storage News - Page 7 of 11 - CNX Software

June 22, 2022June 22, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Imagination unveils IMG RTXM-2200 32-bit RISC-V real-time “Catapult” CPU

Imagination IMG RTXM-2200 32-bit RISC-V real-time CPU core is the first member of the company’s Catapult family comprised of four distinct RISC-V families for dynamic microcontrollers, real-time embedded CPUs, high-performance application CPUs, and functionally safe automotive CPUs. The company says it’s a highly scalable real-time, deterministic, 32-bit embedded CPU, that is feature-rich and flexible in design for mainstream devices, but, excuse the pun, leaves most of the details to your imagination… The new core will mostly be used as a helper core (aka co-processor) in more complex SoCs for 5G modems, cellular base stations, networking solutions for data transfer, packet management, and storage controllers, but may also find its way into smart meters. In all fairness, we do have some limited technical details with L1 cache sizes up to 128KB, I/D TCM sizes up to 128KB, and PMA regions. The real-time core will also include optional features such as single-point […]

June 15, 2022June 17, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

KIOXIA XFMEXPRESS XT2 tiny 18x14mm removable NVMe SSD complies with XFM DEVICE standard

KIOXIA Corporation, previously known as, Toshiba Memory Corporation, has started sampling of the XFMEXPRESS XT2 removable PCIe/NVMe storage device compliant with XFM DEVICE Ver.1.0-standard with dimensions of just 18×14 mm. The new storage standard and device are mostly designed for space-constrained applications ranging from ultra-mobile PCs to IoT devices and various embedded applications that may require fast, removable storage. We do not have the full specifications for the XFMEXPRESS XT2, but here are the highlights: Host interface – PCIe 4.0 x 2 lanes, NVMe 1.4b interface with similar performance to M.2 SSDs Removable storage similar to microSD card Dimensions 18 x 14 x 1.4mm (252 mm2 footprint) compliant with JEDEC XFM DEVICE Ver.1.0 form factor 22.2 x 17.75 x 2.2mm when considering the drive & connector As I understand, the new storage device is meant to deliver much higher performance than microSD cards, while providing a thinner and smaller form […]

May 4, 2022May 4, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

xSPI MRAM provides an alternative to SPI NOR/NAND flash with up to 400MB/s R/W bandwidth

Everspin has unveiled the EMxxLX xSPI MRAM (Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory) non-volatile memory solution for industrial IoT and embedded systems providing an alternative to SPI NOR/NAND flash with much faster R/W data rates of up to 400MB/s and densities between 8Mbit and 64Mbit. The higher speed is made possible by the new JEDEC expanded Serial Peripheral Interface (xSPI) standard interface and a clock frequency of up to 200 MHz, the maximum supported by the xSPI standard. All chips operate at 1.8V, and the family is offered in 24-ball BGA and 8-pin DFN packages. EMxxLX xSPI MRAM key features and specifications: Density – 8Mb, 16Mb, 32Mb, 64Mb 400MBps sustained throughput with OSPI at 200MHz, DTR, for reads and writes Expanded SPI (xSPI) bus interface supporting Octal, Quad, Dual, and Single SPI protocol Up to 200MHz single and double transfer rate (STR/DTR) for Octal SPI Up to 133MHz, SPI, DSPI, QSPI Data […]

May 4, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Samsung UFS 4.0 storage to offer up to 4,200 MB/s read speeds, 1TB capacity

Samsung Electronics has unveiled its first Universal Flash Storage (UFS) 4.0 solution based on the company’s 7th-generation V-NAND and a proprietary controller allowing speeds of up to 23.2 gigabits per second (Gbps) per lane or double the previous UFS 3.1 solutions. In more practical terms, Samsung UFS 4.0 storage will deliver a sequential read speed of up to 4,200 MB/s and a sequential write speed of 2,800 MB/s, corresponding to about 2x and 1.6x faster speeds over UFS 3.1 storage. Samsung also claims that power efficiency has been enhanced with a sequential read speed of up to 6.0 MB/s per milliampere (mA), or about a 46-percent improvement over UFS 3.1. An advanced Replay Protected Memory Block (RPMB) is integrated into the chip to store important personal data that can only be read or written through authenticated access, and whose design is said to be 1.8 times more efficient. Samsung UFS […]

October 26, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Raspberry Pi CM4 based PiBox 2 Mini serves as NAS, private Cloud storage (Crowdfunding)

The PiBox 2 Mini is a networked storage solution based on a Raspberry Pi CM4 module and equipped with two slots for 2.5-inch SATA drivers be it HDD’s or SSD’s. It also exposes USB ports and an HDMI port, so I could also be used as a computer. Designed by KubeSail “self hosting company”, the PiBox does not only serve as a standard NAS, but aims to provide a home-based private cloud hosting solution that can replace services such as Google Photos or Dropbox with easily installable templates that are hosted in the box. Pibox 2 Mini specifications: Support SoM – Raspberry Pi CM4 or CM4 Lite with up to 8GB RAM, 32GB eMMC flash Storage 2x SATA port for 2.5-inch drives (SSD or HDD) MicroSD card socket for people using CM4 Lite Video Output – HDMI 2.0 port up to 4Kp60 Display – Built-in 1.3-inch color LCD for information […]

October 20, 2021October 20, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

QNAP TBS-464 ultra-thin NAS supports 4 M.2 NVMe SSDs, 2.5GbE networking

Most NAS are large boxes that take several 3.5-inch SATA drives, but QNAP TBS-464 NASbook is a different beast with an ultra-thin design enabled by four M.2 PCIe slots for NVMe SSDs, plus two 2.5 GbE ports to match the higher data transfer speed allowed by the SSDs. The NAS is equipped with a recent Intel Celeron N5105/N5095 Jasper Lake quad-core processor coupled with 8GB DDR4 memory, and also offers USB 3.0 ports, as well as two HDMI 2.0 video outputs and an IR receiver that would make it suitable as a NAS & HTPC combo, for example, running Plex. QNAP TBS-464 NASbook specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N5105/N5095 quad-core processor @ 2.0 / GHz with Intel UHD graphics; TDP: 10 or 15W TDP System Memory – 8 GB DDR4 soldered on board Storage 4GB flash for OS with dual boot OS protection 4 x M.2 2280 NVMe Gen3 x2 […]

April 9, 2021April 12, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

DIY Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 NAS supports up to four drives

We previously noted it was possible to build a Raspberry Pi CM4 NAS using Wiretrustee carrier board with a built-in Marvell 88SE9215 PCIe to SATA controller and four SATA connectors. But Mebs just created his own Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 four-bay NAS with his own carrier board equipped with a PCIe socket used to insert a PCIe SATA card, as well as a neat 3D printed enclosure that took 6 days to print. This carrier board design is actually derived from the official Raspberry Pi CM4 IO board with only the interfaces needed for the NAS to make it smaller and fit within the width of a standard 3.5″ hard drive. It was also made as simple as possible because it was Mebs’ first PCB design. This leaves the board with Gigabit Ethernet, one HDMI port, a USB 2.0 port, the PCIe 2.0 socket, as well as some headers […]

February 1, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

Build a Raspberry Pi CM4 4-Bay NAS with Wiretrustee Carrier board

Wiretrustee SATA board Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4

Broadcom BCM2711 processor comes with a PCIe interface that is used for the USB ports on the Raspberry Pi 4 SBC, but that is exposed through the board-to-board connectors of Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4, aka Raspberry Pi CM4, and allows all sort of designs. So far we’ve mostly seen this PCIe interface used for M.2 expansion slots on devices ranging from industrial computers to carrier board such as Piunora or Gumstix Raspberry Pi CM4 development board. But Wiretrustee had a different idea and designed carrier board with Marvell 88SE9215 PCIe to SATA controller and offering four SATA connectors to build a 4-bay NAS with Raspberry Pi CM4 module. Wiretrustee carrier board specifications: Supported SoM – Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 and 4 Lite Storage 4x SATA 2.0 via Marvell 88SE9215 (PCIe 2.0 x1 to 4 6Gb/s SATA ports, no HW RAID) chip tested at a write speed of ~220MB/s […]