Ultra320 universal hot-plug disk drives

As Ultra320 enters its third and final generation in the market as the fastest parallel SCSI interface speed, HP is there once again. In addition to maintaining industry standards, the new HP universal 300GB 15K RPM drive will enable unprecented levels of capacity and performance.		Product information » Overview & Features » Key benefits » Questions & Answers

	Award winning drive tray

• Ultra320 Universal drives are packaged in a performance-enhanced version of the Universal Drive Tray that ProLiant, Alpha and StorageWorks customers are already familiar with
• New design allows for better cooling in server and storage environments
• Backward compatible with all previous generation servers so there is no impact to the Universal strategy to the end user
• Compact design for maximum storage density
• Direct-connect for increased reliability and signal integrity
• Improved drive cooling essential for today's ultra high performance drives
• Better vibration damping for improved performance
• Greater component commonality throughout the enterprise

• Ultra320 Universal drives are tested and proven under HP's extensive Hard Disk Drive Qualification (HDDQ) program
• Configured and tested in all supported applications to ensure immediate, flawless integration into HP ProLiant, HP AlphaServer and HP StorageWorks systems
• Backed by HP's three year drive warranty and pre-failure warranty

	Increased performance with 15K drives

HP 15K disk drives provide an unparalleled level of performance improvement over current 10,000 rpm (10K) drives. The HP 15K hard disk drive accesses data an average of 26% faster than current 10K drives, resulting in improved productivity and profitability. In addition to the increased access times, the 15K drives deliver a 33% improvement in Input/Output Operations per Second (IOPS) over 10K drives. Servers with multiple drives handling large numbers of transactions benefit from this increased IOPS performance.

HP 15K drives deliver this extraordinary performance with no more power consumption or cooling requirements than the 10K hard drives, allowing easy integration for this class of drive in existing platforms and applications without having compatibility issues or requiring cabinet power and cooling changes.

HP drives will feature the Ultra320 interface and 1" high form factor, available in capacities as high as 300GBs. Because Ultra320, Ultra3 and Ultra2 all operate on the Low Voltage Differential (LVD) electrical platform, the protocols are completely data compatible, allowing the interfaces to be mixed and matched with one another. "Mix and match" means all LVD controllers and drives will interoperate, continuing one of the industry's strongest investment protection stories ever told.

The 15K hard drives are compatible across most HP ProLiant servers, AlphaServers, and the StorageWorks 4300 families of external storage solutions. With 15K Universal drive compatibility across the enterprise, users are free to deploy and re-deploy these drives anywhere storage capacity is needed. This results in investment protection and simplification for our customers.

• Maximum data transfer rate up to 320MB/s, with the Ultra320 interface
• Compact one-inch design for maximum storage density
• Backward compatible drives work readily with upgraded systems
• High data integrity and reliability in the enterprise environment
• Backed by a three-year warranty
• Investment protection - Universal drives can easily be re-deployed within Ultra2, Ultra3 and Ultra320 solutions wherever storage capacity is needed most
• Flexibility - Order the storage capacity you need then deploy whenever or wherever you choose
• Ease of doing business - Customers can easily select the drives they need regardless of the application in which they will be deployed
• Reduced spares inventory - Having a common drive across platforms minimizes spares volume
• Minimized storage complexity - Improved logistics through minimizing the number of drives and part numbers
• Full installation and hardware warranty extension services available
• Universal Carrier - Award Winning Drive tray - able to deploy throughout the ProLiant, AlphaServer and StorageWorks Families of HP Products
• Improved design. Performance enhancement modifications have been made to the HP Universal Drive Tray allowing for additional airflow and better cooling in server and storage environments.
• The updated tray is backward compatible to previous generations of servers and storage enclosures that used the Universal Drive Tray so customers will be able to keep their drive strategies and buying habits intact.