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15 Best Practices for Deploying a Mixed 1Gb/10Gb Ethernet SAN using Dell Storage PS Series Arrays | BP1008
4.2 Comparing pool design and volume placement: 10Gb host initiator
The same test sequences from the previous section were repeated using a 10Gb initiator on the host:
 E. One PowerEdge server with two 10Gb SAN ports connecting to four volumes in one PS Series
10Gb array using LAGd Dell Networking N4000 Series switches.
 F. One PowerEdge server with two 10Gb SAN ports connecting to four volumes in one PS Series
1Gb array using LAGd Dell Networking N4000 Series switches and stacked Dell Networking N3000
Series switches.
 G. One PowerEdge server with two 10Gb SAN ports connecting simultaneously to separate speed
pools: two volumes in one PS Series 1Gb array and two volumes in one PS Series 10Gb array.
 H. One PowerEdge server with two 10Gb SAN ports connecting simultaneously to four volumes
stored in a mixed speed pool consisting of one PS Series 1Gb array and one PS Series 10Gb
array.
Parts E and F provide I/O performance data for comparing the difference when connecting 10Gb initiators to
1Gb vs. 10Gb arrays.
Parts G and H provide I/O performance data for comparing I/O performance when a 10Gb initiator
simultaneously connects to volumes in separate speed pools versus connecting to the same set of volumes in
a single mixed speed pool.
Figure 11 illustrates the I/O flow paths for the 10Gb host initiator accessing 1Gb storage targets or 10Gb
storage targets. Figure 12 shows the comparison of performance between 1Gb storage and 10Gb storage
targets, where the 1Gb storage target is the baseline.
10Gb host performance comparison: Connecting to 1Gb array versus 10Gb array