Aventior architects design and
builds a solution to integrate local storage appliances with the scale of the
cloud for one of the top data storage companies in the world
Opportunity
In the age of
information, where do we keep all the data
Data
storage is a critical aspect of any business. In a digital world, data is
arguably one of the most important assets that a company has. Businesses of all
sizes are faced with an increasing amount of data, and it is not only
attributed to economic growth – companies are constantly discovering new ways
to leverage data to refine their products, services, and analyze customer
behavior, which means more data needs to be both captured and stored. More than
63% of enterprises store 100TB of data or more and the number continues to
grow.
A
good storage management solution serves multiple purposes. It allows businesses
large and small to simplify data management, maximize server performance, back
up critical data, and increase application availability. For this reason, the
use of storage area networks or SAN remains common when it comes to enterprise
data storage management solutions.
SANs
are essentially dedicated networks connecting data storage tools with larger
networks, facilitating the pooling of storage among data centers. This
simplifies the management of data storage, through centralization, while
offering the benefits of a distributed system. SAN differs from cloud storage
in the sense that SANs are hosted within a company’s firewall, whereas cloud
storage is hosted through virtual servers on the internet. Greater control over
security has kept SAN the preferred option for many companies. However, companies
that specialize in enterprise storage solutions have now caught on to the
potential benefits of integrating locally hosted storage appliances with the
benefits offered by cloud storage solutions.
A Santa Clara-based company specializing in data storage solutions recognized
the need to invest in this capability. The company engaged Aventior to assist
with the development of a prototype solution that would offer its customers the
ability to virtualize data storage and management of their physical devices
while maintaining total control over hosting and security of the appliances
themselves.
Approach
Integrating local
storage appliances with the scale of the cloud
The
solution developed by Aventior would utilize a combination of AWS
CloudFormation and AWS IoT Greengrass to create a dynamic and infinitely
scalable architecture to support the desired functionality.
AWS
CloudFormation allows the use of programming languages in the modeling and
provisioning of the resources needed for applications. This enables a single
source of truth for AWS and third-party resources.
AWS
IoT Greengrass seamlessly extends AWS to edge devices so they can act locally
on the data they generate, while still using the cloud for management,
analytics, and durable storage. Data could be transmitted back and forth from
appliances to both EC2 instances and S3 storage buckets, allowing the application
to create “digital twins” of local storage appliances that live in the cloud.
A
custom user interface was also needed to enable the management of local
appliances and the integrated cloud-storage functionality.
By
combining these technologies, Aventior was able to develop a prototype for the
client in a span of 2 months. The prototype would allow physical storage
devices to distribute data storage to AWS while providing a virtual interface
to facilitate the management of the devices.
Once
the prototype was proven to deliver the desired functionality, it was then
further enhanced to support portability to other cloud services, such as Microsoft Azure and Google
Cloud.
This enabled greater flexibility for customers that had a specific preference
with respect to the cloud hosting provider.
Impact
Accessibility and
scale while maintaining control and security
As
demand for enterprise data storage continues to grow alongside a desire for
increased accessibility, the solution developed by Aventior would allow the
client to better align their product offerings with the needs of customers.
Companies
large and small could now benefit from the security and control that a local
storage appliance offers, while still achieving the scalability of cloud-based
data centers.
Because
appliances are hosted within a company’s network, behind their firewall,
companies can maintain total control over security while at the same time
reaping the benefits of infinitely scalable cloud-based data centers.
Prior
to the new solution, clients could monitor the health of storage appliances
online but could not start and stop services remotely, making it difficult to
conduct important maintenance tasks such as installing new patches or
conducting software updates.
The new solution
would allow companies with distributed storage appliances to centrally manage
critical maintenance tasks such as software updates and patch installations
without the need to be physically present, saving them time and money.
Remote
access also meant companies could act faster and be more coordinated in the
management of storage appliances. This is critical for companies with servers
based in locations where there is a higher risk of natural disasters.
Enterprise
clients with a global footprint could now manage their devices at any site at
the “flip of a switch” from virtually anywhere, resulting in faster turnaround times
both for maintenance-related or disaster-related events.
With
data being regarded by many as perhaps the most important commodity of the 21st century, companies
are continuously investing in better ways to protect this critical asset. By
working with Aventior, the client was able to develop a solution that would
help organizations around the world to protect and scale their data storage in
the most efficient and effective manner possible.
Aventior specializes in the
integration of modern IT techniques with enterprise needs to support growth,
innovation, and development across all major sectors. Utilizing our expertise
in IoT, artificial intelligence, geospatial solutions, and data science, we
help companies unlock new capabilities and work with them to turn vision into
reality. Contact us today to see how we
can help you achieve your goals.
