he Dell PowerVault ME5084 is a robust storage solution designed for both SAN (Storage Area Network) and DAS (Direct-Attached Storage) environments. This entry-level storage array is purpose-built to meet the needs of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that demand high performance, simplicity, and affordability in their data storage solutions. Here’s a detailed look into its specifications, features, and benefits.

Key Specifications

The PowerVault ME5084 offers a range of specifications that make it a versatile and powerful storage array:

• Controllers: Available in several configurations, including 10Gb iSCSI Base-T, 12Gb SAS, 25Gb iSCSI, and 32Gb Fibre Channel (FC) options.
• Drives Supported: Includes a variety of SSD options and 10K and NLSAS drives, including FIPS Self-Encrypting Drives (SEDs).
• Expansion: The ME5084 can be scaled up using the ME5 expansion enclosures, accommodating up to 336 drives or 8PB of total storage capacity.

Features and Customization

The Dell ME5084 is designed with several notable features aimed at optimizing performance and usability:

• Blazing Speed and Capacity: The ME5084 unleashes substantial performance, capacity, and bandwidth gains over its predecessors.
• Dual Controller Module Configurations: Supports both single and dual-controller configurations, directly attached or switch-attached, providing flexibility in your deployment strategy.
• Data Services: Brings essential mid-to-high-end storage features and services to SMBs without compromising on simplicity and affordability.

Installation and Management

Installing and managing the ME5084 is straightforward:

• Initial Setup: Detailed guidance is available in the ME5 Series Storage System Deployment Guide, covering initial hardware setup, safety guidelines, and rack mounting considerations.
• Network Connectivity: Supports multiple protocols, including Fibre Channel, iSCSI, and SAS, ensuring compatibility with various host environments.
• Management Tools: Includes the PowerVault Manager for simplified system configuration, monitoring, and management.

Price and Value

The Dell ME5084 is competitively priced, offering substantial value considering its advanced features and capabilities:

• Cost: Starting prices for the ME5084 configurations can vary, with estimated values around $50,778.02 to higher tiers at $130,372.40, depending on the selected components and service plans.

Support and Services

Dell offers extensive support and service options for the ME5084:

• Onsite Services: Includes various levels of on-site diagnosis and support services, ensuring minimal downtime for your operations.
• Extended Warranties: Options for ProSupport and Next Business Day Onsite Service, among others, to provide peace of mind and long-term service reliability.

Summery

The Dell PowerVault ME5084 is an exemplary storage solution for SMBs seeking a balance between performance, capacity, and cost. Its ease of setup, wide range of controller and drive options, and scalable expansion capabilities make it a versatile choice for diverse storage needs. Whether you are enhancing your existing infrastructure or setting up a new storage environment, the ME5084 delivers consistent, high-speed performance and robust data management features to support your organizational demands.

For any organization looking to advance its data storage solutions, the Dell PowerVault ME5084 offers an attractive combination of simplicity, speed, and affordability.

How does ME5084 benefit SMBs?

The Dell PowerVault ME5084 offers several benefits to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) looking to enhance their data storage capabilities:

1. High Performance: The ME5084 delivers substantial performance gains over its predecessors, including impressive read/write speeds and input/output operations per second (IOPS). When configured with an all-flash setup, the ME5084 can achieve up to 614k IOPS for 4K random read operations, and 172.6k IOPS for 4K random write operations. Sequential read and write performance also shows significant improvement, reaching 11.9GB/s and 5.6GB/s, respectively.
2. Scalability: The ME5084 supports expansion enclosures, allowing SMBs to scale up to 336 drives or a total of 8PB of storage. This ensures that businesses can start with a smaller configuration and expand their storage as needed, without the need for significant infrastructure changes.
3. Affordability: As an entry-level block storage array, the ME5084 is designed with affordability in mind, making advanced storage features accessible to SMBs at a lower cost. The starting price for the ME5084 is competitive, considering its capabilities and scalability options.
4. Simplicity and Ease of Use: The ME5084 is designed to be simple to set up and operate. Dell provides thorough deployment guides and management options, including the PowerVault Manager, which simplifies system configuration, monitoring, and management. This ease of use is critical for SMBs that may not have dedicated IT staff.
5. Flexible Deployment Options: The ME5084 offers the choice of SAN or DAS connectivity, providing flexibility in how businesses deploy their storage solutions. This versatility enables SMBs to separate compute and storage resources, allowing for modular growth and easy replacements as needed.
6. Energy Efficiency: The all-flash configurations of the ME5084 consume less power, generate less heat, and offer better reliability than traditional hard drive setups. This can result in lower operational costs and reduced environmental impact, which is beneficial for SMBs focused on sustainability.
7. Robust Data Services: The ME5084 includes essential features from mid-to-high-end storage solutions, such as data protection and data management services, without compromising on simplicity or business outcomes. These features are essential for ensuring data integrity and availability.
8. Versatility for Various Workloads: The ME5084 supports a wide range of workloads, including edge computing, high-performance computing (HPC), safety and security applications, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), and database applications like Microsoft SQL. Its ability to adapt to different use cases makes it a versatile choice for SMBs with diverse operational needs.

In summary

the Dell PowerVault ME5084 provides SMBs with a powerful, scalable, and cost-effective storage solution that emphasizes performance, simplicity, and flexibility. Its robust feature set and ease of use make it an excellent choice for businesses looking to enhance their data storage capabilities.