AIC Launches High Density 4U JBOD  

CITY OF INDUSTRY, Calif., July 8, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — AIC Inc., a provider of enterprise storage and server solutions, announced the launch of J4078-02-04X, an ultra-high density 4U 78-bay JBOD enclosure. This new JBOD supports 24G SAS and targets such workloads as virtualization, enterprise backup storage, cold and warm data storage.

AIC J4078-02-04X is a 4U top-loading JBOD that supports 78 units of 3.5″enterprise capacity HDDs, up to 1.5+ petabytes of data storage. On-boarded with the latest Broadcom 24G SAS expanders on hub expander modules, the J4078-02-04X input/output (I/O) performance improves 100% compared to its previous generation. While J4078-02-04X edge expanders remain at 12G SAS, it is proven that the doubled bandwidth on hub expanders is the key of significantly enhanced I/O performances. This directly addresses the performance demand of high density storage in the market while most of the other 4U top-loading JBODs are using 12G SAS hub expanders with limited bandwidth for data transmission.

J4078-02-04X’s dual hub expander modules support dual-path redundancy for host link and expansion link. Designed with high availability and balanced architecture, each hub expander has four MiniSAS HD, providing a total of 16 ports and supporting up to 384Gb/s. With only 810 mm in depth, J4078-02-04X is one of the shortest in its category and can fit into any existing 1 meter rack. Its modularized enclosure is designed with hot-swap components and redundant features to increase reliability and ease of maintenance.

The Broadcom 24G SAS expander is the key factor that boosts the doubled I/O performances of J4078-02-04X. It is the first fully compliant SAS-4 SerDes in the industry. By maximizing the available throughput to the host, the SAS4x expander couples next generation SAS-4 technology and provides high device throughput with SAS to support up to 22.5Gb /s, doubling the effective bandwidth over prior 12Gb/s expanders without compromising energy efficiency and package size. From software and firmware perspectives, the Broadcom 24G SAS expander Software Developer’s Kit (SDK) has 95% commonality with legacy Broadcom SAS expanders, supporting AIC to significantly reduce the resources for developing J4078-02-04X.

“Market demands of 4U top-loading JBOD are soaring as it is cost-effective and can support enterprises to minimize the cost per GB,” said Michael Liang, CEO and president of AIC. “I am honored to collaborate with Broadcom in developing J4078-02-04X which is one of the first-to-market SAS4x ready 4U top-loading JBODs. With the aid from Broadcom SAS4x expanders, J4078-02-04X will support our customers to run the most data-intensive storage applications.”

“The strong collaboration between Broadcom and AIC continues with the SAS4x expander family and the J4078-02-04X technology alignment, said, Zee Shirazi, global head of marketing, Data Center Solutions Group, Broadcom. “Data-centric applications require servers with high I/O performance to move, process, and store massive amounts of data. With AIC’s deep expertise in high-density storage, the J4078-02-04X utilizes the full capability of the Broadcom SAS4x expander family and takes performance to the next level. I am certain this JBOD will support our customers as they tackle the challenges found in today’s high density, demanding storage workloads.”

J4078-02-04X samples will be ready in 2022 Q3.