HPE MSA Arrays

The MSA 2040 remains a functional and cost-effective option for environments with stable, modest storage requirements and a limited budget. It supports Fibre Channel, iSCSI, and SAS host connectivity, and accepts expansion enclosures to grow capacity. The key constraint is that automated storage tiering requires the Advanced Data Services licence to be purchased separately, and performance is lower than current models. Buyers adding to an existing MSA 2040 deployment, or deploying it as secondary or archive storage, will find it delivers reliably within those parameters. Buyers with performance-sensitive primary workloads should consider the current MSA 2070 range instead.

The MSA 2050 introduced virtual storage architecture across the entire array — which means storage pools can span multiple disk groups and capacity can be managed more flexibly without reorganising physical drives. It also supports a data-in-place upgrade from the MSA 2040, meaning the controllers can be replaced and existing drives and enclosures retained, protecting the investment already made in hardware. For organisations running an MSA 2040 that need more performance or capacity management flexibility without replacing their entire storage estate, the MSA 2050 is the natural stepping stone.

The MSA 2060 is a current Gen6 model suited to small and mid-sized environments running virtualisation, file sharing, or mixed application workloads where a straightforward, manageable SAN is the priority. It supports Fibre Channel, iSCSI, and SAS, accepts up to nine expansion enclosures for capacity growth, and uses the same Storage Management Utility as the rest of the current MSA range. Automated tiering — moving active data onto SSDs automatically — requires the Advanced Data Services licence to be added separately. For buyers who want tiering and replication active from the outset without a separate licence purchase, the MSA 2062 is the more straightforward choice.

The MSA 2062 is the MSA 2060 hardware with two SSDs and the Advanced Data Services licence pre-installed. The licence activates automated tiering between SSDs and HDDs, increases the snapshot limit from 64 to 512 volumes, and enables remote replication to a second MSA array for off-site data protection. For an organisation that knows it will use tiering and replication, the 2062 bundles those capabilities into the purchase price rather than requiring a separate licence transaction. The underlying hardware and expansion options are identical to the MSA 2060.

The MSA 2070 is the current Gen7 model and delivers twice the random IOPS of the MSA 2060, with 30% more sequential throughput. For workloads that have grown to the point where the MSA 2060 is a performance constraint — or for new deployments where growth is expected — the MSA 2070 provides significantly more headroom without a proportional increase in cost. Gen7 also introduces online firmware updates for both controllers and drives, meaning routine maintenance no longer requires a planned outage. For environments buying new today with no specific reason to standardise on Gen6, the MSA 2070 is the current platform.

The MSA 2072 is the MSA 2070 hardware bundled with two SSDs and the Advanced Data Services licence included. The licence enables automated tiering, thin provisioning, up to 512 volume snapshots, and remote replication to another MSA array. The practical question is whether those capabilities will be used. For teams deploying in a virtualisation environment with multiple servers sharing the array, or any environment where snapshot-based recovery or off-site replication matters, the 2072 bundle represents better value than purchasing the licence after the fact. For simpler deployments with no immediate need for those features, the MSA 2070 keeps the initial cost lower with the option to add the licence later. Ask our team about vendor promotions today.