Deployment Guide

Figure 1. FS8600 Scale-Out NAS Architecture
Storage Center
The Storage Center provides the FS8600 scale-out NAS storage capacity. The FS8600 cannot be used as a standalone NAS
appliance, which eliminates the need to have separate storage capacity for block and le storage. In addition, Storage Center
features, such as Dynamic Capacity and Data Progression, are automatically applied to NAS volumes.
The FS8600 supports the following Storage Center models:
• SC9000
• SC8000
• SC40
• SC4020
• SCv2080
• SC7020
Internal Backup Power Supply
Each NAS controller is equipped with an internal backup power supply (BPS) that protects data during a power failure. The BPS
provides continuous power to the NAS controllers for a minimum of 5 minutes in case of a power failure and has sucient battery
power to allow the NAS controllers to safely shut down. In addition, the BPS provides enough time for the NAS controllers to write
all data from the cache to non-volatile internal storage.
The NAS controllers regularly monitor the BPS battery status, which requires the BPS to maintain a minimum level of power for
normal operation. To ensure the BPS battery status is accurate, the NAS controllers routinely undergo battery calibration cycles.
During a battery calibration cycle, the BPS goes through charge and discharge cycles; therefore, battery error events during this
process are expected. A battery calibration cycle takes up to 7 days to complete. If a NAS controller starts a battery calibration cycle,
and the peer NAS controller BPS has failed, the NAS controllers enter journaling mode, which might impact performance. Therefore,
Dell recommends repairing a failed BPS as soon as possible.
Introduction
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