Rethinking Storage IT Is a Fundamental Driver of Innovation

Focus on data management Dell Fluid Data strategy

n many of the world’s most successful enterprises, Rethinking storage IT is a fundamental driver of innovation. At the heart of these ventures, the information fabric connecting By Timothy Sherbak and Deborah Sheedy Ithe organization plays a pivotal role in heightening productivity, collaboration, and growth. When managed well, the burgeoning volume of data flowing throughout On the crest of the data deluge, the the enterprise offers unprecedented potential for decision Dell™ Fluid Data™ vision for an intelligent makers to glean fresh insights that spark innovation and surpass organizational goals. storage infrastructure enables unparalleled But optimizing the value of strategic information insights and efficiency by delivering the assets can be a challenging task. To begin with, many right data to the right place at the right organizations struggle over prioritizing and classifying data. They need to keep it secure yet easily accessible. time—for the right cost. And all the while, controlling costs is critical. In some cases, data is at risk of becoming a liability—for example, when complex, inefficient, and rigid storage infrastructures impede the flow of information and compromise compliance or e-discovery requirements. The Dell storage strategy is designed to empower organizations by efficiently delivering the right data whenever and wherever needed. Dell’s transformation from storage reseller to storage innovator and enterprise solutions partner can help organizations effectively manage the oncoming data deluge.

EqualLogic Perot Systems Exanet Ltd. Ocarina Networks Leading provider of peer- IT services that scaled Dell Best-of-breed, fast, and Content-aware data scaling architecture for Services to more than scalable file system compression and Internet SCSI (iSCSI) SANs 40,000 employees globally solutions with roots in high- deduplication and simplified storage performance computing virtualization

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Force10 Networks RNA Networks Compellent Scalent Systems High-performance Memory virtualization All-in-one, multi- Software that enables solutions for virtualizing technology that protocol storage with dynamic deployment and and automating accelerates applications automated, intelligent repurposing of infrastructure conventional data center by extending server data tiering without the need for and cloud networks memory and speeding physical server, cable, or up storage storage changes

Figure 1. Key acquisitions infusing the Dell storage portfolio with deep expertise and a spirit of innovation

Managing storage in today’s data more effectively with less overhead— broader vision as an innovator in advanced changing IT landscape in a way that supports data analytics and data center solutions. Two key trends are driving a fundamental business intelligence applications designed The company is about three years into transformation in the data center—and to mine all this data for strategic advantage. this transformation, conducted through causing organizations to rethink their storage Dynamic storage solutions in the 21st in-house development and the acquisition strategies. First, a need for transparency century must readily adapt to change, of innovative storage technologies and within IT and across the organization as simplify and streamline data management, deep expertise. Dell has invested more than a whole is adding ever more streams of and significantly lower the cost of managing US$2 billion to expand its portfolio of storage information. Creating, managing, and enterprise data throughout its life cycle. products built for virtualized, cloud-based protecting the right data at the right time has Dell’s efforts are focused on helping data centers of the present and future. become crucial for organizational success. organizations maximize data efficiency and Using technologies obtained through Second, executives are depending on IT boost agility at enterprise service levels while these acquisitions, Dell is developing a to enhance organizational value. They want to reducing the inherent cost structures of storing comprehensive portfolio of storage offerings see a clear relationship between IT investments and managing data. To meet information that allow IT departments to stop thinking and organizational results. Technology is no needs for the 21st century, Dell is defining about managing their storage devices longer seen simply as a tool to help reduce a new generation of storage designed to and start thinking about optimizing data costs. It’s expected to be the engine that helps integrate advanced and emerging technologies management to accelerate organizational create new opportunities and contribute that are simultaneously open, capable, and innovation and growth. (See Figure 1.) directly to strategic organizational goals— affordable—including storage virtualization, whether driving top-line revenue growth in a scale-out architectures, automated intelligence, Developing synergies across business environment or accelerating research deduplication, and compression. innovative technology acquisitions at a university, for example. To deliver on this vision, Dell is For example, organizations can deploy A large chunk of most IT budgets goes evolving from a storage reseller to a data multitiered Dell storage area networks toward the management cost of keeping management innovator. The goal is to create (SANs) that automate the movement of the storage environment up and running. the industry’s leading storage portfolio—one more active, performance-driven data to Organizations are looking to manage more that integrates smoothly with the company’s high-performance, optimized solid-state

“Dell is developing a comprehensive portfolio of storage offerings that allow IT departments to stop thinking about managing their storage devices and start thinking about optimizing data management to accelerate organizational innovation and growth.”

drives (SSDs) or Serial Attached SCSI technologies that are designed to identify (SAS) drives. At the same time, they can the type of information and apply the direct less active data to cost-effective best data reduction algorithm to it. These nearline SAS and Serial ATA (SATA) drives. technologies play a significant role in the Dell This automation helps reduce the need Fluid Data architecture, helping organizations for high-performance drives while cost-effectively manage, protect, and archive Customer perspectives: providing a highly efficient, flexible, large amounts of data. The Dell DX6000G Fluid Data in action and dynamic storage environment. The storage compression node, targeted at Discover how five organizations are using Dell Compellent™ Storage Center™ SAN reducing the storage footprint of large-scale Dell Fluid Data solutions to transform their lets organizations easily migrate their digital archives, is the first member of the storage environments. Fluid Data enables flexible, efficient data management by current SAN environment to a next- Dell storage portfolio to incorporate the helping deliver information anywhere, generation virtualized storage architecture leading-edge compression technology. anytime, and on any device. to achieve heightened levels of automation Additional compression and deduplication bit.ly/vheHHg and efficiency. solutions for backup and recovery storage Organizations can also leverage are expected in early 2012. integrated file-system technology from Dell’s Exanet acquisition, which has evolved into Taking an integrated approach to the Dell Fluid File System. Integrated across the storage in the cloud Dell storage portfolio, this technology helps Advanced technologies are critical in unify management of both block and file data. achieving scalable, secure storage for What were once proliferating silos of disks cloud-based computing. A cloud computing now can be merged into one environment infrastructure is agile, flexible, self-managing, with a single point of management across and self-provisioning. Storage in this structured and unstructured data. Today, dynamic environment needs to match the Dell Fluid File System is integrated in the these capabilities without compromising Dell EqualLogic™ FS7500 scale-out network availability, performance, and security. attached storage (NAS) appliance and the Dell Deploying a suitable storage PowerVault™ NX3500 storage system. infrastructure plays a big role in optimizing Through its Ocarina Networks use case scenarios. In addition to acquisition, Dell has obtained content- proprietary cloud architectures, a number aware compression and deduplication of standardized software stacks and system

10 2011 Issue 04 | dell.com/powersolutions Reprinted from Dell Power Solutions, 2011 Issue 4. Copyright © 2011 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. architectures are emerging. Dell storage and controller resources easily and has a role across these implementations— cost-effectively. Technologies such as whether it’s storage embedded in automated tiering help keep the right hyperscale servers, scalable NAS and information accessible for analysis. At the SAN solutions, or backup and long-term same time, Dell cloud-based solutions let retention tiers such as target deduplication organizations capitalize on big data with appliances and object-based storage. little in the way of up-front infrastructure or In addition, Dell plans to evolve its Fluid management investments. Data architecture and services capabilities Bringing Dell storage solutions together to help organizations automatically tier with best-of-breed analytics and business information among private cloud and intelligence software creates a very strong public cloud environments. This approach platform for extracting valuable insights is designed to move information efficiently from big data. among traditional physical, virtual, and cloud solutions to help organizations Transforming storage and data ensure that they are storing the right management to advance the information on the right tier at the right strategic agenda time and at the right cost. In many organizations, 80 percent of the IT Dell storage also plays a significant role budget is focused on keeping the lights on in Dell’s cloud-based services offerings. while only 20 percent is spent on the kind For example, Dell E-mail and File Archive of initiatives that are essential in aligning solutions are available in both on-premise IT with organizational objectives to gain and off-premise consumption models. breakthrough innovations and outcomes. In the off-premise scenario, data is Increasing storage infrastructure efficiency hosted across Dell Services data centers can help change that ratio. around the world—an excellent option Moving forward, IT managers need to for organizations that prefer an off-site make storage essentially disappear. This Authors ® model. The Dell Cloud with VMware means reducing the cost, footprint, and Timothy Sherbak is director of vCloud™ Datacenter Services offering complexity of storage, so organizations storage solutions marketing in the lets enterprises extend or migrate their can invest more time and money on IT Dell Enterprise Solutions Group. virtualized infrastructure into a Dell data innovations that focus on business needs. Deborah Sheedy is storage solutions center that provides a secure, dedicated, or Given its pivotal role, a transformed marketing manager in the Dell Enterprise multi-tenant Dell-managed environment. storage infrastructure also helps shift Solutions Group. organizational thinking about the relationship Making the most of big data between IT and business development. By Big data is another area where storage relating technology spending directly to has tremendous impact. By analyzing data business results, IT managers can elevate the produced by e-commerce sites, social conversation about IT operations to the level networks, mobile technologies, and other of strategic decision making. sources, organizations can strengthen customer interactions and enhance customer Learn more experiences—boosting community and Dell storage: loyalty to sustain long-term growth. dellstorage.com But to make the most of big data, organizations must have the right storage Dell EqualLogic storage: equallogic.com infrastructure in place. For example, the

Dell EqualLogic peer storage architecture Dell Compellent storage: helps organizations scale storage capacity compellent.com