Key Takeaways
1. Kioxia has launched the LC9 Series NVMe SSD with a capacity of 245.76 TB, the highest available for both 2.5-inch and EDSFF E3.L formats.
2. The new SSD doubles the previous maximum capacity of 122.88 TB, catering to data centers with high space efficiency needs.
3. The drive supports demanding applications like generative AI and vector databases by reducing I/O bottlenecks during data processing.
4. It features advanced technology with 32 BiCS FLASH QLC dies and a PCIe 5.0 x4 NVMe 2.0 controller, offering fast speeds of up to 12 GB/s for reads.
5. The drive includes reliability features like die-level recovery and power-loss protection, achieving around 1.3 million IOPS for reads and 50,000 IOPS for writes.
Kioxia has introduced a new model with a capacity of 245.76 TB in its LC9 Series, making it the highest-capacity NVMe SSD available in both 2.5-inch and EDSFF E3.L formats. This new version doubles the previous maximum capacity of 122.88 TB in the series and is designed for data centers where space efficiency is crucial.
Demand for High-Capacity Storage
The needs of generative AI training, vector databases, and various retrieval-augmented generation tasks require large, efficient, and speedy storage solutions. Kioxia emphasizes that the LC9’s large scale is meant to alleviate I/O bottlenecks, which can cause costly GPUs to sit idle during data ingestion and inference processes.
Advanced Technology and Performance
This drive utilizes 32 of Kioxia’s 2 Tbit BiCS FLASH QLC dies, employing CMOS-direct-bonded-to-array (CBA) technology that allows for 8 TB in a single NAND package, marking another industry milestone. It features a PCIe 5.0 x4 (dual-port) NVMe 2.0 controller that offers up to 12 GB/s for sequential reads and 3 GB/s for writes, effectively balancing signal integrity with the high package density and extreme height.
Specifications and Reliability
In terms of random throughput, the drive achieves around 1.3 million IOPS for reads and 50,000 IOPS for writes, with an endurance rating of 0.3 DWPD suitable for typical hyperscale workloads. To ensure reliability, it includes die-level recovery, parity-based error management, and power-loss protection, in addition to Flexible Data Placement that helps minimize write amplification.
Kioxia is currently sampling the 245 TB LC9 to selected partners, with larger volume units to be available in 2.5-inch U.2 (up to 122.88 TB), E3.S (up to 122.88 TB), and E3.L (245.76 TB) formats. A public demonstration is scheduled for the Future of Memory and Storage conference in August 2025.
Source:
Link
Leave a Reply