Pure Storage FlashBlade Classic
The Pure Storage FlashBlade Classic was the pioneer scale-out all-flash storage system designed specifically for unstructured data, high-performance computing, and modern analytics. Housed in a 4U enclosure supporting up to 15 compute/storage blades, it delivered linear performance scaling and unified NFS, SMB, and S3 protocols under Purity//FB.
Specifications
| Brand | Pure Storage |
|---|---|
| Family | FlashBlade |
| Form factor | 4U modular chassis |
| Released | Mar 2016 |
| End of sale | Jan 2023 |
| End of support | Jan 2028 |
| Chassis form factor | 4U modular chassis holding up to 15 blade modules |
| Operating system | Pure Storage Purity//FB |
| Blade options | 8TB, 17TB, and 52TB flash blades (integrated CPU, FPGA, and NAND) |
| Maximum raw capacity | Up to 780TB raw per 4U chassis, scalable across multiple chassis |
| Network connectivity | Integrated Fabric Modules (EFMs) with 40GbE and 100GbE QSFP uplinks |
| Protocols | NFSv3, NFSv4.1, SMB 2.1/3.0, and S3 Object |
| Architecture | Massively distributed scale-out architecture with hardware-accelerated metadata |
| Management | Pure1 cloud-based management |
Generations
- Next generation: Pure Storage FlashBlade //S
Works together
How the Pure Storage FlashBlade Classic 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 R830 2U rack
HPE Edgeline EL1000 1U converged edge system
HPE Edgeline EL4000 1U converged edge system
HPE Superdome Flex 5U chassis, 4 sockets each, up to 8 chassis
HPE Synergy 660 Gen10 Compute Module full-height compute module
Cisco UCS C220 M5 1U rack
Adapters for the server
BCM957414A4142CC Broadcom NetXtreme-E BCM57414 Dual-Port 25GbE SFP28 PCIe 3.0 Ethernet Network Adapter
BCM957416A4160C Broadcom NetXtreme-E BCM57416 Dual-Port 10GBASE-T PCIe 3.0 Ethernet Network Adapter
BCM957504A5041CC Broadcom NetXtreme-E BCM57504 Quad-Port 100GbE QSFP56 PCIe 4.0 Ethernet Network Adapter
540-BBGN Dell Broadcom 57412 Dual Port 10GbE SFP+ PCIe Adapter
Switches
Cisco Nexus 31108PC-V 1U fixed switch
Juniper QFX Series QFX5200-64Q 2U fixed switch
Arista 7280R 7280CR-48 2U fixed switch
Arista 7280R 7280SR-48C6 1U fixed switch
Optics
QSFP-100G-CWDM4-AR Arista 100GBASE-CWDM4 QSFP28 Optical Transceiver Module
QSFP-100G-LR4-AR Arista 100GBASE-LR4 QSFP28 Optical Transceiver Module
QSFP-100G-SR4 Arista 100GBASE-SR4 QSFP28 Optical Transceiver
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
Check compatibility with Pure Storage
Before you buy, confirm the exact configuration against the vendor's own lists: firmware levels, operating systems, adapters and optics that Pure Storage has tested with the Pure Storage FlashBlade Classic.
- Compatibility Pure Storage compatibility matrix (free vendor sign-in)
- Support Pure Storage Support
Equivalent models from other brands
FAQ
What makes FlashBlade architecture unique?
Each blade combines compute, raw NAND flash, NVRAM, and FPGA hardware, scaling compute and capacity linearly as blades are added.
What successor succeeded FlashBlade Classic?
FlashBlade //S succeeded FlashBlade Classic in June 2022.
Buying or selling FlashBlade Classic?
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
- Pure Storage FlashBlade Overview, checked 2026-10-28
- Pure Storage Documentation - FlashBlade, checked 2026-10-28