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    Nimble Storage Extends Unified Storage Platform

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    Software-Defined Storage: Driving a New Era of the Cloud

    Rather than requiring IT organizations to acquire separate storage platforms for Flash, disk and backup, Nimble Storage has been promulgating the adoption of a unified storage platform that significantly drops the cost of storage. This week Nimble Storage extended that architecture with the addition of two Flash CS300 and CS500 array options that bring the total amount of Flash storage available in a Nimble Storage platform up to 64TB.

    Dan Leary, vice president of worldwide marketing for Nimble Storage, says the Cache Accelerated Sequential Layer (CASL) architecture developed by Nimble allows IT organizations to dynamically allocate solid-state and magnetic storage deployed within system via a centralized management system that runs in the cloud. Based on a controller that was developed using the latest Intel processors, the Nimble Storage system comes in a 3U form factor that can be accessed by 10Gbase-T, GbE, and GbE SFP+ network protocols. The systems themselves can be configured to order to meet the needs of the organization in terms of the amount of Flash and magnetic storage required.

    Leary says Nimble Storage has been gaining traction in the enterprise because a platform approach to storage frees up time and money that can be applied to other IT projects. Not only is demand for storage increasing, Leary says so is the need for flexibility in terms of how storage is allocated.

    Nimble Storage reported revenues of $46.5 million in the first quarter, which represents a 110 percent growth year over year. That may be a fraction of the total storage market, but it does show a certain amount of momentum in a category where the incumbent vendors are deeply entrenched.

    When it comes to storage, a lot of vendors like to toss around the word platform. But clearly the concept of a platform implies both extensibility and flexibility. In the world of storage, the term platform means different things to different vendors. But it’s clear that as the amount of data that needs to be managed continues to scale, the ability to dynamically manage storage systems using a platform architecture is no longer optional.

    Mike Vizard
    Mike Vizard
    Michael Vizard is a seasoned IT journalist, with nearly 30 years of experience writing and editing about enterprise IT issues. He is a contributor to publications including Programmableweb, IT Business Edge, CIOinsight and UBM Tech. He formerly was editorial director for Ziff-Davis Enterprise, where he launched the company’s custom content division, and has also served as editor in chief for CRN and InfoWorld. He also has held editorial positions at PC Week, Computerworld and Digital Review.

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