Accelerate performance with Intel® Xeon® processors
Accelerate performance with Intel® Xeon® processors
Accelerate performance with Intel® Xeon® processors
AI moves fast. Lightning moves faster.
AI is advancing at an unprecedented pace, unlocking new possibilities every second. However, traditional parallel file systems struggle to keep up, with CPU-bound designs and data caches creating performance bottlenecks under demanding workloads. The Dell Lightning FS is purpose-built to overcome these challenges, delivering direct data access to NVMe devices and bypassing write caches for unparalleled speed and efficiency. As the world’s fastest parallel file system , Dell Lightning FS accelerates everything from training complex models to realtime inferencing, offering up to two times greater throughput than competitors. Its forward-thinking architecture evolves with advancements in servers and fabrics, ensuring long-term value and performance. Dell Lightning FS isn’t just faster—it’s the spark that empowers you to lead, innovate, and shape the future of AI.
Based on Dell preliminary testing comparing random and sequential throughput per rack unit, May 2025. Actual performance may vary.
Extreme performance
The
world’s fastest
Unsurpassed efficiency
Delivers up to
2x
Unrivaled advantage
Up to
20x
Engineered for the AI era
Lightning File System is a storage accelerator built for extreme AI buildouts including Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) and GPU-as-a-Service providers.
Complement existing storage infrastructure with the Dell Lightning File System
PowerScale F910 Storage
PowerScale
Unified file and object storage with parallel performance
BEST FOR:
BEST FOR:
- Unstructured data with scale
- Parallel multi-protocol (NFS, SMB, S3) access
- AI, data-intensive, and cloud-native workloads
Dell ObjectScale XF960
ObjectScale
Scalable object storage built for modern apps and AI
BEST FOR:
BEST FOR:
- Unstructured data
- AI and cloud-native workloads
- S3 and global namespace environments
Resources
Frequently asked questions
What is the Dell Lightning File System?
The Dell Lightning File System is a software-defined, parallel file system engineered for extreme-scale AI training and inferencing. It delivers record-shattering throughput and performance density to keep GPUs fully utilized across mixed I/O profiles. Built to scale to tens of thousands of GPUs, it complements Dell PowerScale and ObjectScale in the AI storage portfolio as Tier 0, ultra-fast storage.
Who is the Dell Lightning File System for?
Dell Lightning FS targets organizations with the most demanding AI performance requirements–typically Tier 2 cloud service providers and GPU-as-a-Service platforms operating at greater than 16K GPUs or 4 TB/s aggregate throughput. Most enterprises will be best served by PowerScale and/or ObjectScale; Dell Lightning FS is reserved for environments that must maximize GPU saturation and minimize training time at extreme scale.
How is the Dell Lightning File System different from other parallel file systems?
Dell Lightning FS uses a fabric-bound architecture with direct NVMe access and redirect-on-write semantics, avoiding CPU-bound bottlenecks and write-cache dependencies common in legacy designs. This yields near line-speed efficiency on both sequential and random reads and scales predictably as clusters grow. Based on Dell internal testing, Dell Lightning FS delivers up to two times greater throughput per rack unit than competing parallel file systems (actual results may vary).
How does the Dell Lightning File System fit with PowerScale and ObjectScale?
Think of Dell Lightning FS as Tier 0, extreme-performance scratch and storage for AI training and inferencing, while PowerScale and ObjectScale serve the broader AI data lifecycle (ingest, curation, feature stores, archives). Together, they form a complete AI data pipeline—rapid data access and preparation on PowerScale and ObjectScale platforms, and extreme training and inferencing throughput on Dell Lightning FS. This portfolio approach optimizes cost, performance, and manageability.
Is the Dell Lightning File System available globally?
Yes. Dell Lightning FS is available globally, with Dell providing design, deployment, and ongoing support services to ensure success at scale. Availability and certification details may vary by region; your Dell representative can confirm specifics.
What support and services are available?
Dell offers comprehensive lifecycle services, including sizing and design, easy-button deployment, and enterprise-class support. Customers can add Dell ProSupport and ProDeploy options to streamline operations and accelerate time to value. Your Dell team will tailor a services plan to your throughput targets, GPU count, and service-level agreements (SLAs).