Tegile T3400 Trumps Nimble Storage CS700 in Data Center Efficiency, Flexibility and Resiliency The T3400 extends Tegile’s existing technology lead in hybrid storage by going beyond flash memory as cache to deliver from 26 to 314 TB of flash memory as a new high-density, high-performance storage tier

1. Tegile T3400 Trumps Nimble Storage CS700
in Data Center Efficiency, Flexibility and Resiliency
Although storage professionals are tradition-
ally cautious about adopting new technolo-
gies, a recent survey1
indicates that hybrid
storage adoption is real and growing with
more than one-third of the respondents (37%)
indicating they had already deployed a hybrid
storage array. Hybrid storage arrays are
garnering this kind of attention because they
deliver previously unheard of storage perfor-
mance at a cost per GB that makes sense to
a broad range of businesses.
Tegile Systems and Nimble Storage quickly surface
as potential hybrid storage providers, with these
two often competing against each other in head-
to-head proof of concept implementations. Both
vendors announced their next generation of prod-
ucts within weeks of one another­—the Tegile
Systems T3400 and the Nimble Storage CS700. A
quick analysis of three array features that matter
most to organizations reveals why the Tegile
T3400 will likely continue to come out on top in
these types of bake-offs.
Superior Data Center Efficiency
The T3400 beats the CS700 on nearly every
measure of data center efficiency. For example, the
T3400 provides up to 31.4 TB per rack unit of raw
storage capacity, more than twice the CS700’s
maximum 14.25 TB/U. The T3400 also features
superior data efficiency through in-line deduplica-
tion of both block and file-based stores in addition
to the block level compression offered by Nimble
Storage. The combination of higher storage density
and superior data efficiency means the T3400 is
likely to pack at least 4x the data into each inch of
rack space compared to the CS700.
The T3400’s superior data center efficiency trans-
lates into greater consolidation within the data
center and the opportunity to achieve significant
CapEx and OpEx savings—along with improved
application performance.
Superior Flexibility
Tegile’s T3400 supports both iSCSI and Fibre
Channel connectivity for block storage and
comprehensive support for file protocols (NFS v3
and v4, CIFS and SMB1.0-3.0). In contrast, the
CS700 is still an iSCSI-only block-only storage
array. The T3400’s multi-protocol SAN and NAS
capability means the T3400 can fit into a broader
range of data center infrastructures and provide
storage for a broader range of applications
than the CS700.
Superior Resiliency
The T3400’s redundant active-active controllers fulfill
requests for data through concurrent access to all
LUNs. If one controller fails or is taken offline, the
remaining active controller continues to service data
requests without interruption. This aspect of non-
disruptive operations is considered an enterprise-
class feature and is superior to the active-standby
controller design of the Nimble Storage CS700.
The T3400 extends Tegile’s existing technology
lead in hybrid storage by going beyond flash
memory as cache to deliver from 26 to 314 TB of
flash memory as a new high-density, high-perfor-
mance storage tier. Superior data center efficiency,
support for multiple storage networking protocols,
and active resiliency features combine to make
the Tegile T3400 a better fit than the CS700 for
many businesses.
The T3400 extends Tegile’s existing technology lead in hybrid storage by going beyond flash memory as
cache to deliver from 26 to 314 TB of flash memory as a new high-density, high-performance storage tier.
COMPANY
Tegile Systems, Inc.
7999 Gateway Blvd. #120
Newark, CA 94560
510.791.7900
Founded 2010
www.tegile.com
INDUSTRY
Data Storage
SOLUTION
• Tegile T3400
DIFFERENTIATORS
• Superior data center efficiency
with 2x raw storage density
plus inline deduplication
• Flexible multi-protocol,
unified SAN and NAS storage
• Resilient active-active
controller configuration
By Ken Clipperton, DCIG Managing Analyst
July 2014
Competitive AdvantageTegile Systems, Inc.
“The T3400 beats the CS700
on nearly every measure of
data center efficiency.”
— Ken Clipperton, DCIG Managing Analyst
1. Robinson, Simon, and Tim Stammers. “451 Survey Finds Enterprise Flash Storage Adoption Real, and Growing.” 451 Survey Finds Enterprise Flash
Storage Adoption Real, and Growing. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2014.

2. dcig.comDCIG, LLC // 7511 MADISON STREET // OMAHA NE 68127 // 402.884.9594
About DCIG
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July 2014
Competitive AdvantageTegile Systems, Inc.
FEATURE
Tegile
T3400
Nimble Storage
CS700
Data Center
Efficiency
Raw Storage Capacity Raw Flash Memory in Main Controller in TB 28.2 3.2
Raw All-flash Storage Capacity
with Expansion Shelves in TB (Max)
314 16
Raw Hybrid (Flash+HDD) Storage Capacity
with Expansion Shelves in TB (Max)
170 171
Flash Memory Technology eMLC MLC
Resource
Requirements
Power: Main Appliance 475 650
Power: Maximum Configuration 1,975 1,850
Rack units required for fully scaled-up configuration 10 12
Efficiency Ratios Raw Density in TB per Rack Unit (Max) 31.4 14.25
Raw TB per Watt 0.16 0.09
Data Efficiency:
Data Reduction2
In-line Block-level Compression
In-line Block-level Deduplication
Flexibility:
Storage Networking
Protocols2
iSCSI
Fibre Channel
NFS v3, v4
CIFS/SMB1, SMB2, SMB2.1, SMB 3.0
Resiliency:
Controller
Configuration2
Active-Active
Active-Standby
Tegile T3400 vs Nimble Storage CS700 Key Competitive Advantages
Data Sources other than the DCIG Interactive Buyer’s Guide
1. Tegile Systems. “Intelligent Flash Storage Arrays.” Web. 13 June 2014. <http://pages.tegile.
com/rs/tegilesystems/images/Intelligent-Flash-Storage-Arrays.pdf>.
2. These advantages are true of the entire Tegile product line.
3. “CS-Series Datasheet.” Nimble Storage, 2014. Web. 13 June 2014. <http://info.nimblestorage.
com/rs/nimblestorage/images/Nimble_CS-Series_Datasheet.pdf>.
5 5
4
3
4
3
4
5 5
1
1
4. In the CS700, flash is used as read cache only and does not add to the overall storage
capacity of the array.
5. Calculated from other fields.