This is what Samsung’s Petabyte SSD solution looks like — PB SSD v2 is a 1U server, uses an AMD EPYC CPU, offers 244TB storage with 1PB model soon

The demand for high capacity, high performance storage is crazy right now, driven primarily by AI/ML training and analytics. Traditional storage solutions, which can handle tens of terabyte capacity, are no longer deemed sufficient as modern applications require storage capacity in excess of 10PB.

Samsung previously said it hopes to release a Petabyte SSD within a decade, but it has since hinted that dizzying milestone may be reached sooner. At the start of the year the tech giant announced plans for a Petabyte SSD subscription – PBSSD-as-a-service – although this is not a Petabyte SSD but rather a box housing multiple SSDs.

While the exact details of Samsung’s PBSSD were vague at the time (four 256TB SSDs, revealed at Flash Memory Summit 2023, were our best guess), we now have our first look at what the company is offering: the PB SSD v2.

Maximum performance

The server is based on the 4th Generation AMD EPYC CPU, using a single socket to offer 32 to 84 cores and 128 PCIe Gen 5 lanes. The design allows for high capacity, with the server holding 16 E3.s data SSDs, each providing up to 15.36TB of storage, for a maximum of 244TB in a 1 RU chassis. Samsung has future plans to support 1PB in a 2 RU chassis, but hasn’t revealed when that will arrive.

The tech giant says the PB SSD v2 uses the NVMe protocol and connects the 16 SSDs directly to the PCIe interface of the server CPU for maximum performance. By eliminating the need for retimers and PCIe switches, it can deliver sequential reads of 232GB/s, sequential writes of 98GB/s, random reads of 9550 KIOPS, and sustained random writes of 5075 KIOPS.

Fewer components also mean less power draw, making the server more energy-efficient. Advanced power management and built-in power consumption reporting capabilities further enhance its energy efficiency; Samsung says it is aiming to reduce the TCO of storage without sacrificing performance.

As mentioned previously, Samsung is also introducing a cloud-like business model, offering affordable monthly subscriptions for the PB SSD v2, reducing upfront costs of storage. Customers can order the desired capacity in increments of 244TB and choose a subscription duration of 1, 3, or 5 years at a fixed monthly fee.