What does the term “latency” measure in storage systems?

Latency in storage systems refers to the delay experienced when a data request is made until the data is available for processing. It measures the time taken to access data from storage and return it for use. This is a critical performance metric for storage systems, as higher latency can lead to slower application performance and negative user experiences.

In this context, latency is particularly concerned with aspects such as the time it takes for a read or write operation to initiate and complete. Lower latency is desirable, as it indicates that the system can respond quickly to data access requests, enhancing overall efficiency and user satisfaction.

The other concepts mentioned, such as speed of data transfer, amount of storage used, and capacity of storage devices, are important in their own rights, but they specifically relate to different characteristics of storage systems rather than the time delay involved in processing requests. Therefore, the focus on delay in data processing requests distinctly characterizes latency and demonstrates its critical role in evaluating storage system performance.