Dell Isilon A200
The Dell EMC Isilon A200 is an economical 4U 4-node scale-out active archive platform designed to provide accessible, nearline file storage for aging unstructured datasets. Featuring 60 high-capacity SATA drives across four modular nodes, the A200 keeps cold and compliance-regulated data readily online within the unified OneFS namespace at a low total cost of ownership.
Also written as: Isilon A200, Dell EMC Isilon A200, Active Archive Scale-Out NAS
Specifications
| Brand | Dell |
|---|---|
| Family | Isilon |
| Form factor | 4U 4-node chassis |
| Released | May 2017 |
| End of sale | Jan 2022 |
| End of support | Jan 2027 |
| Cpu platform | 4x Intel Pentium or Xeon D processors (4 cores per node, 16 cores per chassis) |
| Memory max (GB) | 256 |
| Drive bays | 60x 3.5-inch SATA hard drives (up to 16TB drives) across 4U chassis |
| Raw capacity | 120TB to 960TB raw archive capacity per 4U chassis |
| Network onboard | Front-end: Dual 10GbE SFP+ per node; Back-end: Dual 10GbE / 40GbE per node |
| Power supply | Quad redundant hot-plug 1050W power supplies |
Generations
- Next generation: Dell PowerScale A300
Compatible parts
HBAs
540-BCMT Dell QLogic 2772 Dual Port 32Gb Fibre Channel PCIe Adapter
540-BCMU Dell Emulex LPe35002 Dual Port 32Gb Fibre Channel PCIe Adapter
Transceivers
407-BCBI Dell 32Gb Short Wave SFP28 Fibre Channel Optical Transceiver
407-BCBF Dell 25GbE SFP28 SR Optical Transceiver (850nm, 100m MMF)
Rail kits
770-BCKW Dell ReadyRails II Sliding Rails for 2U PowerEdge Servers (B6)
Drive caddies
DXD9H Dell 2.5-inch Gen14/Gen15/Gen16 Hot-Plug Drive Caddy Tray (SFF)
SSDs
400-AZPZ Dell 1.92TB SAS Read Intensive 12Gb/s 2.5-inch Hot-Plug SSD
400-BDSD Dell 3.84TB SAS Read Intensive 12Gb/s 2.5-inch Hot-Plug SSD
Works together
How the Dell Isilon A200 connects to servers, storage and the network: 1 way, with the parts and products on each path.
File storage (NFS and SMB)
Front-end ports face the clients; back-end ports (on scale-out systems) connect the nodes to each other and need their own switch pair.
Servers
Dell PowerEdge C4140 1U rack
Dell PowerEdge R440 1U rack
Dell PowerEdge R540 2U rack
Dell PowerEdge R640 1U rack
Dell PowerEdge R740 2U rack
Dell PowerEdge R740xd 2U rack
Adapters for the server
540-BBGN Dell Broadcom 57412 Dual Port 10GbE SFP+ PCIe Adapter
540-BBGO Dell Broadcom 57416 Dual Port 10GBASE-T RJ45 PCIe Adapter
540-BBGP Dell Broadcom 57416 Dual Port 10GBASE-T RJ45 OCP 3.0 Adapter
540-BBGY Dell Broadcom 57414 Dual Port 10/25GbE SFP28 PCIe Low Profile Network Adapter
Switches
Dell PowerSwitch S4128F-ON 1U rack
Dell PowerSwitch S4128T-ON 1U switch
Dell PowerSwitch S4148F-ON 1U rack
Dell PowerSwitch S4148FE-ON 1U switch
Optics
407-BBOU Dell 10GbE SFP+ SR Optical Transceiver (850nm, 300m MMF)- 407-BCBF Dell 25GbE SFP28 SR Optical Transceiver (850nm, 100m MMF)
QSFP-40G-LR4-AR Arista 40GBASE-LR4 QSFP+ Optical Transceiver Module
Plan and size it
- Draw this setup in the topology planner mrplanb.com
- Add up rack power and space rack-density.com
- NFS explained mrplanb.com
- Block vs object storage mrplanb.com
- Object storage Ledger mrplanb.com
- Dell E-Lab Navigator (Dell interoperability) dell.com
Check compatibility with Dell
Before you buy, confirm the exact configuration against the vendor's own lists: firmware levels, operating systems, adapters and optics that Dell has tested with the Dell Isilon A200.
- Compatibility Dell E-Lab Navigator (storage and SAN interoperability) (free vendor sign-in)
- Support Dell Support: drivers, manuals and service tag lookup
Equivalent models from other brands
Buying a used Isilon A200: what to check
Test all 60 SATA drive bays for disk detection, confirm node boot USB flash drives are healthy, verify quad 1050W power supplies, and check OneFS license activation.
FAQ
Can clients access data directly from an Isilon A200 tier?
Yes, unlike tape or cold cloud, the A200 is an active archive providing immediate read/write access over standard SMB and NFS protocols.
How does the A200 interact with primary Isilon tiers?
SmartPools policy software automatically migrates files to the A200 based on file age, size, or directory path without changing user file paths.
Buying or selling Isilon A200?
New, refurbished or used. Tell us the quantity and condition and we connect you with a vetted reseller in your region, usually within one working day.
Sources
- Dell EMC Isilon A200 Spec Sheet, checked 2026-10-27