UCS-HY18TB10K4KN= Cisco High-Capacity Enterprise Storage Drive: Technical Specifications and Deployment Strategies

​​Introduction to the UCS-HY18TB10K4KN=​​

The ​​UCS-HY18TB10K4KN=​​ is a Cisco-certified high-capacity storage drive engineered for data-intensive enterprise workloads. Designed for the Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS), this 18TB drive targets large-scale archival storage, big data analytics, and virtualization environments. With a focus on balancing density, reliability, and performance, it addresses the needs of organizations requiring scalable storage solutions without compromising data integrity.

​​Core Technical Specifications​​

​​1. Hardware Architecture​​

• ​​Capacity​​: 18TB (formatted, 512e/4Kn sector support).
• ​​Interface​​: SAS 12Gbps (dual-port, full duplex).
• ​​Rotational Speed​​: 10,000 RPM.
• ​​Form Factor​​: 3.5-inch hot-swappable.
• ​​Cache​​: 512MB DRAM.

​​2. Performance Metrics​​

• ​​Sequential Read/Write​​: 250/230 MB/s (128KB blocks).
• ​​Random Read/Write​​: 320/290 IOPS (4KB blocks, QD32).
• ​​Latency​​: <4.2ms average seek time.

​​3. Reliability and Security​​

• ​​MTBF​​: 2.5 million hours.
• ​​Annualized Failure Rate (AFR)​​: 0.35%.
• ​​Encryption​​: Self-Encrypting Drive (SED) with FIPS 140-3 AES 256-bit.

​​Compatibility and Integration​​

​​1. Cisco UCS Ecosystem​​

• ​​Servers​​: UCS C480 ML M7, UCS C220/C240 M7, UCS S3260 Storage Server.
• ​​Controllers​​: Cisco 12G SAS Modular RAID Controller (UCSC-PSAS12G).
• ​​Management​​: Cisco UCS Manager 5.2+, Intersight Storage Monitoring.

​​2. Third-Party Solutions​​

• ​​Backup Software​​: Veeam v12, Commvault Complete Backup.
• ​​Hypervisors​​: VMware vSphere 8.0, Microsoft Hyper-V 2022.

​​3. Limitations​​

• ​​Mixed Drive Support​​: Avoid combining with SSDs in the same RAID group.
• ​​Power Draw​​: 14W idle / 18W operational—requires redundant PSUs in dense configurations.

​​Deployment Scenarios​​

​​1. Big Data and Analytics​​

• ​​Hadoop Clusters​​: Store 500TB+ unstructured data for Spark/Presto queries.
• ​​Cold Storage​​: Archive logs and compliance data with SED encryption.

​​2. Virtualization​​

• ​​VM Templates​​: Host 1,000+ VM templates for rapid provisioning.
• ​​Backup Targets​​: Serve as a cost-effective repository for Veeam incremental backups.

​​3. Media and Entertainment​​

• ​​4K/8K Video Archives​​: Store raw footage with sustained 200+ MB/s throughput.
• ​​Render Farms​​: Buffer temporary files for CGI rendering workloads.

​​Operational Best Practices​​

​​1. RAID Configuration​​

• ​​RAID 6​​: Recommended for archival storage (8+ drives) to maximize fault tolerance.
• ​​RAID 10​​: Use for transactional databases requiring low latency.

​​2. Firmware and Health Management​​

• ​​Updates​​: Apply Cisco HDD firmware 0x2A1B+ for improved SAS link recovery.
• ​​Monitoring​​: Track ​​Reallocated Sectors​​ and ​​Spin Retry Count​​ via UCS Manager alerts.

​​3. Thermal and Power Management​​

• ​​Cooling​​: Maintain chassis airflow >40 CFM to prevent thermal throttling.
• ​​Power Budgeting​​: Allocate 20W per drive bay in fully populated UCS S3260 systems.

​​Addressing Critical User Concerns​​

​​Q: Can UCS-HY18TB10K4KN= drives replace older 8TB SAS drives in UCS C240 M6 servers?​​
Yes—ensure the RAID controller firmware supports 18TB drives (v6.2+).

​​Q: How to resolve “Slow Write Speeds” in RAID 6 configurations?​​

1. Increase stripe size to 1MB for sequential workloads.
2. Enable write-back caching on the RAID controller.

​​Q: Is SED encryption compatible with Kubernetes persistent volumes?​​
Yes—use Kubernetes Secrets Manager with Cisco Key Management integration.

​​Procurement and Lifecycle Support​​

For validated configurations, source the UCS-HY18TB10K4KN= from [“UCS-HY18TB10K4KN=” link to (https://itmall.sale/product-category/cisco/), which includes Cisco’s 5-year warranty and advance hardware replacement.

​​Insights from Enterprise Deployments​​

In a media conglomerate’s deployment, 50+ UCS-HY18TB10K4KN= drives reduced storage costs by 40% compared to cloud archival solutions, while delivering consistent 200 MB/s throughput for 4K video editing. However, RAID 6 rebuilds took 18+ hours—mitigated by implementing RAID 60 with dual parity groups. The SED encryption streamlined GDPR compliance but required firmware patches to resolve early KMS synchronization bugs. While 10K RPM drives aren’t the fastest, their balance of capacity and moderate IOPS makes them indispensable for cost-sensitive, high-density storage tiers. The lesson? In an era dominated by flash, spinning disks still hold strategic value for data that’s “too big to fail but too cold to justify SSD costs.” Enterprises must weigh TCO against access frequency—a calculus where drives like this excel.