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S3 · S3 Glacier-compatible · 3GEO

Quantum ActiveScale object storage
Your own S3, with a cold tier on tape

ActiveScale gives you S3-compatible object storage under your own control, with a second, lower-cost storage class on tape for data you rarely read (Quantum claims up to 80% less). Applications see one namespace; lifecycle policies decide where each object lives.
19 nines[src]
DURABILITY (UP TO)
2 classes[src]
ACTIVE AND COLD
NODES TO START (P200, Z200)
50 TB[src]
LARGEST MULTIPART OBJECT
100 TB[src]
MINIMUM ACTIVE LICENCE
1 PB[src]
MINIMUM COLD STORAGE
Architecture

Two layers and two storage classes

Quantum builds ActiveScale as an access layer that load-balances every request across the cluster, with object metadata on NVMe, over a data layer that holds the objects[src].

Quantum ActiveScale stores objects in an Active class on NVMe or hard disk and, optionally, a Cold class on tape. The Cold class is S3 Glacier-compatible and runs on Quantum's RAIL architecture with patented two-dimensional erasure coding, which spreads shards within and across tapes, drives, libraries and data centres[src]. Lifecycle policies move objects between classes, and Quantum makes no storage, access or restore charge for doing so[src].

ActiveScale: access layer, active class and tape-backed cold classQuantum claims Cold Storage cuts the cost of storing cold data by up to 80%.APPLICATIONSBackup and archiveS3 with object lockAI and analyticsS3 / S3aFilesNFS v3 volumesACCESS LAYERLoad-balanced nodesmetadata on NVMeACTIVE CLASSS3Standard-compatibleNVMe or HDDCOLD CLASSS3Glacier-compatibletape, 2D erasurecodingLifecycle policies expire or archive objects per bucket; restores from Cold to Active are typically minutes (Quantum).Quantum claims Cold Storage cuts the cost of storing cold data by up to 80%.
ActiveScale's two-layer design and storage classes as described in Quantum's ActiveScale datasheet (December 2025). Application examples are the use cases Quantum lists; the Cold class runs on tape libraries in Quantum's RAIL architecture.
Resilience

Lose a site, keep serving

In a three-site (3GEO) deployment, ActiveScale erasure-codes each object across all three locations. Quantum states that even with a data centre outage, the two remaining sites hold all the data and parity needed to keep serving every request[src].
ActiveScale 3GEO: object shards across three sites, one offlineDynamic Data Placement spreads new data without a rebalance when nodes are added.One S3 namespace: each object is cut into shards and spread across every siteData centre 1Data centre 2SITE OFFLINEData centre 3Data shardParity shardDynamic Data Placement spreads new data without a rebalance when nodes are added.
Schematic of 3GEO erasure coding with one site offline, after Quantum's description in the ActiveScale datasheet. Shard counts and placement are illustrative; real erasure coding policies are configurable per class. Single-site and 2GEO (replication) deployments are also available.

Two background services keep it that way. Dynamic Data Placement balances data across all resources by policy and lets you add nodes without the performance-draining rebalance static layouts need. Dynamic Data Repair monitors data integrity, predicts failures and heals object data without waiting for a drive replacement, so drive swaps become routine rather than urgent[src].

Nodes

Three node types, three starting points

ActiveScale scales out from a minimum cluster to an unlimited one. The node you start with sets the entry capacity and the media[src].
ActiveScale minimum cluster raw capacity by node typeAll three scale to an unlimited number of nodes; X200 nodes come in pairs in 4U90 twin servers.Raw terabytes in the minimum clusterP200 · 1U123 nodes (3U) · 350 W typical pernode576 TBX200 · 4U90 twin server4 nodes (2 twin servers, 8U) ·1,930 W typical per twin server960 TBZ200 · 1U103 nodes (3U) · 460 W typical pernode460.8 TBAll three scale to an unlimited number of nodes; X200 nodes come in pairs in 4U90 twin servers.
Minimum raw capacity of each node type at its smallest cluster, from Quantum's ActiveScale datasheet. Raw is before erasure coding; usable capacity depends on the policy you configure. Power figures are typical per P200 or Z200 node, and per 2-node twin server for the X200.
NodeForm factorDrivesClient portsPower typical / max (per unit)Objects at minimum config
P2001U1216 or 24 TB HDD2 × 10/25 Gb per node350 / 430 W1.25 billion (3 nodes)
X2004U90 twin server16 or 24 TB HDD4 × 10/25 Gb per twin server (2 nodes)1,930 / 2,500 W5 billion (4 nodes)
Z2001U1015.36, 30.72 or 61.44 TB NVMe2 × 10/25 Gb per node460 / 540 W50 billion (3 nodes)

From Quantum's ActiveScale datasheet. Supply: P200 and Z200 100–240 VAC, X200 200–240 VAC. Z200 object counts are most relevant to Cold Storage configurations[src].

Data services

What the software does

AreaActiveScale
Operating systemActiveScale OS 7.x[src]
AccessRESTful S3, S3a and NFS v3; Active (S3 Standard-compatible) and Cold (S3 Glacier-compatible) classes[src]
ProtectionErasure coding (active and cold), versioning, object lock, strong consistency, 3GEO geo-spreading, replication[src]
ReplicationUni- and bi-directional asynchronous per-bucket replication between clusters or to public cloud, including Glacier-to-Glacier[src]
SecurityTLS in flight with AES-256; AES-256 at rest for objects and metadata; FIPS 140-3 certified option (contact Quantum)[src]
ManagementWeb console, CLI, RESTful API, ActiveScale View; IAM, quotas, lifecycle policies, Kafka object notifications[src]
MonitoringQuantum Cloud-Based Analytics; Prometheus metrics for Grafana[src]
UpgradesNon-disruptive rolling upgrades and expansion[src]
DeliveryOwned, or as a Quantum Object Storage Service in your data centre, a colocation facility or Quantum-hosted cloud, pay-as-you-grow with 7×24 support[src]
Fit

Where ActiveScale makes sense

Good fit

Cloud-style storage you keep on site

Data that must stay in your own facility for sovereignty, latency or egress reasons, with S3 for applications. Compare against cloud with the cloud vs on-premise TCO calculator and our cloud object storage price index.
Good fit

Petabyte archives that are rarely read

The Cold class puts them on tape at tape economics while applications still see S3 Glacier-style buckets. Quantum names the Scalar i7 RAPTOR as integrating with ActiveScale[src]; see the Scalar i6000 and i7 RAPTOR.
Good fit

A DXi long-term tier

DXi Cloud Share can tier deduplicated backup sets to ActiveScale[src]. DXi appliances →
Look elsewhere

Under about 100 TB

The minimum licensed Active capacity is 100 TB usable[src]. Smaller S3 needs may fit a server-based object store or a NAS with an S3 service.
Supply & quote

Get an ActiveScale cluster sized and quoted

  • We size node type and count from your capacity, object count and performance needs.
  • We plan single-site, 2GEO or 3GEO layouts and the erasure coding that suits them.
  • We add Cold Storage with a Scalar library where archive economics justify it.
  • We check your applications’ S3 and object lock support before quoting.

Get a Quantum quote

Tell us how much you keep, for how long, and what writes the backups. We size the library or appliance and quote the complete build.

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FAQs

Quantum ActiveScale: common questions

What is Quantum ActiveScale?

S3-compatible object storage software and hardware that you run in your own data centre, a colocation facility or as a Quantum-hosted service. It stores data in two classes on one platform: an Active class (S3 Standard-compatible) on NVMe or hard disk, and an optional Cold class (S3 Glacier-compatible) on tape. Lifecycle policies archive objects to the Cold class, and restores bring them back to Active.

What is ActiveScale Cold Storage?

A low-cost S3 Glacier-compatible storage class built on Quantum’s RAIL architecture (a Redundant Array of Independent Libraries) and its patented two-dimensional erasure coding, which spreads object shards within and across tapes, drives, libraries and data centres. Quantum says cold data sets can be restored to the Active class typically in minutes, with no access or storage fees for moving between classes.

How durable is ActiveScale?

Quantum quotes up to 19 nines of durability for both the Active and Cold classes. Durability comes from configurable erasure coding, continuous monitoring and self-healing repair (Dynamic Data Repair), and, in a three-site (3GEO) deployment, from spreading data and parity across all three sites so the two that remain can serve every request if one goes offline.

Can backup software use ActiveScale with immutability?

ActiveScale supports S3 Object Lock, which prevents objects being deleted for a retention period, along with versioning, so backup applications that write to S3 with object lock can use it as an immutable target. Support varies by product and version; we check your backup software before quoting.

What is the smallest ActiveScale system?

Three nodes. A three-node P200 cluster is 3U with 576 TB raw on 16 TB hard disks, and a three-node Z200 cluster is 3U with 460.8 TB raw on 15.36 TB NVMe SSDs. The X200 starts at four nodes in two 4U twin servers. The minimum licensed Active capacity is 100 TB usable, and the optional Cold Storage class starts at 1 PB.

Does ActiveScale support file access as well as S3?

Yes. Besides the RESTful S3 and S3a interfaces, ActiveScale supports file system volumes over NFS v3, so file-based data can sit in the same platform. Account quotas apply to both object buckets and NFS volumes.

Can Servnet supply ActiveScale in the UK?

Yes. We can supply and quote ActiveScale clusters on P200, X200 or Z200 nodes, Cold Storage with a Scalar tape library behind it, and the network and rack power around them, sized from your capacity, object counts and site plan.

The Quantum range

More Quantum products we supply and quote

Quantum tape, backup & object storage →
Scalar tape, DXi backup and ActiveScale object storage, and how they fit together.
Quantum Scalar i3 tape library →
25 to 800 slots in 3U steps, up to 24 half-height LTO-9 drives.
Quantum Scalar i6 tape library →
Up to 800 slots and 32 PB native LTO-10 in one 48U rack.
Scalar i6000 & i7 RAPTOR →
Enterprise and hyperscale: up to 14,100 slots or 2,016 in one rack.
Quantum SuperLoader 3 autoloader →
2U, 8 or 16 cartridges, one half-height LTO-9 drive.
Quantum LTO tape drives & media →
Half-height LTO-9 drives, LTO-10 in libraries, and which tapes each reads.
Scalar Active Vault & Ransom Block →
Air-gapped tape inside the library, from vault partition to physical block.
Quantum DXi backup appliances →
Deduplicating backup targets from a free virtual appliance to 2.2 PB.
Keep exploring

Related Servnet guides, tools and hardware

Sources

Every specification on this page comes from Quantum's own product pages, datasheets and tech briefs, listed below with their dates. Where Quantum's web copy and a datasheet differ, we use the datasheet. Figures are confirmed against the current revision when we quote.

  1. Quantum ActiveScale Object Storage · web page, read 29 Oct 2026
  2. ActiveScale Object Storage datasheet (DS00546A) · PDF dated 11 Dec 2025
  3. DXi-Series Backup Appliances datasheet (DS00549A) · PDF dated 9 Jun 2026
  4. Quantum Scalar i7 RAPTOR · web page, read 29 Oct 2026

Quantum, Scalar, SuperLoader, DXi, ActiveScale and iLayer are trademarks of Quantum Corporation. Linear Tape-Open, LTO and Ultrium are trademarks of HPE, IBM and Quantum. Servnet is an independent UK IT reseller; this page is our own guide to the range.

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