IBM Driving Cloud Storage With All-Flash and Software Defined Solutions

IBM Corp. announced hybrid cloud all-flash storage solutions developed to modernize and transform storage deployments, providing a strong bridge to the development of cognitive applications.

Storwize V7000

These solutions and software allow clients to store their valuable data.

According to the analyst firm, Evaluator Group, flash and hybrid cloud technologies are changing the way companies deploy storage and design applications. As new applications are created–often for mobile or distributed access – the ability to store data in the right place, on the right media, and with the right access capability will become even more important.

Companies are adding cloud to lower costs, flash to increase performance, and software-defined storage to add flexibility. The company is integrating these capabilities together with security and data management for faster ROI. The firm offers choice of on premise storage or software-defined solution, or as a cloud service.

Spectrum Storage Suite addresses the often economics of data management through the opportunity to test new hybrid cloud and cognitive applications at no additional charge and by reducing software costs up to 40% when compared with a non-integrated solution.

“Data feeds the engine for cognitive applications that deliver client value and competitive advantage. Helping clients evolve from having data obligations to using its data to better serve its business is at the heart of today’s wide-reaching announcement,” said Ed Walsh, GM, storage and software defined infrastructure, IBM. “Hybrid cloud enablement, as a standard feature for new and existing users of Spectrum Virtualize gives our clients more control to store their data where it can have the most impact to its business.“

IBM V9000

The company is announcing solutions for clients and partners
to take advantage of hybrid cloud and flash environments:

• Hybrid cloud enablement for existing and new on-premises storage: enhancements to Spectrum Virtualize bring hybrid cloud capabilities for block storage to the Storwize family, FlashSystem V9000, SAN Volume Controller (SVC) and VersaStack, as well as nearly 400 storage systems from the company and others.

• Data sharing to the cloud: Spectrum Scale syncs file and object data across on-premises and cloud storage to connect cloud native applications. Relying on access to data wherever it resides, this can drive cognitive application development.

• High density, scalable all-flash storage: with a new high density expansion enclosure and seven and 15TB flash drives, Storwize solutions can grow up to 8x larger than previous solutions without disruption. Up to 32PB of flash storage in four racks to meet the needs of fast-growing cloud workloads in space constrained data centers.

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• All-flash performance for big data and analytics workloads: firm’s DeepFlash Elastic Storage Server (ESS) offers up to 8x better performance than HDD based solutions for big data and analytics workloads. Built with Spectrum Scale it includes virtually unlimited scaling, enterprise security features, unified file, object, and HDFS support.

• Faster decision making on larger data sets: performance flash capability for DS8880 storage system provides 2x better performance and 3x more efficient use of rack space for mission-critical applications such as credit card and banking transactions as well as airline reservations running on z Systems and Power systems.

Unisys builds reliability into its federal government cloud offering
with Spectrum Virtualize
The world’s largest companies and government organizations rely on Unisys Corp. to solve its IT and business challenges. Through the ‘Cloud and Enterprise Compute Services‘  that Unisys offers to U.S. federal government clients, the company is addressing a need of data agility and lower operational costs. For Unisys, proving this functionality must come with assurances that client data will be available where and when and within a transparent price the client controls.

“We differentiate our enterprise cloud service by providing demanding performance and uptime SLAs. IBM’s flash, software, and hybrid cloud solutions help us meet these requirements through achieving the right balance of our client’s performance and cost needs,” said Steve O’Brien, chief architect, enterprise storage services, Unisys Federal. “In systems running IBM Spectrum Virtualize software, we are able to deliver a workable conduit to hybrid cloud for enterprise block storage.“

Backed by company’s storage solutions today Unisys has built its own block storage cloud for federal government clients. With this solution, the company delivers distinct and reliable gold, silver and bronze tiers of performance in a multi-tenant, software-defined storage cloud.

Hybrid, cloud enabled storage solutions based on Spectrum Virtualize software will be available worldwide in early December from the company and through firm’s business partners.