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SAS drives can address multiple IO operations from a single platter revolution if the data happens to be where the head is already positioned. How can you measure whether this actually makes a difference, comparing SATA vs. SAS, especially with a good raid card?

I have a Dell PE with a Perc 5, eight drive SATA raid. I can either replace SATA with SAS and the same raid card or replace the raid card and purchase new SATA drives. I have other servers that have SAS and wanted to know how I could measure (or if software exists to measure) the actual benefit of SAS over SATA?

Zachary Scott
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    Could you be *much more specific* as to how you're measuring performance and what kind of loads you're subjecting the array. Each type has it's own performance focus: SATA->Space, SAS->IO Throughput/Longevity balance, SSD->IO Throughput. – Chris S May 16 '11 at 04:24
  • Some SATA drives support Native Command Queuing (the feature you're referencing), too. – Shane Madden May 16 '11 at 14:07

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