GoKawiilOpenBSD blog revisits SMD disk drives once used in Sun servers
A retrospective on OpenBSD's history blog describes SMD (Storage Module Device) disks, a storage interface standardized in 1982 and revised in 1987, which powered high-capacity systems throughout the 1970s and 1980s. The piece details how Sun Microsystems used SMD disks paired with Xylogics controllers in its early high-end servers and workstations, noting the drives' massive size, weight, and power draw compared to later interfaces like ESDI and SCSI.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
This history offers a window into how far storage technology has evolved, from room-shaking spinning platters requiring dedicated carriages to today's compact solid-state drives. It also illustrates the engineering constraints early operating systems like OpenBSD's predecessors had to work around, informing how legacy hardware support decisions were made.
- SMD disks were the dominant high-capacity storage interface in the late 1970s and 1980s.
- Sun Microsystems used SMD disks with Xylogics controllers in its early workstations and servers.
- Unlike SCSI, SMD used separate command and data cables, and drives were extremely heavy and power-hungry.
Source: miod.online.fr — Miod Vallat, 2026-09-02
Published there as: “OpenBSD Stories: Strange Medieval Devices”
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