3990

3990 is a numeric designation used in various contexts, most prominently referencing the IBM 3990 Disk Subsystem, a family of storage controllers introduced by IBM in the early 1990s. The IBM 3990 was designed to attach large disk arrays to IBM mainframes and high-end servers, providing centralized storage management, caching, and redundancy to support mission-critical workloads on the S/390 platform and its successors.

Configuration and operation: The 3990 family consisted of several controller models, such as the 3990-1 and 3990-2, with different cache sizes and throughput capabilities. It supported connections to disk shelves through IBM storage interfaces and could be integrated into IBM Sysplex environments for enhanced availability. Features typically included in its generation included caching in memory, failover capabilities, and the ability to manage data protection across attached disks.

Deployment and lifecycle: The 3990 subsystems were widely deployed during the 1990s as part of IBM's enterprise storage strategy, often paired with IBM mainframes running z/OS and with compatible IBM servers. Over time, they were superseded by newer storage controllers and advances in storage area networks, eventually phasing out of mainstream use by the early 2000s to mid-2000s.

Other uses: The number 3990 appears in other product lines and contexts, but there is no single alternate meaning that stands out in general reference usage. As a numeric label, it is primarily associated with IBM's 3990 disk subsystem in computing history.