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back to article NetApp slims for Storage Foundation

NetApp is supporting Symantec's thin reclamation API, almost two years after it was announced. Symantec announced its thin reclamation API as part of a Veritas Storage Foundation update in October 2008, with 3PAR first off the block in supporting it. IBM gave the API the thumbs up a year later. It solves a problem with thinly- …

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  1. Barry Burke

    Actually, standards are near

    Symantec uses a SCSI command extension known as WRITE_SAME with an UNMAP flag, which T10 has (or will soon) ratify. T10 has also defined the UNMAP command which affords a bit more cooperation between initiator and target, this too is ratified (or will be soon).

    Most of the industry waited until the two standards stabilized before implementing, and we should soon start seeing more file systems, volume managers and hypervisors using one or both of these APIs.

    FWIW, these APIs have value far beyond just freeing up space in thin devices - Symmetrix will support these APIs for non-thin devices as well, interpreting them to mean that the UNMAPped blocks need no longer be replicated (for example).

    Also, as with the SATA TRIM command, some Flash drives will support these APIs as a means to improve performance by freeing up blocks that are no longer needed...

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