Dell PowerVault MD3420 - Manual (Page 13)

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Controller Modules
RAID Controller Modules
The RAID controller modules provide high-performance, advanced virtual disk configuration, and fault-
tolerant disk subsystem management. Each RAID controller module contains 4GB or 8GB of mirrored
cache for high availability and a battery-powered cache offload mechanism.
NOTE: The 8GB mirrored cache is an optional feature.
RAID controller modules provide the following data path and enclosure management functions:
• Monitoring and controlling enclosure environment elements (temperature, fans, power supplies, and
enclosure LEDs)
• Controlling access to the physical disks
• Communicating enclosure attributes and states to the host server and management station
Each RAID controller module has multiple SAS IN ports for host access. The ports provide redundant host
connections and support a high availability storage environment. Various configurations can be utilized,
in both single controller (simplex) and dual controller (duplex) modes, to connect the storage enclosure
to hosts depending on specific redundancy needs.
For information on cabling, see the MD3400 and MD3420 Series Storage Arrays Deployment Guide, at
dell.com/powervaultmanuals.
RAID Controller Module Connectors and Features
Figure 7. MD3400 and MD3420 Series SAS RAID Controller Module
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