How Storage is Shaping The Cloud Data Center

Solid State Drives (SSD) and Flash. There is a growing argument around this technology. Will it take over all storage or is it still a niche player? The truth is that SSD and flash are still somewhat pricey and are really designed to play a specific role within storage. For workloads that require very high IOPS — VDI or database processing, for example — working with SSD or flash systems may be the right move. Now, organizations looking to offload heavy cycles from their primary spinning disks can load flash or SSD to help control that load. In many cases, a good array can off-load 80 percent to 90 percent of the IOPS from spinning disks that may be a part of the controller.

Unified Computing Systems. Since efficiency plays a big part in any data center environment, many vendors have been integrating storage solutions into a unified communications system. And for good reason, too. Using FlexPod (Cisco, NetApp, VMware) or vBlock (Cisco, EMC, VMware) as validated designs, administrators can launch entire systems which are robust and capable of direct scalability. High amounts of network through-put, computing capable of great user-density, and a clean rack deployment all make unified computing systems very attractive. The idea is the integration of storage into systems which are capable of supporting massive amounts of resources. In working with storage, this type of deployment can create an easier to manage environment which is much more ready for business demands and growth.

Replication. A big part of cloud computing and storage is the process of data distribution and replication. New storage systems must be capable of not only managing data at the primary site — but they must also be able to replicate that information efficiently to other locations. Why? There is a direct need to manage branch office, remote sites, other data centers, and of course — disaster recovery. Setting the right replication infrastructure will mean managing bandwidth, scheduling and what data is actually pushed out. Storage can be a powerful tool for both cloud computing and business continuity. The key is understanding the value of your data and identifying where that data fits in with your organization. For example, some data may be less vital than other data sets. In these cases, understanding important data points will help create a more powerful storage environment.

Multi-tenancy. Many storage vendors have now applied some storage virtualization practices into their product strategy. The idea is simple: With one controller, split up services to allow others access to a locked down instance of storage. Storage manufacturers are logically segmented physical controllers and delivering private, virtual, arrays to sub-admins. Now, instead of having to purchase controllers and arrays for multiple corporate departments, storage administrators can split up the one and control the entire environment. To the sub-admin, it looks like they have their own physical unit. However, to the primary administrator, they are still tasked with management of just one controller. This type of storage deployment can help with data control, security and resource management.

Data deduplication. Control over the actual data within the storage environment has always been a big task as well. Storage resources aren’t only finite, they’re expensive. So, data deduplication can help manage data that sits on the storage array as well as information being used for other systems. For example, instead of sending out 100 20mb attachments, the storage array would be intelligent enough to only store one file and create 99 pointers. If a change was made to the file, the system is smart enough to log those changes and create secondary pointers to a new file. Having direct visibility into the data infrastructure not only controls storage-sprawl, but it also helps continuously maintain a health storage environment.