P42692-003 HPE 3.84TB SAS 12Gbps SFF SSD Server Read Intensive

Overview of the HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SSD

General Information

• Brand: HPE
• Part Number: P42692-003
• Product Type: Solid-State Drive (SSD)

Technical Specifications

• Capacity: 3.84 Terabytes
• Size Format: 2.5-Inch Small Form Factor (SFF)
• Interface: SAS at 12 Gb/s
• Flash Memory: Triple-Level Cell (TLC) NAND
• Hot-Plug Feature: Enabled
• Application Focus: Tailored for read-heavy workloads
• Included Component: Basic Carrier (BC) from HPE
• Security: Digitally authenticated firmware
• Platform Compatibility: HPE ProLiant Rackmount Servers
• Drive Height: 15.00 mm

Performance and Efficiency

Durability and Lifespan

• Endurance Rating: 7000 Terabytes Written (TBW)
• Daily Write Limit: 1 Drive Write Per Day (DWPD)

Data Transfer Capabilities

• External Bandwidth: 12 Gigabits per second
• Sequential Read Speed: Up to 810 MiB/s
• Sequential Write Speed: Up to 635 MiB/s

IOPS and Latency Metrics

• Random Read IOPS (4KiB, Q=16): 100,000
• Random Write IOPS (4KiB, Q=16): 37,000
• Max Random Read IOPS (4KiB, Q=32): 155,000
• Max Random Write IOPS (4KiB, Q=4): 37,000
• Avg Read Latency (4KiB, Q=1): 140 microseconds
• Avg Write Latency (4KiB, Q=1): 35 microseconds

Energy Usage Profile

• Idle Power Draw: 4.99 Watts
• Random Read Power: 5.79 Watts
• Random Write Power: 5.79 Watts
• Sequential Read Power: 7.82 Watts
• Sequential Write Power: 6.57 Watts
• Mixed Read/Write Power: 5.79 Watts
• Peak Power Consumption: 7.82 Watts

Physical Attributes

Dimensions and Mass

• Height: 5.75 inches (14.61 cm)
• Width: 8.63 inches (21.92 cm)
• Depth: 9.00 inches (22.86 cm)
• Weight: 1.10 pounds (0.50 kilograms)

System Integration and Compatibility

Supported Server Platforms

• Designed for: HPE ProLiant DL Series

Verified Compatible Models

• DL345 Gen10+
• DL360 Gen10+
• DL365 Gen10+
• DL380 Gen10+
• DL385 Gen10+

HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS SSD

HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD represents a high-performance enterprise solid state drive designed to meet the demanding needs of modern data centers, storage arrays, and mission-critical server applications. Built for read-intensive workloads, this family of SFF (small form factor) SAS SSDs blends predictable latency, strong sustained throughput, and enterprise-grade reliability to accelerate database queries, virtual desktop infrastructure, caching tiers, and other read-heavy services. The drive’s 3.84TB capacity positions it as a versatile option for customers seeking a balance between high usable capacity and the performance characteristics needed to reduce response times and increase I/O density per rack unit. Buyers evaluating this category will find product variants that emphasize compatibility with HPE server platforms, firmware maturity, and SAS 12Gbps throughput that helps maximize legacy and modern SAS backplane environments.

Performance Characteristics and Real-World Throughput

HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD is engineered to deliver consistent read performance under sustained load, providing predictable IOPS and low latency even as workloads scale. In real-world deployments where mixed small-block random reads and larger sequential read patterns coexist, the drive is optimized to keep tail latency low and to provide steady-state throughput that storage architects can depend on for service-level agreements. The SAS 12Gbps interface ensures the drive can saturate the channel for sequential operations while maintaining strong random I/O characteristics through robust flash controllers and enterprise-grade NAND tuning. This performance profile makes the drive particularly suitable as a caching tier in hybrid arrays, as primary storage for read-heavy databases, and as backing media for analytics workloads that require rapid access to large datasets.

IOPS, Latency, and Quality of Service

HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD emphasizes quality of service features and consistent I/O performance over raw peak numbers. The firmware implements advanced scheduling, wear-leveling, and background garbage collection routines designed to minimize performance variability at times of high utilization. Enterprise administrators will appreciate the drive’s ability to sustain high random read IOPS while keeping average and 99th percentile latencies low, which is essential for latency-sensitive applications like OLTP databases and virtual desktop infrastructure. Predictable latency also aids in designing storage QoS policies at the array level, enabling fair distribution of I/O across applications and reducing noisy-neighbor effects within shared storage pools.

Sustained Throughput for Sequential Workloads

Sequential read and write throughput benefits from the SAS 12Gbps interface and the drive’s internal caching and controller architectures. For workloads such as streaming analytics, backup staging, and large-scale data ingestion, the drive can provide reliable sequential transfer rates that improve pipeline performance and shorten windows for data movement operations. The combination of enterprise-class NAND and controller-level optimizations supports steady sequential access, ensuring predictable throughput for both short bursts and longer sustained operations that are common in backup, restore, and large-file serving scenarios.

Reliability, Endurance, and Data Integrity

HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD is built to enterprise standards for reliability and data integrity, including robust error correction, power-loss protection mechanisms, and thorough validation against HPE server ecosystems. The read-intensive endurance class targets high read-to-write ratio workloads where endurance requirements are moderate but consistent reliability and data protection are critical. Drive firmware includes end-to-end data protection features, error management systems, and advanced ECC algorithms that reduce the likelihood of silent data corruption. These reliability features are complemented by strong manufacturing quality controls and extensive platform compatibility testing to ensure the drive integrates seamlessly with HPE ProLiant servers and HPE storage enclosures.

Endurance Metrics and Workload Suitability

Endurance for read-intensive enterprise SSDs is specified in drive writes per day or total terabytes written across the warranty life. HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD offers endurance sufficient for caching layers, read-dominant database workloads, and boot or system volumes where writes are limited compared to reads. Storage architects should evaluate endurance in the context of their write amplification factors and the expected daily write workload to ensure capacity and endurance targets are aligned with operational plans. When deployed as part of a tiered storage strategy, these drives provide an excellent cost-to-performance ratio for read-heavy tiers, allowing more expensive write-intensive media to be reserved for hot write workloads.

Power-Loss Protection and Data Safety

The category includes drives with onboard power-loss protection and capacitive reservoirs designed to flush in-flight data to non-volatile storage in the event of sudden power interruptions. This capability reduces the risk of partial writes and metadata corruption, thereby improving system uptime and simplifying recovery procedures for enterprise administrators. Combined with robust firmware transactional integrity and journaling features at the array or file system layer, the drive helps maintain data consistency during unexpected power events and risky operations like firmware updates or array rebalancing.

Hot-Plug Capabilities and Serviceability

Hot pluggability is a core attribute for enterprise server environments that need non-disruptive maintenance and rapid field serviceability. HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD supports hot-swap insertion and removal, enabling service technicians to replace or upgrade drives without powering down systems. This reduces planned downtime during drive replacement, scaling upgrades, or array reconfiguration. The SFF form factor further enhances serviceability by increasing drive density while keeping replacement operations straightforward in front-accessible drive bays.

Thermal Design, Power Efficiency, and MTBF

Thermal behavior and power consumption are significant considerations in dense server deployments where cooling budgets and PSU constraints influence rack design. HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD is designed with thermal efficiency in mind, balancing performance with power draw to reduce per-drive heat dissipation. Lower power consumption at idle and during active states translates to lower total cost of ownership through reduced cooling and energy expenses. Mean time between failures (MTBF) and annualized failure rates provided by the manufacturer enable architects to quantify expected reliability and to build redundancy and spare policies that support target availability levels.

Cooling Strategies and Drive Placement

Data center airflow patterns and drive placement strategies can impact drive temperature and longevity. HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD performs best when integrated into server chassis and enclosures that provide consistent front-to-back airflow. Administrators should monitor drive temperature via management tools and adjust chassis fan policies as needed to remain within recommended thermal envelopes. Proper cooling reduces the likelihood of thermal throttling and helps maintain consistent performance across heavy read operations.

Power Efficiency in Scale-Out Deployments

When deploying large numbers of drives, small improvements in per-drive power efficiency compound into meaningful operational savings. The read-intensive class of SSDs often offers favorable power-per-IO characteristics compared to older spinning media, enabling higher I/O density per watt. Selecting HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD for read tiers can therefore reduce energy consumption while delivering necessary performance for read-dominant workloads.

Security, Encryption, and Compliance Features

Security considerations for enterprise SSDs include support for self-encrypting drive (SED) features, secure erase capabilities, and compliance with data protection standards. Many enterprise-class SAS SSDs offer hardware-based encryption compliant with standards such as TCG Opal, enabling administrators to protect data at rest without imposing significant CPU overhead. Secure erase and crypto-erase features simplify decommissioning and repurposing of drives by ensuring data cannot be recovered when drives are removed from service. Compliance-conscious organizations benefit from hardware-level controls that complement broader data governance and regulatory frameworks.

Data-at-Rest Encryption and Key Management

Hardware encryption offloads cryptographic operations from the host CPU and integrates with key management ecosystems to provide seamless data protection with minimal performance impact. HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD supports these encryption paradigms where available, allowing administrators to tie drive-level encryption to enterprise key management solutions. Proper key lifecycle management remains critical, as loss of encryption keys can result in permanent data inaccessibility. The inclusion of secure erase routines assists in secure decommissioning and transfer of assets.

Compliance and Auditing Considerations

Enterprises operating under regulatory regimes should evaluate drive-level security features alongside array and system-level capabilities. Audit trails for firmware updates, drive replacements, and key management actions add operational transparency. Drives that support integrated security functions simplify compliance workflows by reducing the need for host-based encryption and providing consistent, verifiable controls for data-at-rest protection.

Use Cases and Deployment Patterns

HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD is well-suited for multiple deployment patterns, including high-performance read caches in hybrid arrays, front-end storage for read-heavy databases, virtual desktop infrastructure storage tiers, and lower-latency front-end nodes for analytic query processing. Its combination of enterprise-quality firmware, SAS 12Gbps connectivity, and SFF density makes it an attractive option for organizations upgrading legacy SAS infrastructures or designing new clusters that demand predictable read performance. The drive’s hot-pluggable nature and validated compatibility with HPE server platforms further ease integration into existing operational processes and help shorten deployment timelines.

Caching and Tiering Architectures

In hybrid storage architectures, these SSDs function as read caches to accelerate access to frequently used data while reducing load on slower backend HDDs. Their strong random read performance and low latency characteristics improve cache hit rates and reduce application response times. When combined with intelligent tiering software, HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD can provide transparent performance benefits for applications without the need for manual data movement.

Virtualization and Desktop Infrastructure

Virtualized environments and VDI deployments often exhibit high read-to-write ratios due to user login storms, image booting, and shared reads. The drives’ ability to absorb read spikes with low latency improves user experience and reduces login times, making them a practical choice for the VDI storage tier. Their small form factor and high density allow higher VM counts per chassis while keeping performance consistent under heavy concurrency.

Balancing Capacity and Performance

Higher capacity per drive reduces the total number of drives required to achieve a target usable capacity, lowering power and cooling demands and simplifying management. However, architects must weigh this against the I/O parallelism benefits of more spindles or SSD channels. In many read-centric designs, larger-capacity drives are advantageous because they reduce enclosure complexity while delivering sufficient throughput per drive to sustain application needs. Evaluating workload I/O profiles and conducting performance validation testing helps determine the optimal balance for a given environment.

Integration with RAID, Erasure Coding, and Data Protection

Integration with RAID or erasure coding schemes affects usable capacity and rebuild times, particularly when a drive failure occurs. Because rebuild operations can stress remaining drives and impact performance, using SSDs with consistent performance and reliability characteristics helps minimize rebuild windows. HPE P42692-003 3.84TB SAS 12GBPS Read Intensive Hot Pluggable SFF SSD, when combined with thoughtful redundancy strategies, contributes to resilient storage pools that protect against data loss while maintaining performance during recovery operations.