Cloud storage is nothing new, but we're now starting to see real integration between on-premises enterprise arrays and as-a-service cloud storage solutions. I've recently written two pieces on this subject for Gestalt IT and thought I would direct you, my beloved readers, over there to have a look! Storage in the Cloud First up is NetApp Heads Into Microsoft’s Azure … [Read more...] about Storage is Getting Cloudier!
Microsoft
Every Device Can Speak SMB Protocol Thanks To Visuality Systems
Yesterday, Visuality Systems released the beta of their new NQ Storage stack, which brings Microsoft's SMB protocol to OEM storage arrays. This established company has been the main supplier of SMB support in the embedded device market for over a decade, but NQ Storage brings their technology to the enterprise. Eight well-known storage array companies have already licensed the … [Read more...] about Every Device Can Speak SMB Protocol Thanks To Visuality Systems
vSphere 6: NFS 4.1 Finally Has a Use?
Way back in the 1990's, UNIX admins delighted in upgrading from NFSv2 to NFSv3. Then NFSv4 came around and ... crickets. Now VMware has become the first major/useful/mainstream application for NFSv4.1, so the floodgates are open! But are they? A Little History A long, long time ago, when Sun was the dominant server company and x86 was still a desktop CPU, computers needed … [Read more...] about vSphere 6: NFS 4.1 Finally Has a Use?
A Fairy Tale of Two Storage Protocols
Once Upon A Time... Once upon a time, a happy little storage protocol was born. She was loved by her father, Microsoft, and he asked her to work throughout their small kingdom, delivering packages from the castle to clients all around. Sometimes she would be given other odd jobs, like authenticating a visitor, but mostly she delivered files in the kingdom of LAN. Then one … [Read more...] about A Fairy Tale of Two Storage Protocols
Cisco’s Trojan Horse
Industry watchers like me have long wondered when Cisco will transform itself into a full-line IT infrastructure vendor. This strategy was tipped in 2009 as Cisco barged into the server market with UCS. But one leg of the stool is still missing: Storage remains the province of Cisco partners like EMC and NetApp. The Rack Endgame I recently wrote about “The Rack Endgame”, a … [Read more...] about Cisco’s Trojan Horse