STB Suite

Disk Manufacturing Engine (DME)

The Disk Manufacturing Engine™ (DME™) is a powerful and important component of the STB Suite which enables sophisticated testing of very high numbers of disk drives simultaneously.

As the product name implies, DME is a software engine. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines an engine as:

  • something used to affect a purpose,
  • something that produces a particular and usually desirable result, and
  • computer software that performs a fundamental function especially of a larger program

The essential function of DME is to execute DMM disk drive test sequences, running these test sequences in a threaded manner against large numbers of disk drives. Test sequences are defined and tested in the Windows DMM GUI environment, and then they are run by the DME engine under either Windows or Linux test systems.

The key points of the DME engine are:

      • Can run any DMM test sequence
      • Extremely high I/O rates
      • Runs under Windows or Linux
      • Eliminates operator error by using proven DMM test sequences
      • Included in the STB Suite

 

DME Graph

 

Defining your test sequence

The DME Engine executes test sequences which have been created using the Windows Disk Manufacturing Module.  This point and click GUI test builder lets you quickly develop comprehensive test sequences.

Running your test sequence

Test sequences are then run on Linux or Windows test systems. Any type or combination of SCSI, SAS, FC, SATA, or iSCSI drives may be tested with the DME software for burn-in, manufacturing, performance or stress testing. Typical customer installations test up to 128 drives per system simultaneously. Detailed log files are created journaling every test step executed, showing results and performance metrics. The DME test engine is executed via the OS command line, allowing it to be easily incorporated into existing test scenarios.