Drobo B1200i User manual

Drobo How-To Guide
Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
drobo.com | Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
1
With the introduction of SSD support in the Drobo B1200i, SSDs
provide a faster tier of storage for data that is transactional in
nature, the type of data that benefits from the faster write and
access speeds SSDs provide. Follow the steps in this guide through
the process of adding solid state drives (SSDs) to a Drobo B1200i to
automatically accelerate transactional applications on the Drobo.
Topics
What you will need
Preparing to add SSDs
Adding SSDs to enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
What You Will Need
•Drobo B1200i SAN storage system
•3 compatible enterprise SSDs*
•Drobo B1200i firmware 1.1.0 or higher
•Drobo Dashboard management software version 2.2.0 or higher
* Enterprise SSDs tested by Drobo as compatible for use in B1200i. More information @
http://support.drobo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/655.
Preparing to Add SSDs
If you initially deployed a Drobo B1200i without SSDs, some preparations are required in order to install SSDs and
enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering and performance acceleration.
STEP 1
Verify that you are using
Drobo Dashboard
version 2.2.0 or higher.
Skip to Step 3 if your
version of Drobo
Dashboard is up to date.

Drobo How-To Guide
Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
drobo.com | Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
2
STEP 2
The latest Drobo Dashboard software for the B1200i is posted @ http://www.drobo.com/support/updates.php.
Download the version of Drobo Dashboard posted and install.
STEP 3
If the B1200i is running firmware version 1.1.0 or higher, skip to Step 5.
STEP 4
The latest firmware for the B1200i is posted @ http://www.drobo.com/support/updates.php.
Start Drobo Dashboard
and select the Drobo
B1200i to update.
Choose Tools >
Software Updates to
upgrade the firmware,
either automatically or
manually using a
previously downloaded
file.
STEP 5
Verify that Dual-Disk
Redundancy (DDR) is
enabled before removing
any drives.
Enable Dual-Disk
Redundancy in the
General Settings.

Drobo How-To Guide
Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
drobo.com | Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
3
STEP 6
If you purchased the B1200i 24TB configuration with 12 x 2TB SAS drives, you must remove 3 drives to make room for
the SSDs that will make up the transactional tier.
Remove one SAS drive
from the Drobo and let
the system rebuild. Then
remove the second drive
and repeat for the last
drive. Any 3 drives can
be removed, but for
easier management,
remove 3 drives from
bays that are side-by-
side and at the left or
right side (drive bays 0,1,
and 2 or drive bays 9, 10,
and11).
When it’s ready to
receive the SSDs, the
Data Protection progress
bar disappears and the
B1200i shows the
remaining HDDs in green
in Drobo Dashboard.

Drobo How-To Guide
Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
drobo.com | Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
4
Adding SSDs to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
When transactional data (“hot”) enters the Drobo, it is written to the faster tier of SSDs, the transactional tier, a
different approach to enterprise arrays with auto-tiering. Like other solutions, data residing on the slower bulk tier is
promoted to the transactional tier if it becomes hot based on read access patterns.
After you add SSDs to the B1200i, you don’t need to do anything further to configure the storage. Automated Data-
Aware Tiering manages the hot and cold blocks of data, instantly boosting performance for all of the volumes in the
Drobo.
NOTE:It is recommended that you insert or remove SSDs one at a time.
STEP 1
Insert an SSD into any of
the empty drive bays.
STEP 2
Insert the second SSD
into another empty drive
bay.

Drobo How-To Guide
Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
drobo.com | Add SSDs to a Drobo B1200i to Enable Automated Data-Aware Tiering
5
STEP 3
Insert the third SSD into
another the remaining
empty drive bay.
After all SSD’s have been installed, Automated Data-Aware Tiering dynamically begins to reconfigure the B1200i and
a notification icon displays when the feature is enabled.
Drobo !2460 North First Street, Suite 100, San Jose, CA !www.drobo.com !1.866.97.DROBO
Copyright 2012 Drobo, Inc. Data Robotics, Drobo, DroboEllite, DroboPro, BeyondRAID, and Smart Volumes are trademarks of
Drobo, Inc., which may be registered in some jurisdictions. All other trademarks used are owned by their respective owners.
All rights reserved. Specifications subject to change without notice. !HT-0117-00 !May 2012