KIOXIA's XD7P SSDs For Hyperscalers Promise Cutting-Edge Features With PCIe 5 Inbound
The XD7P series is intended for read-intensive applications with low latency requirements across mixed workloads. Compared with the XD6 series, KIOXIA claims the XD7P series provides up to a 1.5x to 2x improvement in sequential writes and random read/writes, though exact throughput metrics are not provided. The XD7P series is initially launching with the PCIe 4.0 interface, but the company notes that it is forward looking to PCIe 5.0 with solutions currently in development. It says that PCIe 5.0 SSDs will be released once there is enough customer demand.
The M.2 formfactor has taken over the consumer space but is not able to scale or meet the demands of the data center. Instead, the EDSFF (Enterprise and Datacenter Standard Form Factor) family has risen to prominence. The EDSFF family takes on a few forms, and the KIOXIA XD7P uses the E1.S (Short) formfactor which is suitable for vertical installation in a 1U server chassis.
The XD7P PCB itself does look similar to M.2, but the contacts are offset. The PCB is shrouded in a heatsink with height options of 9.5 / 15 / 25 millimeters. A larger heatsink will afford better cooling for heavy storage workloads but may impact a system’s storage density.
“As hyperscale data centers get more sophisticated, the E1.S form factor is gaining in popularity over legacy form factors due to its break-through thermal and performance benefits,” said Maulik Sompura, senior director of product planning and management, KIOXIA America, Inc. “KIOXIA is pushing the envelope further with our next-gen XD7P E1.S NVMe and PCIe SSDs, which are equipped to support newly added, complex OCP features. With the XD7P, KIOXIA has made significant strides in capabilities compared to previous generation drives – which can lead to a substantial TCO advantage for customers.”
KIOXIA says the XD7P drives meet the OCP’s requirements for formfactor, performance, power and thermal management. OCP is the Open Compute Project started by Facebook which seeks to “design, use, and enable mainstream delivery of the most efficient designs for scalable computing.” Adherence to open standards is essential for maximizing scalability and serviceability alike.
The XD7P will be available in capacities of 2TB, 4TB, and 8TB using fifth generation BiCS FLASH 3D TLC flash memory. All capacities are endurance rated for a full drive write per day (DWPD) over a period of 5 years. The XD7P will also be available in non-SED (self-encrypting drive) as well as TCG Opal 2.0 SSC SED options for customers who require heightened security.
KIOXIA has not provided information about general availability yet, but notes that it has started seeding samples to select data center customers.
