This blog was first published in 2014. At the bottom of the blog, we have included new, up-to-date information for readers in 2025.
Today Pure Storage announced the next generation of our leading all-flash software and hardware products with Purity 4.0 and the FlashArray FA-405 and FA-450. Our 4th generation of products demonstrates our ability to innovate and deliver on the promise of providing flash to replace tier-1 disk storage arrays. Together these new products open new market opportunities, expand use cases and enable customers to adopt an Instant Infrastructure; one that’s defined in software and significantly more capable of driving the data services required to excel in today’s competitive market.
The Purity Operating Environment 4.0
Purity is the heart and soul of the FlashArray. It’s the software that provides the functionality and capabilities that differentiate All-Flash Arrays from Pure Storage from the hardware-centric, AFAs and retrofitted disk arrays sporting an AFA configuration.
Purity 4.0 introduces…
- FlashRecover enhancements – array-based replication and protection policies
- REST API – for automated management
- Microsoft VSS Provider – for snapshot based protection of MS applications
- FlashProtect enhancements – rapid data locking and dark site support
- Partner Certifications including Cisco UCS, IBM SVC & Symantec Storage Foundation
- New Cloud Assist Offerings including a fully managed support experience
These new features enhance the capabilities in Purity 3.4 including…
- FlashReduce – adaptive data reduction and cloning that enables flash starting at $3/GB
- Management via Web GUI, CLI, OpenStack and VMware
- FlashRecover – instant, array-based snapshots
- Adaptive Metadata Fabric – highly scalable metadata engine with 512byte granularity
- FlashProtect – adaptive RAID-HA and data encryption
The FlashArray FA-405 and FA-450
The FlashArray has evolved from a product in a product portfolio – powered by Purity. The FA-450 supports up to 250TBs of flash and is targeted at more demanding workloads and larger scale consolidation efforts. The FA-405 provides up to 40TBs of flash in 4RU, providing a lower adoption price and new uses like top of rack deployments. The FA-420 fills out the mid tier with 125TBs of usable capacity.
With the introduction of the FlashArray portfolio we’ve decided to change how we provide performance ratings for each model. By in large the storage industry publishes array performance in the form of small, 4KB IOPs. These configurations provide impressive results that rarely, if at all, translate into real-world performance. Approximately 75% of our install base operates with an average block size ranging between 10KB & 80KB. As such, we are listing the FlashArrays as capable of delivering 100,000, 150,000 and 200,000 32KB IOPs at <1ms latency.
I cover how Purity ensures the performance promise of NAND flash in detail in the upcoming post FlashBIts: Adaptive Block Sizes. I promise you this post surprises even the most seasoned performance centric technologists.
The unified all-flash portfolio enables customers to deploy AFA configurations in multi-site configurations and without the need for additional replication technologies. With the new hardware platforms customers can scale performance and capacity on-demand and without disruption or drop in performance.
I cover the non-disruptive scaling capabilities of the FlashArray in greater detail in Pure Storage FlashBits: Scale-up or Scale-out.
An Instant Infrastructure for the Instant Economy
In the Flash Visionaries Summit 2014, Pure Storage CEO Scott Dietzen introduced the concept of the Instant Economy. This is the world we live in where all of us seek greater connectivity, increased service levels and a richer experience. To meet the demands of the Instant Economy one must adopt an instant infrastructure, where the last piece to this puzzle is flash storage. I encourage you to read Scott’s perspective and how an instant infrastructure translates into competitive business advantages.
There’s a ton of additional details to share regarding today’s product announcements. I encourage you to check out the Pure Storage for product sheets and blog posts covering the new content including the latest from Kix and the FlashBits series.
Flash is truly a transformative technology that you can broadly deploy today. With all of the advantages, why would you ever buy disk?
Updated Information:
1. Evolution of FlashArray Models:
- FlashArray//X and FlashArray//C Series: Pure Storage has expanded its FlashArray lineup with the introduction of the FlashArray//X and FlashArray//C series. These models offer enhanced performance, scalability, and efficiency compared to the earlier FA-400 series.
- FlashArray//X R4:
- Performance Enhancements: The FlashArray//X R4 delivers up to a 40% performance boost and over 80% increased memory speeds, supporting greater workload consolidation. Additionally, it offers a 30% improvement in inline compression, effectively increasing storage capacity.
- FlashArray//C R4:
- Capacity and Efficiency: Designed for cost-effective storage, the FlashArray//C R4 utilizes 75TB QLC DirectFlash Modules, resulting in 36% less rack space usage and 42% lower power consumption per terabyte. It also provides up to a 48% improvement in performance per watt compared to previous models.
- FlashArray//X R4:
- FlashArray//XL:
- High-End Performance: For mission-critical enterprise applications, Pure Storage introduced the FlashArray//XL, offering up to a 70% performance increase over the FlashArray//X90. This model is ideal for massive databases and cloud-native applications, providing unparalleled performance and scalability.
2. Advancements in Purity Operating Environment:
- Purity//FA 6.x: The Purity Operating Environment has evolved significantly since version 4.0. The latest versions in the 6.x series introduce advanced data services, enhanced security features, and improved management capabilities, further optimizing storage performance and reliability.
Conclusion:
While the FA-405 and FA-450 were groundbreaking at their release, Pure Storage’s current FlashArray models—such as the FlashArray//X R4, FlashArray//C R4, and FlashArray//XL—offer superior performance, efficiency, and scalability. Organizations are encouraged to explore these latest offerings to meet modern data storage demands effectively.