For several years, Dell Compellent Storage Center arrays powered by Intel® Xeon® processors have leveraged a unique application of RAID and tiering methods to optimize storage performance and capacity. With the emergence of higher performing controllers, as well as the rapid adoption of SSDs, Dell has a new level of Data Progression optimized for flash drives. The combination of write- and read-intensive SSDs and Flash-optimized Data Progression enables Storage Center arrays to deliver large amounts of high-performance solid-state storage at a fraction of the cost compared to other storage solutions. To introduce Flash-optimized Data Progression, this white paper summarizes Dell's current Data Progression techniques, gives a high-level description of SSDs, and describes the implementation of Flash-optimized Data Progression.

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