Linux MD RAID goes embedded
For those of you out there looking for a RAID stack for embedded applications there appears to be clear momentum behind using the Linux MD RAID stack with hardware acceleration. Both AMCC and Intel have I/O processors that support enhance the MD RAID stack with hardware assisted speed improvements using XOR engines and extra DMA engines. Very lovely stuff if you’re looking for an I/O chip for a RAID application. Linux has support for all of the major interconnects (Ethernet, FCP, Infiniband) with driver support for the popular chips (see SCST project). Building a RAID controller with one of these options appears more like an integration task than a build it yourself task. At least from the vantage point of this software and firmware author.This is a wake up call to all of the old style RAID vendors that still believe their RAID stacks are the crown jewels of the product line. RAID as a feature is a commodity item but isn’t really priced like one at the moment. If we start to see real product in the space that is taking advantage of these building blocks expect some price pressure on the legacy RAID vendors. Storage goodness just keeps getting cheaper and cheaper and that needs to continue for some time to come.