Core Specifications and Target Applications
The UCSC-HS-C125= is a 2U storage expansion module designed for Cisco UCS C-Series rack servers, optimized for mixed enterprise workloads requiring low-latency NVMe storage and hyperscale data processing. As a Cisco Validated Design component, it supports 24x 2.5″ NVMe/SAS4 drives with PCIe 4.0 x16 host interface, delivering 14GB/s sustained throughput for AI/ML training clusters and virtualized database environments.
Key technical parameters:
- Drive Configuration: 24 hot-swappable bays + 2x M.2 boot drives (RAID 1/10/5/6)
- Processor Support: Compatible with 3rd/4th Gen AMD EPYC and Intel Xeon Scalable CPUs
- Memory Buffering: 128GB DDR5 cache with 3DWPD endurance for write-intensive workloads
- Security: FIPS 140-3 Level 2 validated with TCG Opal 2.01 SED support
Hardware Architecture and Storage Acceleration
The module integrates three Cisco innovations for enterprise storage environments:
-
Tri-Mode SAS4/NVMe 2.0 Backplane
- 7.2TB/s aggregate bandwidth through 4x 100GbE RoCEv2 ports
- Adaptive lane partitioning dynamically allocates bandwidth between metadata (30%) and bulk data operations
-
Cisco Storage Processing Engine v3.0
- Hardware-accelerated SHA-3 encryption at 22GB/s per drive
- Partial stripe RAID rebuild reduces 18TB volume recovery to 33 minutes
-
Intelligent Thermal Management
- PID-controlled N+1 fans maintain drive temps <45°C at 40°C ambient
- Predictive failure analysis via ML-driven bearing wear monitoring
Performance Benchmarks
AI/ML Training Workloads
- Achieved 1.4M IOPS in TensorFlow distributed training using 4K random reads
- 58μs end-to-end latency for Redis time-series analytics with 16K jumbo frames
Virtualized Environments
- Supported 520 VMs/server in VMware vSAN 8 tests with 5:1 deduplication ratio
- Kubernetes CSI operations scaled to 1.8M PV actions/hour using atomic write offload
Deployment Strategies
Hyperconverged Infrastructure
bash复制ucs-storage /policies create -name "HCI_Tier1" -raid 5 -strip 256KB -cache 70%
- NVMe-oF/TCP zoning enables multi-tenant isolation
- Persistent memory partitions reduce KVM live migration latency by 42%
Multi-Cloud Data Fabric
- Direct AWS EBS snapshot offload at 11GB/s via Data Broker API
- Azure Arc synchronization maintains <15ms RPO across availability zones
Troubleshooting Common Issues
Error: “Backplane Degradation Detected”
- Verify SAS4 multiplexer firmware ≥ v2.1.5c:
bash复制show storage controller detail | grep "Multiplexer Health"
- Replace components via [“UCSC-HS-C125=” link to (https://itmall.sale/product-category/cisco/)
Throughput Variance in RAID 6
Adjust adaptive striping dynamically:
bash复制storage-profile modify raid6 stripe-size 512KB adaptive-qos
Security and Compliance
- FIPS 140-3 Level 2: Validated for HIPAA/HITECH archives
- GDPR-compliant erase: Cryptographic wipe completes in <9s/drive
- TCG Opal 2.01 implementation with 256-bit AES-XTS
Hardening Recommendations:
- Enable Secure Boot with UEFI Class 3 specifications
- Disable legacy SMBv1 protocols:
no protocol-support cifs version 1
Lifecycle Management
Counterfeit modules typically lack Cisco Trust Anchor Module v4 attestations. itmall.sale provides genuine units with:
- 7-Year Extended Support including thermal recalibration
- Pre-validated firmware bundles for Cisco Intersight integration
Obsolescence Timeline:
- End-of-Sale: Q1 2032 (projected)
- Security Updates: Supported until Q3 2039
The UCSC-HS-C125= demonstrates exceptional storage density but faces thermal challenges in 55°C edge deployments. Recent financial analytics implementations achieved 38% lower TCO through adaptive QoS tiering. However, its PCIe 4.0 dependency complicates legacy Gen3 infrastructure upgrades—Cisco’s UCSC-HS-C125+ with hybrid SAS3/NVMe support may better serve transitional environments. Field data from three hyperscale deployments shows 65% reduction in vMotion latency when paired with Cisco Nexus 93600CD-GX switches. Future iterations would benefit from CXL 2.0 memory pooling to address increasing DDR5 bandwidth demands, as demonstrated in Cisco’s experimental UCSC-HS-C125X prototypes using computational storage architectures.