IBM’s February storage announcement has been good news for companies in the lower end of the market looking for enterprise level storage solutions at a price point and usability level that works for them.
The announcement promises entry-level customers access to storage solutions that are usually reserved for enterprise level, low latency storage (better than some competitors offer at enterprise level) and with a uniformity across their solution range.
Uniformity across product range
Most primary storage vendors have three to five different platforms from which customers have to choose dependent on their expected level of need. This is costly and complex with companies often choosing a solution that either had the potential not to provide the cover needed (but was cheaper) or choosing a more expensive option that was often not used to its full potential. Alternatively, clients end up with a mix of storage families from the same vendor each with a different interface set of operational skills required.
By making all solutions from Entry to Enterprise come under one platform, companies do not need to make such decisions, taking the complexity and cost out of storage. This is a big step forward and will really help the entry level organisations overcome some of the barriers that have held up storage procurement in the past.
IBM’s February storage announcement has been good news for companies in the lower end of the market looking for enterprise level storage solutions at a price point and usability level that works for them Share on XSmall footprint, high performance
The announcement included the first 1 rack unit All-Flash array that IBM have produced. This offering brings extreme performance for either edge or core storage requirements. The small footprint is designed to reduce hosting cost as well as providing a consolidation target for disparate storage in the Entry space.
Virtualise across multiple arrays
The announcement also highlighted the ability for companies to implement IBM arrays in front of existing arrays from all vendors – allowing clients to overcome silos of storage brought about by having disparate technologies deployed. This means that virtualising data across multiple vendor arrays is suddenly possible – and with around 500 different arrays on offer this could be seen as a game changer.
HyperSwap and storage utility offering
Two other parts of the announcement include HyperSwap and the storage utility offering. HyperSwap was previously reserved for the mid-range IBM arrays and gives the option for 100 percent availability guarantee to companies – crucial particularly when so many companies are now working remotely and IT teams cannot quickly resolve downtime issues.
The storage utility offering allows companies to ramp up and down the amount of storage as needed. Many clients are forced to guesstimate how much storage they are likely to need and often pay for too much – by allowing storage to be consumed on demand using an OpEx model, clients can pay only for the storage they need and no more. Customers also own all of the storage – whether it was used or not – at the end of the contract term.
What support has been put in place?
Northdoor are offering free assessments to any client interested in a storage refresh . These assessments are designed to help companies realise what storage they already have as well as what they are likely to need in the future. The assessment also gives them a TCO analysis.
The IBM executive team have also made themselves available for calls with companies looking for an explanation of the new offers. If you want clarification from the horses’ mouth then this is for you!
Demo systems are also available for entry level organisations, again allowing them to see before they buy.
Contact us for more information on the free assessment.
Find out more about how Northdoor, a key IBM Platinum partner, can help with your storage needs.