width | 48.3 cm / 19 inches |
| Depth | 55.6 cm / 21.9 inches |
| 2N2 maximum weight | Approximately 27.7 kg / 61 lb fully configured |
| 2N4 maximum weight | Approximately 26 kg / 57.2 lb fully configured |
| Original hardware warranty | Three-year limited warranty, subject to machine status, location and entitlement |
Choosing the Right FlashSystem 5015 Configuration
The best FlashSystem 5015 configuration depends on the required balance of performance, capacity, connectivity and future growth.
Choose the 2072-2N2 when:
- High-capacity LFF drives are a primary requirement.
- The environment needs economical hybrid storage.
- Capacity per drive is more important than base-enclosure density.
- The system will support backup, archive or general application data.
Choose the 2072-2N4 when:
- Flash drives will be used for performance-sensitive workloads.
- More drive slots are required in the base 2U enclosure.
- The workload benefits from greater spindle or SSD density.
- The system may expand toward the 392-drive maximum.
Storage planning should also consider usable capacity after RAID, projected growth, host-port requirements, snapshot capacity, replication requirements, software licensing and maintenance availability.
Buy IBM FlashSystem 5015 from Midland Information Systems
Midland Information Systems provides IBM enterprise storage hardware, configuration assistance, installation, data migration, upgrades and support services. Our specialists can help determine whether the 2072-2N2 or 2072-2N4 is the better choice for your applications and infrastructure.
System Configuration
Assistance selecting controllers, cache, drives, expansion, host interfaces and storage software.
IBM Power Integration
Storage planning for IBM Power Systems running IBM i, AIX or Linux workloads.
Installation
Professional rack installation, cabling, initial configuration, SAN zoning and host attachment.
Data Migration
Planning and migration assistance for supported IBM and third-party storage environments.
Capacity Expansion
Compatible drives, expansion enclosures, cache upgrades and interface options for existing systems.
Maintenance and Support
Assistance evaluating warranty entitlement, post-warranty maintenance and replacement-part availability.
IBM FlashSystem 5015 Frequently Asked Questions
What is the IBM FlashSystem 5015?
The IBM FlashSystem 5015 is a 2U dual-controller enterprise block-storage system built on IBM Spectrum Virtualize. It supports flash, enterprise SAS and nearline SAS storage.
What are the FlashSystem 5015 model numbers?
The IBM FlashSystem 5015 control-enclosure models are the 2072-2N2 and 2072-2N4.
What is the difference between the 2N2 and 2N4?
The 2072-2N2 includes twelve 3.5-inch LFF drive slots. The 2072-2N4 includes twenty-four 2.5-inch SFF drive slots. Their controller, processor and cache architecture is otherwise similar.
How much cache does the FlashSystem 5015 support?
The system supports 32 GB or 64 GB of total cache. This equals 16 GB or 32 GB in each node canister.
How many drives can a FlashSystem 5015 support?
The 2072-2N2 supports up to 380 drives, while the 2072-2N4 supports up to 392 drives with supported expansion enclosures.
Does the FlashSystem 5015 support SSDs?
Yes. The 2072-2N4 supports compatible 2.5-inch SAS flash drives. Drive model, capacity, firmware and system compatibility should be confirmed before ordering.
Does the FlashSystem 5015 support Fibre Channel?
Yes. Optional 16 Gb Fibre Channel interfaces can be installed. The system also supports iSCSI and optional SAS host attachment.
Does the FlashSystem 5015 support IBM i and AIX?
The system can support compatible IBM Power environments. Compatibility depends on the Power server, operating-system release, adapter, SAN switch, multipathing software and storage software level.
Does the FlashSystem 5015 support encryption?
The controller-based data-at-rest encryption described for the FlashSystem 5035 is not a FlashSystem 5015 capability. External or host-based security options may be available depending on the environment.
Is the IBM FlashSystem 5015 still available?
Availability depends on reseller inventory and product status. Previously owned, refurbished or new-old-stock systems and parts may be available. Request a quote for current availability.
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