Hyperconverged Storage

What is hyperconverged storage?

Hyperconverged storage is a type of storage architecture that combines storage with compute and networking in a single virtualized system. It’ s one facet of hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI), which unifies data center components into a single platform for simplified management. Hyperconverged storage falls under the category of software-defined storage (SDS), meaning the storage functionality is abstracted from physical hardware and managed through software instead. 

Businesses use hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) solutions to virtualize storage, servers, and connecting networks, allowing organizations to scale more efficiently. Data center teams or server administrators typically administer HCI solutions. 

How does hyperconvergence work?

In a traditional architecture, teams needed separate storage, compute, and networking components. It consisted of legacy servers for running applications, storage area networks (SANs) for storage, and a separate networking switch. Storage visualization, or the ability to pool physical storage into a single device, didn’t exist since storage devices were separate and independent.

A hyperconverged infrastructure brings the three traditional components – storage, computing, and networking – into a single virtualized environment that software can control. Hyperconvergence reduces the amount of hardware needed to operate and instead uses a standard x86 server and software-defined storage. Hyperconverged storage is one of the three components of a whole hyperconverged infrastructure.

In hyperconverged storage, nodes are the building blocks that collectively form the HCI. Each node integrates computing, storage, networking, and virtualization resources. Nodes work together to create a distributed storage architecture, and data is distributed and redundantly stored across multiple nodes.

Advantages of hyperconverged storage

The many advantages of hyperconverged storage make it an attractive solution for organizations looking to simplify their infrastructure and enhance operations. Key benefits include: 

• A simplified infrastructure: As one facet of hyperconverged infrastructure, hyperconverged storage integrates storage, computing, and networking into a single system. This eliminates the need for separate storage area networks. 

• Significant cost savings: Hyperconverged storage helps remove hardware from storage costs. Organizations generally benefit from reduced maintenance and hardware costs. Administrators may also reduce IT operations costs, allowing them to focus on other innovative efforts.

• More flexibility: Hyperconverged storage provides easier storage provisioning so administrators can conduct flexible operations. Organizations can also expand storage capacity by adding additional nodes to the cluster thanks to the scale-out architecture of hyperconverged storage solutions. This lets teams adapt quickly to changing needs and rapid business growth. 

• High availability design: Hyperconverged storage systems are made with high availability in mind, which is beneficial for minimizing downtime. Data is stored redundantly across multiple nodes so it remains accessible in the event of a node failure.

Disadvantages of hyperconverged storage

Hyperconverged storage offers numerous benefits to organizations, but teams should also be aware of the potential challenges they may encounter when using this technology. 

• Hefty upfront costs: Hyperconverged storage solutions cost a lot upfront, resulting in higher initial investments than traditional storage options. Organizations must define a budget and consider all elements of a potential cost structure for a hyperconverged solution, including the costs for scale, licensing, and ongoing maintenance. 

• Vendor lock-in issues: When an organization adopts a hyperconverged storage solution, they are locked into the vendor’s ecosystem with specific features as part of the overall solution. Migrating from one platform to another is complex and potentially problematic, so teams must carefully consider the ramifications of vendor lock-in as a long-term investment. 

• Limited hardware options: Hyperconverged infrastructure and storage solutions typically use industry-standard x86 hardware. This limits options for organizations that want custom configurations or other specialized hardware systems.

• Performance impact across nodes: Consolidating storage resources on the same nodes can lead to performance challenges, especially with heavy workloads. Proper planning and performance testing are crucial to optimize performance.

Hyperconverged storage best practices

Implementing hyperconverged storage and HCI involves following general best practices to ensure optimal performance. 

• Thorough pre-planning to meet the organization’s needs: Organizations must consider their data center and expected workloads to determine capacity and performance requirements. The entire hyperconverged infrastructure must be designed to meet the needs of applications and users for the best results. 

• Solid data protection and backup: Teams should proactively develop comprehensive data protection and backup strategies to prepare for issues that arise. Regularly testing and verifying data recovery processes is crucial for sustained success. 

• Comprehensive documentation and resource maintenance: Administrators and data center teams must prioritize the development of extensive documentation, which includes full HCI configuration details, policies, procedures, and other need-to-know information about the hyperconverged storage solutions. Well-documented practices and descriptions help organizations troubleshoot more quickly, complete audits, and prepare for future expansions.  

Hyperconverged storage vs. converged storage

Hyperconverged and converged storage are infrastructure approaches for improving data center operations, but their architectures have fundamental differences. 

Hyperconverged storage is controlled with software, and storage resources can be pooled among different nodes. Data is distributed redundantly across nodes for high availability. 

Converged storage is also a pre-built resource as part of a larger pre-packaged bundle; however, it’s not virtualized or pooled together in the same way hyperconverged storage is. Components are hardware-based in a converged infrastructure and can be separated. 

Read more about hyperconverged infrastructures (HCI).