In caching mode, a NAND flash PCIe device can cache frequently accessed data without changing the existing external storage infrastructure. This is ideal where existing subsystem-based data protection and recovery mechanisms are in place.

Caching frequently accessed data locally within each server guarantees the maximum performance for active data while still retaining existing data stores. This combination is ideal for I/O-intensive applications on bare metal or for virtual environments. In many cases virtual environments suffer from inadequate I/O capabilities, or from I/O that can only be achieved at high costs. Caching frequently accessed virtual machine data locally on PCIe flash devices alleviates this pain.

Flash technology brings a lot to the table for speeding up enterprise applications and databases. But when flash is treated as just a new kind of disk drive, businesses miss the mark in delivering on its full potential. Native PCIe approaches that forgo legacy disk protocols and place process-critical data near the CPU to minimize latency deliver on flash's promise to the enterprise.

Fusion-io has pioneered a next-generation storage memory platform that significantly improves the processing capabilities within a data center by relocating process-critical, or "active," data from centralized storage to the server where it is being processed, a methodology referred to as data decentralization. Fusion-io's platform enables enterprises to increase the utilization, performance and efficiency of their data center resources and extract greater value from their information assets.

in Network World's Data Center section.