IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8 FS9200
IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8 9848-AG8 4666-AG8 NVMe Enterprise Storage Systems
The IBM FlashSystem 9200 FS9200 is a high-performance 2U enterprise NVMe storage control enclosure designed for mission-critical databases, virtualization, IBM Power Systems, private cloud, analytics and other latency-sensitive workloads. The IBM FS9200 combines IBM FlashCore technology, end-to-end NVMe storage, IBM Storage Virtualize software and extensive Fibre Channel and Ethernet connectivity in a compact enterprise storage platform. A single IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8, 9848-AG8 and 4666-AG8 can provide up to 4.5 million 4K read-hit IOPS, approximately 1.2 million 4K read-miss IOPS, bandwidth of up to 45 GB/s and latency of less than 70 microseconds, depending on workload, configuration and installed storage media. The IBM FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure contains 24 front-accessible NVMe-capable drive positions that can support IBM FlashCore Modules, industry-standard NVMe flash drives and Storage Class Memory devices. External capacity can be added through IBM FlashSystems AFF 2U24 and A9F 5U92 SAS expansion enclosures.
IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8 Specifications
| Specification | IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8 |
|---|---|
| Machine Type / Model | 9846-AG8 |
| Product Family | IBM FlashSystem 9200 |
| Form Factor | 2U, 19-inch rack mount |
| Internal Drive Positions | 24 front-accessible NVMe-capable slots |
| Maximum 4K Read-Hit Performance | Up to 4.5 million IOPS |
| Maximum 4K Read-Miss Performance | Approximately 1.2 million IOPS |
| Minimum Published Latency | Less than 70 microseconds |
| Maximum Bandwidth | Up to 45 GB/s |
| Maximum Memory / Cache | 1,536 GB / 1.5 TB per control enclosure |
| Base Memory | 256 GB |
| Intermediate Memory | 768 GB |
| Maximum Internal FCM Capacity | 24 × 38.4TB = 921.6TB nominal installed FCM capacity |
| Maximum SAS Expansion Drives | Up to 760 drives per control enclosure |
| Maximum Expansion Raw Capacity | IBM Product Guide specifies up to approximately 32 PB raw |
| Fibre Channel | 16 Gb and 32 Gb Fibre Channel / FC-NVMe options |
| Ethernet | 10 GbE and 25 GbE options for iSCSI, iSER, RoCE and supported NVMe-oF connectivity |
| Expansion Interface | 12 Gb SAS |
| Storage Software | IBM Storage Virtualize / IBM Spectrum Virtualize generation |
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Performance
The IBM FlashSystem 9200 was designed as an enterprise-class NVMe platform capable of handling high-volume transactional workloads while maintaining extremely low latency.
| Performance Metric | Single FlashSystem 9200 | Four-System Cluster |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum 4K Read-Hit IOPS | Up to 4.5 million | Up to 18 million |
| Maximum 4K Read-Miss IOPS | Approximately 1.2 million | Workload dependent |
| Minimum Latency | Less than 70 microseconds | Configuration dependent |
| Maximum Bandwidth | Up to 45 GB/s | Up to 180 GB/s |
Actual application performance depends on RAID configuration, drive type, number of installed drives, host interfaces, workload characteristics, queue depth, data-reduction settings and host configuration.
FlashSystem 9200 Scale-Up and Scale-Out Architecture
The FlashSystem 9200 supports both scale-up and scale-out storage designs. Scale-up capacity is achieved by installing additional NVMe devices in the 24-drive control enclosure and by attaching supported SAS expansion enclosures. Scale-out configurations can combine multiple FlashSystem 9200 control enclosures into a clustered storage system. IBM also offered preconfigured FlashSystem 9200R rack solutions:
- 9202R – two FlashSystem 9200 control enclosures
- 9203R – three FlashSystem 9200 control enclosures
- 9204R – four FlashSystem 9200 control enclosures
A four-system cluster can provide up to approximately 18 million IOPS and 180 GB/s bandwidth under IBM's published test conditions.
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Memory and Cache Options
The 9846-AG8 supports three principal memory configurations.
| Feature | Total Memory | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ACGM | 256 GB | Base memory configuration |
| ACGJ | 768 GB total configuration | Recommended for higher IOPS, more than 12 drives, multiple adapters or data-reduction workloads |
| ACGB | 1,536 GB | Maximum memory configuration for cache-intensive and data-reduction workloads |
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Internal NVMe Storage Options
The 9846-AG8 contains 24 internal NVMe-capable drive positions. IBM supports three principal media classes:
- IBM FlashCore Modules
- Industry-standard NVMe flash drives
- NVMe Storage Class Memory drives
IBM FlashCore Module 2 Options for 9846-AG8
IBM's second-generation FlashCore Module family for the FlashSystem 9200 uses feature codes AHS5 through AHS8.
| Feature Code | Capacity | IBM Service FRU | Effective Capacity | Part Numbers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AHS5 | 4.8TB | 02YC416 | 21.99 TBe | 02CL186 02YC423 03GH469 03GH824 03GU599 |
| AHS6 | 9.6TB | 02YC417 | 21.99 TBe | 02CL184 03GH470 03GU600 |
| AHS7 | 19.2TB | 02YC418 | 43.98 TBe | 03GH471 03GH764 |
| AHS8 | 38.4TB | 02YC419 | 87.96 TBe | 03GH472 |
AHS5, AHS6, AHS7 and AHS8 are FlashSystem 9200 machine-family feature codes. The associated FRUs identify the physical service hardware and should not automatically be treated as interchangeable ordering numbers. Effective capacity is based on IBM data-reduction assumptions and is not the same as physical installed capacity or guaranteed RAID-usable capacity.
IBM FlashCore Module RAID Requirements
- A minimum of six FlashCore Modules is required for an FCM array.
- Distributed RAID 6 is recommended.
- Distributed RAID 5 is supported.
- FCMs in a single RAID array must use the same capacity.
Maximum Internal FlashCore Capacity
With 24 × 38.4TB AHS8 FCM2 modules, a fully populated 9846-AG8 can contain:
921.6TB of nominal installed FlashCore capacity in only 2U.
Actual usable capacity is lower after RAID protection, distributed spare capacity, metadata and system overhead.
Industry-Standard NVMe Drive Options
IBM also supports industry-standard NVMe SSDs using feature codes AHT1 through AHT5.
| Feature | Capacity | Alternate Features Codes | IBM Part Numbers and FRU |
|---|---|---|---|
| AHT1 | 800GB | AET1 ADT1 AHT1 | 01YM585 01YM509 01CM508 |
| AHT2 | 1.92TB | AET2 ADT2 AHT2 | 01CM504 01CM509 01YM517 01YM520 01YM586 |
| AHT3 | 3.84TB | 01YM587 | IBM AHT3 / 01YM587 |
| AHT4 | 7.68TB | 01YM588 | IBM AHT4 / 01YM588 |
| AHT5 | 15.36TB | 01YM589 | IBM AHT5 / 01YM589 |
Midland's catalog contains AHT2 through AHT5 product entries, but the currently indexed URLs for those products return inconsistent paths. They are therefore intentionally left unlinked here rather than inserting an unverified URL.
Industry-Standard NVMe RAID Requirements
- Minimum of two drives, depending on RAID type.
- RAID 10 and Distributed RAID 6 are recommended configurations.
- Distributed RAID 5 is also supported.
- NVMe drives in the same array must use the same capacity.
NVMe Storage Class Memory Options
The FlashSystem 9200 can also use Storage Class Memory for ultra-low-latency storage tiers.
| Feature | Capacity | IBM FRU | Midland Product |
|---|---|---|---|
| AHTA | 375GB | 02PX477 | IBM AHTA 375GB NVMe SCM |
| AHTB | 750GB | 02PX478 | IBM AHTB 750GB NVMe SCM |
| AHTE | 800GB | 02PX482 | IBM AHTE 800GB NVMe SCM |
| AHTF | 1.6TB | 02PX483 | IBM AHTF / 02PX483 |
IBM documents a maximum of 12 SCM drives in an SCM configuration. Minimum quantities depend on the RAID configuration.
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Related Control Enclosures
| Machine Type / Model | Description | Relationship |
|---|---|---|
| 9846-AG8 | FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure | Primary system covered by this page |
| 9848-AG8 | FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure | Related 9200 AG8 model |
| 9848-UG8 | FlashSystem 9200 utility configuration | Utility consumption model |
| 4666-AG8 | FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure with later IBM support packaging | Later 9200 machine-family model |
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Expansion Enclosures
The 9846-AG8 supports all-flash SAS expansion enclosures for additional capacity. Two physical expansion formats are used:
- AFF – 2U24 standard-density all-flash SAS expansion enclosure
- A9F – 5U92 high-density all-flash SAS expansion enclosure
| Machine Type / Model | Expansion Type | Drive Slots | Interface |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9846-AFF | Standard-density all-flash expansion | 24 | 12 Gb SAS |
| 9848-AFF | Standard-density all-flash expansion | 24 | 12 Gb SAS |
| 9846-A9F | High-density all-flash expansion | 92 | 12 Gb SAS |
| 9848-A9F | High-density all-flash expansion | 92 | 12 Gb SAS |
| 4666-AFF | Later 2U24 FlashSystem expansion family | 24 | 12 Gb SAS |
| 4666-A9F | Later 5U92 FlashSystem expansion family | 92 | 12 Gb SAS |
Maximum Number of Expansion Enclosures
IBM allows a maximum expansion weight of 20U per SAS chain.
| 5U A9F Enclosures | Maximum 2U AFF Enclosures in Same Chain |
|---|---|
| 0 | 10 |
| 1 | 7 |
| 2 | 5 |
| 3 | 2 |
| 4 | 0 |
With the supported SAS architecture, IBM documents up to approximately 760 SAS expansion drives per FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure.
9846-AFF and 9848-AFF Supported SAS Flash Drives
The AFF expansion is a 2U24 SAS all-flash enclosure. IBM's feature family includes the following capacities:
| Feature Code | Capacity | Drive Type | IBM Service FRU Family |
|---|---|---|---|
| AH2A | 1.92TB | 12 Gb SAS 2.5-inch flash | 01EJ803 / 01EJ808 |
| AH2B | 3.84TB | 12 Gb SAS 2.5-inch flash | 01EJ961 / 01EJ966 |
| AH2C | 7.68TB | 12 Gb SAS 2.5-inch flash | 01LJ382 / 01LJ391 |
| AH2D | 15.36TB | 12 Gb SAS 2.5-inch flash | 01LJ385 / 01LJ393 |
| AH2E | 30.72TB | 12 Gb SAS 2.5-inch flash | 02PX474 |
The IBM feature code identifies the configured storage option, while the FRU identifies the service-replacement drive assembly. More than one IBM FRU can exist for a given feature capacity because of drive-generation and supplier changes.
9846-A9F and 9848-A9F Supported SAS Flash Drives
The A9F is a high-density expansion enclosure capable of holding up to 92 SAS flash drives.
| Feature Code | Capacity | Drive Type | IBM 9200-Specific Service FRU |
|---|---|---|---|
| AH7J | 1.92TB | 12 Gb SAS flash in high-density carrier | 01LJ075 |
| AH7K | 3.84TB | 12 Gb SAS flash in high-density carrier | 01LJ076 |
| AH7L | 7.68TB | 12 Gb SAS flash in high-density carrier | 01LJ077 |
| AH7M | 15.36TB | 12 Gb SAS flash in high-density carrier | 01LJ078 |
| AH7N | 30.72TB | 12 Gb SAS flash in high-density carrier | Verify installed FRU against enclosure serial and IBM service records |
IBM's current FlashSystem 9200 support matrix includes 30.72TB SAS flash in the A9F expansion enclosure. Because the presently accessible IBM 9846/9848-A9F FRU table directly identifies 01LJ075 through 01LJ078 for the lower capacities but does not provide a 30.72TB service FRU, the AH7N part should be verified from the installed enclosure rather than inferred from another FlashSystem generation.
Maximum AFF Expansion Capacity
A fully populated AFF enclosure using 24 × 30.72TB SAS flash drives provides:
737.28TB nominal installed flash capacity per 2U24 expansion enclosure.
Ten 2U AFF expansion enclosures on a single allowable 20U SAS chain represent up to 240 expansion drives before considering other configuration limits.
Maximum A9F Expansion Capacity
A fully populated 92-drive A9F enclosure using 30.72TB flash provides:
2.826 PB of nominal installed flash capacity per high-density enclosure.
IBM permits up to four 5U high-density expansion enclosures within a 20U SAS chain, subject to system-level support and configuration requirements.
Internal NVMe vs. SAS Expansion Storage
The distinction between internal FlashSystem 9200 media and expansion-enclosure media is important when ordering replacement storage.
| Storage Location | Technology | Typical Features |
|---|---|---|
| 9846-AG8 control enclosure | NVMe | AHS5-AHS8, AHT1-AHT5, AHTA/AHTB/AHTE/AHTF |
| AFF expansion | 12 Gb SAS | AH2A-AH2E |
| A9F expansion | 12 Gb SAS | AH7J-AH7N |
NVMe FlashCore Modules do not install in the AFF or A9F expansion enclosures. Those expansion enclosures use SAS-attached flash drives.
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Host Connectivity
The 9846-AG8 offers extensive SAN and Ethernet connectivity for enterprise environments.
- Up to 24 × 16 Gb Fibre Channel ports.
- Up to 24 × 32 Gb Fibre Channel ports.
- Fibre Channel and FC-NVMe host access.
- Eight onboard 10 Gb Ethernet ports.
- Up to 12 × 25 Gb Ethernet ports with supported adapters.
- iSCSI connectivity.
- RoCE and supported NVMe over Fabrics connectivity.
- 12 Gb SAS adapter support for expansion enclosures.
IBM Storage Virtualize Capabilities
FlashSystem 9200 is built on IBM Storage Virtualize software, providing enterprise storage services above the physical NVMe and SAS media.
- Thin provisioning
- Data Reduction Pools
- Compression
- Deduplication
- IBM FlashCore hardware compression
- Distributed RAID
- FlashCopy snapshots
- Metro Mirror synchronous replication
- Global Mirror asynchronous replication
- Three-site replication options
- HyperSwap high availability
- External storage virtualization
- Easy Tier
- Data migration
- Encryption
- VMware integration
- REST API management
- Automation and orchestration integration
External Storage Virtualization
One of the major advantages of the FlashSystem 9200 is its ability to virtualize supported external storage systems. This allows administrators to place existing compatible storage behind IBM Storage Virtualize and apply common management, migration and data-services capabilities across multiple storage platforms.
This capability can simplify storage migrations and allow organizations to introduce FlashSystem 9200 while continuing to use existing external storage assets.
High Availability and Replication
FlashSystem 9200 includes two redundant node canisters operating as an active-active I/O group. The architecture is designed so that the loss of an individual node, power supply, adapter path or supported storage component does not automatically result in application downtime when the system and SAN are configured according to IBM availability practices.
IBM Storage Virtualize also supports technologies such as:
- HyperSwap
- Metro Mirror
- Global Mirror
- FlashCopy
- Three-site replication
- IP quorum
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Use Cases
The 9846-AG8 is well suited to workloads requiring consistent throughput, high transaction rates and low storage latency, including:
- IBM i and Db2 for i databases
- AIX enterprise applications
- Linux on IBM Power
- Oracle Database
- SAP
- Microsoft SQL Server
- VMware environments
- Private cloud infrastructure
- Virtual desktop infrastructure
- Large transactional databases
- Data analytics
- ERP systems
- Financial transaction processing
- Healthcare databases
- Storage consolidation
- Business continuity and disaster recovery
FlashSystem 9200 and IBM Power Systems
IBM FlashSystem 9200 is frequently used with IBM Power Systems environments running IBM i, AIX and Linux. Its combination of NVMe latency, Fibre Channel connectivity, high transaction throughput and IBM Storage Virtualize services makes it particularly suitable for database-intensive IBM Power workloads.
For IBM i environments, reducing storage latency can improve workloads that are sensitive to synchronous database I/O, temporary storage operations, batch processing and high transaction volumes.
Related 38.4TB FlashCore Module Feature Codes
The 38.4TB FCM2 hardware family appears under different IBM feature codes depending on the FlashSystem model.
| FlashSystem | Feature Code | Capacity | Primary FRU |
|---|---|---|---|
| FlashSystem 5100 | AES8 | 38.4TB | 02YC419 |
| FlashSystem 5200 | AGS8 | 38.4TB | 02YC419 |
| FlashSystem 7200 | ADS8 | 38.4TB | 02YC419 |
| FlashSystem 9200 | AHS8 | 38.4TB | 02YC419 |
How to Identify the Correct FlashSystem 9200 Drive
Before ordering a replacement or upgrade, verify:
- Machine type and model – such as 9846-AG8.
- Whether the drive is installed in the control enclosure, AFF expansion or A9F expansion.
- IBM feature code.
- Physical IBM FRU or service part number.
- Drive capacity.
- NVMe or SAS interface.
- FlashCore generation where applicable.
- IBM Storage Virtualize software level.
- Installed drive firmware.
- Existing RAID or Distributed RAID configuration.
- Capacity and technology of the other drives in the target array.
IBM FlashSystem 9200 Frequently Asked Questions
What is the IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8?
The IBM 9846-AG8 is a 2U enterprise NVMe FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure with 24 internal NVMe-capable drive positions, IBM Storage Virtualize software and support for IBM FlashCore Modules, NVMe SSDs, SCM and external SAS flash expansion.
How many drives does the 9846-AG8 hold?
The control enclosure contains 24 NVMe-capable internal drive positions.
What is the maximum performance of a FlashSystem 9200?
IBM publishes performance of up to approximately 4.5 million 4K read-hit IOPS, 1.2 million 4K read-miss IOPS, 45 GB/s bandwidth and less than 70 microseconds minimum latency for a single system under applicable test conditions.
How much cache does the 9846-AG8 support?
The system supports 256GB, 768GB and up to 1,536GB / 1.5TB of memory per control enclosure.
What is the largest FCM2 supported?
The largest FCM2 is AHS8, 38.4TB, associated with IBM service FRU 02YC419.
What FlashCore Module feature codes are supported?
The principal FCM2 features are AHS5 4.8TB, AHS6 9.6TB, AHS7 19.2TB and AHS8 38.4TB.
What NVMe SSDs are supported?
IBM documents AHT1 800GB, AHT2 1.92TB, AHT3 3.84TB, AHT4 7.68TB and AHT5 15.36TB industry-standard NVMe drives for the original FlashSystem 9200 configuration family.
What Storage Class Memory drives are supported?
IBM documents AHTA 375GB, AHTB 750GB, AHTE 800GB and AHTF 1.6TB SCM options.
Which expansion enclosures are supported?
The FlashSystem 9200 supports AFF 2U24 and A9F 5U92 SAS all-flash expansion enclosures in applicable 9846, 9848 and later 4666 configurations.
How many SAS expansion drives can the FlashSystem 9200 support?
IBM documents up to approximately 760 SAS drives per control enclosure depending on the expansion configuration.
What drives are supported in the AFF expansion?
The current IBM support matrix includes 1.92TB, 3.84TB, 7.68TB, 15.36TB and 30.72TB SAS flash. Corresponding feature codes are AH2A, AH2B, AH2C, AH2D and AH2E.
What drives are supported in the A9F expansion?
The current IBM support matrix includes 1.92TB, 3.84TB, 7.68TB, 15.36TB and 30.72TB SAS flash. Corresponding features are AH7J, AH7K, AH7L, AH7M and AH7N.
Can an AHS8 FlashCore Module be installed in the AFF expansion?
No. AHS8 is NVMe storage for the FlashSystem 9200 control enclosure. AFF and A9F expansions use SAS-attached flash drives.
What is the maximum installed FCM2 capacity inside the 9846-AG8?
Twenty-four 38.4TB AHS8 modules provide approximately 921.6TB nominal installed capacity before RAID and system overhead.
Can FlashSystem 9200 virtualize external storage?
Yes. IBM Storage Virtualize allows the FlashSystem 9200 to virtualize supported external storage systems and provide common storage services such as migration, replication and centralized management.
Does FlashSystem 9200 support NVMe over Fabrics?
Yes. Depending on installed adapters and software levels, the FlashSystem 9200 supports FC-NVMe and supported Ethernet-based NVMe connectivity.
What is the difference between a feature code and FRU?
An IBM feature code identifies an orderable or configurable option for a particular machine family. An IBM FRU or service part number identifies physical replacement hardware. They are related but should not automatically be treated as interchangeable identifiers.
IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8 Summary
The IBM FlashSystem 9200 9846-AG8 is a high-performance 2U NVMe enterprise storage platform offering up to 4.5 million IOPS, 45 GB/s bandwidth, sub-70-microsecond latency and 24 internal NVMe drive positions.
The system supports IBM AHS5, AHS6, AHS7 and AHS8 FlashCore Module 2 features, industry-standard AHT1 through AHT5 NVMe drives and AHTA/AHTB/AHTE/AHTF Storage Class Memory options.
External capacity is provided by AFF 2U24 and A9F 5U92 all-flash SAS expansion enclosures supporting capacities through 30.72TB per SAS flash drive. IBM documents scalability to approximately 760 SAS drives per control enclosure and expansion raw capacity reaching approximately 32 PB.
Because IBM feature codes, service FRUs and drive generations can differ even at the same capacity, replacement hardware should be matched using the exact machine type/model, storage location, feature code, FRU, drive generation, firmware and Storage Virtualize level.
Related IBM FlashSystem Products
- IBM 02YC416 4.8TB FlashCore Module 2
- IBM 02YC417 9.6TB FlashCore Module 2
- IBM 02YC418 19.2TB FlashCore Module 2
- IBM 02YC419 38.4TB FlashCore Module 2
- IBM AGS8 38.4TB FCM2
- IBM ADS8 38.4TB FCM2
- IBM AHT1 800GB NVMe Flash Drive
- IBM AHTA 375GB NVMe Storage Class Memory Drive
- IBM AHTB 750GB NVMe Storage Class Memory Drive
- IBM AHTE 800GB NVMe Storage Class Memory Drive
- IBM FlashSystem Systems, Drives, FlashCore Modules and Upgrades
