Shared Storage & Capacity Expansion

Software

Facilis Shared File System

Facilis means simple, and our approach to video project sharing is different. Instead of focusing on expensive and complex hardware to get around the inefficiencies of common network file systems, we change the network itself.

Facilis systems are not NAS, although we have the simplicity of connection common to network storage. Our shared file system is unique in the market, delivering video and audio data over Fibre Channel and Ethernet connections, through a custom protocol that avoids the overhead and latencies of network storage systems. Developed in 2009, the Shared File System is compatible with all major operating systems at the same time, on the same volume and with the same permissions structure. When avoiding the complexities of OS-based network file systems, our method of data sharing is simple, and interoperable with more applications than any NAS-based system. It's in use at thousands of facilities worldwide, and helping to produce some of the most compelling content in the business.

The Facilis Web Console

The Facilis Web Console is much more than just a browser-based admin tool. It's a total upgrade in the way we share data, permission storage and present volumes to the user desktop. We listened to years of feature requests, watched industry trends and developed an interface that can grow in functionality for years to come.

With features that you just can't get in standard network storage, we've lifted the Facilis solution above the masses of NAS solutions on the market, all promising great speed but with complexities and obstacles we know well from all our years in this business. A non TCP-based shared file system is the only way to ensure multi-platform permission integrity, data access and reliability in diverse networking conditions. For more info see our Shared File System page.

Facilis Project Management

The Management Tools from Facilis Technology ensure fast movement of your file-based media, and seamless project sharing on Adobe Premiere and Apple FCPX. Our project manager serves as your interface into the project directory, and manages the permissions of project data. In FCPX, this allows for Libraries to be shared, and Events to locked by user account.

The Facilis Shared File System is unique in it's ability to share FCPX libraries on the shared storage, something that's impossible to do with many NAS solutions. For more information, see the FCPX Project Sharing Page. Our Volume Monitor gives you a real time graphical view of your volume usage. This gives you the information about used capacity prior to a volume size increase or decrease.

The traditional TerraBlock Manager is still used for certain functions, like creating Spanned RAID50 and RAID51 volumes, as well as auto-formatting Single-user Write (block-level) volumes. 

TerraBlock Shared Storage System Stream Counts

Unless otherwise noted, stream counts are based on Multi-user Write RAID5 with system at 95% full. TerraBlock’s virtualization maintains full stream count even at full capacity and at high levels of fragmentation.

* May require Single-user Write sharing. SSD-based volumes only in Hybrid24.

Facilis Hub Server

With increasing media file sizes, and 4K, HDR and VR workflows testing facility infrastructure, the Facilis Hub Server is aimed at future-proofing customers’ current storage and offering the most powerful new systems available. The Facilis Hub Server offloads server processes and increases the bandwidth available from TerraBlock storage systems. New customers will benefit from customized Hub Server Stacks with enhanced system redundancy and data resiliency; all while delivering a linear scalability of bandwidth when expanding the network. Standalone Hub Server is available for existing TerraBlock owners in need of increased bandwidth and scalability with centralized client access.

Facilis Hub Shared Storage System Stream Counts

Stream counts are based on Multi-user Write RAID5 with system at 95% full. TerraBlock’s virtualization maintains full stream count even at full capacity and at high levels of fragmentation.

Configurations

These are just a few of the custom configurations we can design for your facility. Powerful base units can be expanded with external SAS enclosures, LTO and Nearline for data resiliency, and Hub server for aggregation and optimization.

24EX/32 128TB with LTO7 Library - Aggregate 1.5GB/sec*
High performance 32-drive system with SAS-attached Archive library provides speed for multi-system 4K editorial, and archive of raw camera masters for the final conform and finish. With 144TB of tape-based storage, and 110TB of tier 1 shared storage, this configuration can handle heavy episodic or feature-length editorial workload for several Fibre channel or Ethernet clients.

Hub Redundant Quad Stack 128TB - Aggregate 2.5GB/sec*

This 32-drive system comes in the form of redundant 32TB 8D and Hub Servers, on a 16Gb switch. When using RAID51, this system is secure from any server component failure. When using standard RAID50 volumes, each Hub server can take over if the other fails. During normal operation, the Hub Servers are load balanced for optimal performance on the network. The switch can also accommodate several 16Gb Fibre Channel clients, which also enables Single-user Write sharing method for those clients, further increasing the aggregate bandwidth potential of this configuration.

Hub Dual 24D Stack 192TB with 128TB Nearline - Aggregate 3.5GB/sec*

With 48 drives of bandwidth and an additional nearline cache of 128TB, this system is extremely flexible. The 24D units are connected through 32Gb Fibre Channel, the fastest  block-mode connectivity available. Each unit contributes thousands of MB/sec of raw bandwidth to the Hub server, which feeds the Ethernet and Fibre Channel clients through a single head unit with no need to load balance. Offload and backup is accommodated through a 128TB Nearline NL16, which can transfer files at over 1GB/sec through our SyncBlock backup software.

*Optimal multi-client speed benchmarks on Multi-user Write volumes connected over fibre channel and Ethernet.