Enterprise Storage Bench - Microsoft SQL WeeklyMaintenance

Our final enterprise storage bench test once again comes from our own internal databases. We're looking at the stats DB again however this time we're running a trace of our Weekly Maintenance procedure. This procedure runs a consistency check on the 30GB database followed by a rebuild index on all tables to eliminate fragmentation. As its name implies, we run this procedure weekly against our stats DB.

The read:write ratio here remains around 3:1 but we're dealing with far more operations: approximately 1.8M reads and 1M writes. Average queue depth is up to 5.43.

Microsoft SQL WeeklyMaintenance - Average Data Rate

We don't see perfect scaling going from 4 to 8 controllers but the performance gains are tangible: +42% over the RevoDrive 3 X2 and nearly 3x the performance of a single Vertex 3.

Microsoft SQL WeeklyMaintenance - Disk Busy Time

Microsoft SQL WeeklyMaintenance - Average Service Time

Average service time continues to be where the Z-Drive R4 really dominates. The use of 8 controllers in parallel appears to be able to significantly reduce average service times when queue depths skyrocket. The R4 CM88 is now over two orders of magnitude (136x) faster than a single Vertex 3—and 227x faster than the Intel X25-E. Again we see that the RevoDrive 3 X2 is much slower than it should be here, possibly pointing at a firmware bug or some other enhancement on the Z-Drive R4.

Enterprise Storage Bench - Microsoft SQL UpdateDailyStats Final Words
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  • squashmeister99 - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link

    You teased us with your video reviews. Now we cant go back... :-)
  • G-Man - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link

    I miss the video reviews already :-)
  • vol7ron - Tuesday, September 27, 2011 - link

    hahaha. they are a good addition aren't they?
  • Rasterman - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link

    Comparing a single Vertex 3 240GB to a 1.6TB doesn't seem quite valid. Someone considering the R4 would be asking what is the performance difference between the R4 and 4 to 16 Vertex 3s in RAID 0. Especially considering the massive cost savings per GB using the Vertex 3s.
  • MrBungle123 - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link

    I'd like to see some RAID 5/6/10 arrays of 15K RPM SCSI drives in the benchmarks too.
  • marraco - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link

    No. I don't want video reviews, unless they have English subtitles.
  • SilthDraeth - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link

    I have trouble hearing and use subs for all my movies, yet Anand speaks quite clearly, and I have no trouble understanding him.

    Also, he posts the video review in conjunction with the written review, and not as a stand alone feature, so you really don't need it subtitled. So you would still get to enjoy the reviews as you always have.
  • Lonbjerg - Thursday, September 29, 2011 - link

    You can write english but not understand it when it's spoken? *shakes head*
  • connor4312 - Thursday, September 29, 2011 - link

    I'm guessing you never learned a second language?
  • arthur449 - Wednesday, September 28, 2011 - link

    Not all information provided is specifically relevant to everyone's interests in a review of a product. Similarly, information provided in a video review follows a linear arbitrary organizational structure that cannot possibly align with everyone's preferred method of learning. Also, it's easier to skim / search / quote / share a text-based review.

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