Scale up your storage with higher-performing Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS

Scale up your storage
with higher-performing Dell
APEX Block Storage for AWS
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offered stronger
and more consistent storage performance for better
business agility than a Vendor A solution
Now that cloud providers can host diverse block workloads,
enterprises with these kinds of datasets can shift from on-premises
infrastructure to reap the business benefits that cloud environments
provide. Despite the promise of increased agility, some enterprises
may hesitate to jump to block storage in the cloud due to the rich
storage efficiency and data protection features they enjoy with
on-premises arrays. To augment cloud block storage options, some
vendors offer virtual storage services for the cloud that combine the
flexibility of the cloud with familiar enterprise storage features that
maintain operational consistency with on-premises deployments,
simplify data management, and improve resiliency. These features
improve storage efficiency as capacity grows, which can help
minimize costs over using native cloud storage alone.
Principled Technologies compared two such solutions: Dell APEX
Block Storage for AWS, with a minimum node configuration of three,
and a virtual storage service from a leading storage company we will
call Vendor A, with a maximum node configuration of two. We used
the Vdbench I/O workload utility to measure storage performance,
simulating daily usage patterns. On configurations utilizing the EC2
NVMe instance store, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offered
4.7x the random read IOPS and 5.1x the throughput on sequential
read operations per node of the Vendor A solution. Dell APEX
Block Storage for AWS performed consistently, achieving similar
performance across 10 runs, while the performance of the Vendor
A solution declined over time to a lower steady-state on certain
read test configurations. Solutions with steady performance allow
organizations to meet use needs without issue or interruption.
Plus, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS also offers better capacity
and more options to scale—Dell reports that the solution scales
to 512 storage nodes and 8 PBs raw capacity, while the Vendor A
solution does not scale past two nodes.1
In our testing of a single
24-node multi-AZ cluster, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS scaled
to more than 4.9M IOPS and 140 GB/s throughput. With stronger,
steadier performance in our tests vs. a Vendor A solution and more
options to scale out, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS is poised
to help your enterprise embrace the agility of the cloud with the
storage efficiency features and protection you’ve come to rely on.
Up to
4.7x the IOPS
and
5.1x the
throughput
per node in an NVMe-
supported configuration*
Dependable,
consistent
performance
vs. Vendor A, which had
up to a 62% degradation
in performance
Scale to more than
4.9M IOPS
and 140 GB/s
throughput
on a single 24-node
multi-AZ cluster**
*random read IOPS per node and
sequential read operations per
node vs. Vendor A
**Results seen on a single 24-
node NVMe-supported multi-
AZ cluster
Scale up your storage with higher-performing Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS April 2024
A Principled Technologies report: Hands-on testing. Real-world results.

About Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS
Dell APEX Block Storage for Public Cloud is compatible with two popular public cloud services: Microsoft Azure
and AWS (we tested with AWS). Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS is poised to support a wide range of block
workloads, including databases, analytics, dev/test applications, virtualization, and containers.2
According to
Dell, APEX Block Storage for AWS is extremely scalable, as it “allows you to independently scale compute up
to 2,048 instances or storage up to 512 instances within a single cluster.”3
In Dell’s own internal testing, they
scaled the solution to 128 nodes and were able to achieve 31.5 million random read IOPS and 12.1 million
random write IOPS.4
Enterprise-class storage efficiency features that Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offers include thin
provisioning, snapshots, and backup/restore. To bolster security, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offers
multi-availability zone (AZ) support for high availability across three AZs; 6x9s of availability; and more.5
To
streamline management of multicloud environments, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS integrates Dell APEX
Navigator for Multicloud Storage, a SaaS-based management tool offering centralized deployment, monitoring,
and management with security features including role-based access control, single sign-on, encryption, and
federated identity policies.
To learn more about what Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS can offer your enterprise, visit Dell.com/APEX-Block.
How we tested
While Amazon EBS lets users store data in cloud, Amazon EBS alone lacks the storage efficiency and data
protection features that on-premises enterprise storage arrays typically provide, such as the ability to control
capacity efficiency through thin provisioning; tools such as snapshots and replication; and more. To address
this gap in features between on-premises arrays and cloud storage offerings, vendors offer their own software-
defined storage available as native public cloud offerings to give enterprises the convenience of the cloud with
the features they desire. We compared two such cloud-based virtual storage solutions: Dell APEX Block Storage
for AWS and a Vendor A solution, testing both solutions in two different configurations, EBS only or local NVMe.
We used the Vdbench tool to generate I/O load to measure the IOPS and throughput of two configurations
from each vendor.
Table 1: Configuration details for the instances we tested. Source: Principled Technologies.
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS Vendor A solution
NVMe configuration details
Instance type (controller nodes) (3, 12, 24) x i3en.12xlarge
2 x m5dn.24xlarge (maximum node
count)
Storage per controller node 4 x 7.5 TB NVMe disks 4 x 900 GB NVMe disks (read cache)
8 x 3.65TB gp3 EBS disks
(16,000 IOPS / 1,000 MB/s)
EBS configuration details
Instance type (controller nodes) 3 x c5n.9xlarge (minimum node count) 2 x c5n.9xlarge (maximum node count)
Storage per controller node 10 x 1.5 TB gp3 EBS disks
(14,000 IOPS / 125 MB/s)
8 x 3.65 TB gp3 EBS disks
(16,000 IOPS / 1,000 MB/s)
Scale up your storage with higher-performing Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS April 2024 | 2

For the NVMe-supported configuration, the solutions supported
different EC2 instances. In an effort to favor Vendor A, we selected
instances with higher specifications, including higher network
(100 GB/s vs. 50 GB/s) and EBS throughput (19,000 MB/s vs.
9,500 MB/s) capabilities, as well as a higher vCPU count (96 vs.
48). For the EBS-only configurations, both solutions supported
the same EC2 instance type, but their EBS disks were configured
with different IOPS and throughput values (we used the Dell
recommendations of 14,000 IOPS and 125 MB/s, while the
Vendor A solution used the maximum available 16,000 IOPS and
1,000 MB/s). For each of these four configurations, we assessed
1) performance (in IOPS and throughput), and 2) performance
stability over 10 test runs. Additionally, we tested scalability with
the NVMe-supported configuration on Dell APEX Block Storage
for AWS using random read and sequential read workloads at
12-node and 24-node counts. The solutions we tested supported
multi-AZ configurations for high availability, with Dell APEX
Block Storage for AWS supporting three AZs (and providing 6x9s
availability), and Vendor A supporting two AZs.
For performance testing, we used four Vdbench clients per
controller node to give Vendor A the best performance possible.
For scalability testing, to save cloud costs, we reduced the
number of Vdbench clients to two per controller node because
there was no noticeable difference on Dell APEX Block Storage
for AWS with two or four Vdbench clients per controller node.
Additionally, we ran scalability tests three times each because we
saw no noticeable degradation of Dell APEX Block Storage for
AWS performance between runs. A Dell technician also walked us
through a demonstration of Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud
Storage, a centralized management tool. We conducted all testing
using Dell-controlled cloud accounts and resources. We did not
perform the setup of the solutions, but we worked closely with a
Dell engineer to observe the setup and verified the configurations
were fair. After setup, Dell gave us control of the instances for
Vdbench testing.
To learn more about the configurations we tested as well
as the step-by-step details of our testing, read the science
behind the report.

What we found: Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offered stronger
storage performance
Supporting block storage arrays in the cloud requires a solution with strong, consistent performance to keep
your business-critical workloads running without a hitch. To test the storage performance of Dell APEX Block
Storage for AWS and the Vendor A solution, we tested both EBS-backed and NVMe-supported configurations,
completing 10 runs of Vdbench testing. The IOPS and throughput numbers we report are the median of the last
three test runs; we selected the thread count where Vendor A performed the highest. These are per-node results,
meaning we divided the Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS solution’s total by three and Vendor A total by two for
a fair comparison. The stability charts show IOPS and throughput over the 10 runs.
For the Vdbench workloads, we ran each solution through a series of tests with the following configurations in
this order for a single run. We captured several thread counts per IO profile during each run, and repeated this
order for each additional run.
1. Random read, 4 KB IO size
2. Random write, 4 KB IO size
3. Sequential read 256 KB size
4. Sequential write 256 KB size
5. OLTP2-type with a mix of 8KB
random read, 8KB read hits, 8KB
random writes, 64KB sequential
reads, and 64KB sequential writes
Figure 1: Average random read IOPS results per node on the Vdbench benchmark for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and the Vendor A
solution using each vendor’s NVMe-supported configuration. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher is better.
Source: Principled Technologies.
237,406.43
49,737.10
NVMe-supported configurations
Random read IOPS at 128 threads and 4 KB IO size
IOPS per node, higher is better
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS
Vendor A solution
Dell offers
4.7x
the IOPS
vs Vendor A solution
NVMe-supported configurations: Performance and stability
For organizations that require faster storage performance, NVMe configurations are available on AWS for both
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and the Vendor A solution. Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS supports a full
NVMe-backed configuration, while the Vendor A NVMe-capable solution still uses EBS for the storage capacity,
but uses NVMe as an extended read cache. Across all five IO profiles, we saw the Dell APEX Block Storage for
AWS solution increase performance per node over the Vendor A solution in part because the Dell APEX Block
Storage for AWS solution has full NVMe capabilities while the Vendor A solution does not. For random write
and sequential write profiles, we saw an increase of 2.7x and 2.1x respectively for Dell APEX Block Storage for
AWS versus the Vendor A solution. Below, we go into further detail on the increases we saw for random read,
sequential read, and OLTP2 profiles.
Figure 1 compares the random read IOPS results per node from our Vdbench test runs for both the Dell APEX
Block Storage for AWS solution and the Vendor A solution. Using each solution’s NVMe-supported configuration,
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS increased random read performance, delivering 4.7x the IOPS on random read
operations per node compared to Vendor A.

Figure 2: Sequential read throughput per node, in MB/s, on the Vdbench benchmark for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and the Vendor
A solution using each vendor’s NVMe-supported configuration. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher is better.
5,244.07
1,009.34
Sequential read throughput at 32 threads and 256 KB IO size
MB/s per node, higher is better
Vendor A solution
Dell offers
5.1x
the throughput
Figure 2 shows the throughput per node, in MB/s, that the two solutions with NVMe-supported configurations
achieved in our Vdbench testing. Again, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS delivered greater storage
performance, achieving 5.1x the throughput per node on sequential read operations compared to the
solution from Vendor A.
Figure 3: Average OLTP2 IOPS per node results on the Vdbench benchmark for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and the Vendor A
solution using each vendor’s NVMe-supported configuration. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher is better.
100,510.23
40,051.40
OLTP2 IOPS at 128 threads
Vendor A solution
Dell offers
2.5x
the IOPS
For the NVMe-supported configurations, we also compared the OLTP2 IOPS that the solutions achieved. OLTP2
IOPS reflect OLTP-like mixed I/O performance that represents mixed tasks like searching and then making a
purchase from an ecommerce site. As Figure 3 shows, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS delivered 2.5x the IOPS
per node of the Vendor A solution.

Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offered consistent performance in an NVMe configuration. Figure 4 shows
the sequential read performance per node of both NVMe-supported configurations over ten Vdbench runs.
Throughput was higher and remained consistent across all 10 test runs for the Dell APEX Block Storage for
AWS solution, varying in performance by 3 percent. In contrast, the throughput for the Vendor A solution varied
greatly, and dropped by as much as 62 percent.
Figure 4: Sequential read throughput per node, in MB/s, on the Vdbench benchmark over 10 test runs for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS
and the Vendor A solution using each vendor’s NVMe-supported configuration. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher, more stable
performance is better. Source: Principled Technologies.
Sequential read performance over 10 runs at 32 threads
with NVMe-supported configuration MB/s per node
Test run
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Only a
3% drop in
performance
62% drop in
performance
Figure 5 shows the random read performance per node of both NVMe-supported configurations over 10
Vdbench runs. Again, throughput remained consistent across all ten test runs for the Dell APEX Block Storage
for AWS solution, varying in performance by less than 1 percent. In contrast, the throughput for the Vendor A
solution dropped by 45 percent over the 10 runs.
Figure 5: Random read performance per node, in IOPS, on the Vdbench benchmark over 10 test runs for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS
and the Vendor A solution using each vendor’s NVMe-supported configuration. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher, more stable
performance is better. Source: Principled Technologies.
Random read performance over 10 runs at 128 threads
with NVMe-supported configuration IOPS per node
Test run
0
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
300,000
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Less than a
1% drop in
performance
45% drop in
performance
The importance of consistent storage performance is clear: steady storage performance keeps applications
running smoothly, and allows for appropriate storage planning to meet company needs.

EBS-backed configurations: Performance and stability
We then tested both solutions using similar EBS-backed storage configurations. According to AWS, EBS
storage is ideal “…for data that must be quickly accessible and requires long-term persistence. EBS volumes
are particularly well-suited for use as the primary storage for file systems, databases, or for any applications that
require fine granular updates and access to raw, unformatted, block-level storage.”6
In our EBS testing, Vendor A performed well on random writes, with a 27 percent increase in IOPS per node and
a 38 percent increase in IOPS per node on OLTP2 performance compared to Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS.
However, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS outperformed the Vendor A solution on sequential writes by 11
percent and even more significantly on random and sequential read workloads.
Figure 6 compares the random read IOPS results per node from our Vdbench test runs at 128 threads
for both the Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS solution and the Vendor A solution. In an all EBS-backed
configuration, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS increased random read performance per node by 83 percent
compared to Vendor A.
Figure 6: Average random read IOPS per node results on the Vdbench benchmark for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS in an all EBS-
backed configuration vs. the Vendor A solution. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher is better. Source: Principled Technologies.
EBS configurations
Random read IOPS at 128 threads and 4 KB IO size
Vendor A solution
39,747.73
21,689.05
Dell offers
83%
more IOPS
Figure 7: Sequential read throughput per node, in MB/s, on the Vdbench benchmark for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS in an all EBS-
backed configuration vs. the Vendor A solution. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher is better. Source: Principled Technologies.
1,099.80
479.80
EBS configurations
Sequential read throughput at 24 threads and 256 KB IO size
MB/s per node, higher is better
Vendor A solution
Dell offers
2.2x
the throughput
Figure 7 shows the throughput per node, in MB/s, that the two solutions with EBS-backed configurations
achieved in our Vdbench testing. Again, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS delivered greater storage
performance, achieving 2.2x the throughput per node on sequential read operations compared to the solution
from Vendor A.

Figure 8 shows the sequential read performance per node of both EBS-backed configurations over ten Vdbench
runs. As the data shows, the throughput per node was higher and remained consistent across all ten test runs
for the Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS solution, varying in performance by less than 1 percent. In contrast, the
throughput for the Vendor A solution dropped significantly as we completed more test runs—dropping by 57
percent from the initial test to the lowest-performing run.
Figure 8: Sequential read throughput per node, in MB/s, on the Vdbench benchmark over 10 test runs for Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS
in an all EBS-backed configuration vs. the Vendor A solution. Results reflect multi-AZ configurations. Higher, more stable performance is
better. Source: Principled Technologies.
Sequential read performance over 10 runs at 24 threads
with EBS configuration MB/s per node
0
200
400
600
800
1,000
1,200
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Test run
Less than a
1% drop in
performance
57% drop in
performance
About Vdbench
Vdbench is an open-source benchmarking tool that generates input/output loads to stress storage arrays and
simulate real-world workloads. It shows the maximum rate of IOPS a solution can handle, as well as the latency
and bandwidth a solution delivers while processing those IOPS. For details on the workloads that we configured
and used in our testing, see the science behind the report.
No matter the workloads they run, organizations moving their block storage solutions to the cloud need
assurance that their virtual storage solution can provide steady, predictable performance to keep applications
running smoothly.

Look to the future with a block storage solution that scales
Enterprises with large storage needs—or the possibility of expansion—must also consider the scalability of the
cloud block storage solution they choose.
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offers organizations options for more capacity and performance than does the
Vendor A solution. While the Vendor A solution does not scale past two nodes, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS
allows for scaling up to 512 storage nodes in a single cluster. The ability to manage larger datasets in a single
cluster can help optimize performance, because your workloads aren’t weighed down by the overhead of many
clusters with data spread among them.
While we did not expand to 512 nodes in our testing, we tested scalability from 3 nodes to 12 nodes to 24
nodes. Figures 9 and 10 show the total cluster throughput and IOPS scaling of the Dell APEX Block Storage for
AWS solution across the node counts we tested in a multi-AZ configuration. At 24 nodes, the Dell APEX Block
Storage for AWS solution achieved 140,073.88 MB/s sequential reads and 4,916,349.50 random read IOPS.
Figure 9: Total cluster throughput (in MB/s) for the Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS solution at 3 nodes, 12 nodes, and 24 nodes.
Scalability: Total cluster throughput from 3 nodes to 24 nodes
Sequential reads MB/s
3 nodes
0
12 nodes 24 nodes
15,511.91
69,537.06
140,073.88
20,000
40,000
60,000
80,000
100,000
120,000
140,000
160,000
Figure 10: Total cluster IOPS for the Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS solution at 3 nodes, 12 nodes, and 24 nodes.
Scalability: Total cluster IOPS from 3 nodes to 24 nodes
Random read IOPS
3 nodes
716,185.20
2,590,961.80
4,916,349.50
0
1,000,000
2,000,000
3,000,000
4,000,000
5,000,000
6,000,000
12 nodes 24 nodes

Dell APEX Navigator
Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage provides a
centralized management experience for Dell APEX Block
Storage for AWS. According to Dell, Navigator will soon
support other Dell storage endpoints across multiple clouds.
While our team did not use APEX Navigator in our tests, we
met with Dell engineers who walked us through the process
of deploying Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS using APEX
Navigator in a thorough demonstration. We were able to see
the entire process from start to finish.
Dell APEX Navigator offers:
Security features
We saw first-hand that APEX Navigator offers security features
that are rooted in a Zero Trust approach that validates users at
each stage, leveraging a single sign-on (SSO) experience and
federated IDs to improve security. Navigator also uses role-
based access control (RBAC) to enforce policies and control
access to an organization’s important data.
Ease of deployment
Watching the Dell engineer deploy Dell APEX Block Storage
for AWS, we saw first-hand that it took only four simple
steps to deploy. The Dell engineer stated that using the
APEX Navigator, full deployment takes around 2 hours,
which is mostly hands-off (though time varies based on each
individual cloud).
Data mobility
APEX Navigator makes data mobility easy to align to various
business requirements, allowing for movement of data
between on-premises and AWS environments, as well as
between different regions in the public cloud.
Management and monitoring
IT teams can manage and monitor in a centralized
experience, and have easy access to specialized tools like
Dell CloudIQ for more in depth information.
To learn more about Dell APEX Navigator,
visit Dell.com/Navigator.

Conclusion
Enterprises desiring the flexibility and convenience of the cloud for
their block storage workloads can find fast-performing solutions
with the enterprise storage features they’re used to in on-premises
infrastructure by selecting Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS.
Our hands-on tests showed that compared to the Vendor A solution,
Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS offered stronger, more consistent
storage performance in both NVMe-supported and EBS-backed
configurations. Using NVMe-supported configurations, Dell APEX
Block Storage for AWS achieved 4.7x the random read IOPS and
5.1x the throughput on sequential read operations per node vs.
Vendor A. In our EBS-backed comparison, Dell APEX Block Storage
for AWS offered 2.2x the throughput per node on sequential read
operations vs. Vendor A.
Plus, the ability to scale beyond three nodes—up to 512 storage
nodes with capacity of up to 8 PBs—enables Dell APEX Block
Storage for AWS to help ensure performance and capacity as your
team plans for the future.
1. Dell, “Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and Microsoft Azure,” accessed
February 16, 2024, https://www.delltechnologies.com/asset/en-us/solu-
tions/apex/briefs-summaries/apex-block-storage-for-aws-and-microsoft-
azure-solution-brief.pdf.
2. Dell, “Elevate your multicloud experience one block at a time,” accessed
February 8, 2024, https://www.dell.com/en-us/dt/apex/storage/pub-
lic-cloud/block.htm.
3. Dell, “Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS – Solution Brief,” accessed
February 8, 2024, https://www.delltechnologies.com/asset/en-us/solu-
tions/apex/technical-support/apex-block-storage-for-aws-solution-brief.
pdf.
4. Dell, “Node scaling performance,” accessed April 8, 2024, https://info-
hub.delltechnologies.com/en-US/l/performance-results-for-dell-apex-
block-storage-for-aws/node-scaling-performance-3/.
5. Dell, “Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS – Solution Brief.”
6. AWS, “Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS),” accessed February
13, 2024, https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSEC2/latest/UserGuide/Ama-
zonEBS.html.
Principled Technologies is a registered trademark of Principled Technologies, Inc.
All other product names are the trademarks of their respective owners.
For additional information, review the science behind this report.
Principled
Technologies®
Facts matter.®
Principled
Technologies®
Facts matter.®
This project was commissioned by Dell Technologies.
Read the science behind this report at https://facts.pt/d8rHW4D

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