In The Smart CIO’s Guide to Modernizing a Data Center, leader in hyperconverged infrastructure technology (HCI) Nutanix emphasized that new approaches to data center architecture are essential in this time of evolving operation requirements.
Nutanix underscored that C-level executives should buy into data center modernization efforts, such as HCI adoption, stating that “Over the past decade, the traditional data center has evolved with more integrated technologies and new cloud services. Whether or not a company’s data center is connected to public services creating a hybrid or multi-cloud environment, it’s always a good time for CIOs to see if their IT setup is optimized for their company’s needs.”Coming up with a strong business case for HCI means emphasizing the way the technology solves today’s business problems.
Here’s an overview of 5 business challenges met by HCI:
1) Difficulty Scaling
Scaling data center resources takes a lot of time and effort in traditional architectures. IT leaders must budget for storage in advance and estimate how much capacity they will need in the coming fiscal year. Overprovisioning leads to waste, and if your company underestimates needs, it takes time to procure and install new resources.
HCI scales quickly. On-demand scaling can be accomplished by increasing the number of nodes to meet new requirements. Because compute, storage, and networking are integrated into a single chassis, when storage needs to be scaled up, the supporting resources also scale.
2) Fragmented Infrastructure
Traditional data center environments are made up of various solutions provided by different vendors. Typically, legacy data centers have 3-tier architectures that create informational silos, making it difficult to get a complete view of business and customer data.
HCI is inherently integrated. Storage, compute, and networking are contained in a single unit. The entire unit is preconfigured and tested. The control layer is separated from the hardware layer, allowing virtualization to extend across the entire infrastructure.
3) Management Complexity
In a traditional data center, management tasks take up all the IT team’s time, pulling the staff’s focus away from business strategy. Each aspect of the data center must be managed separately, often through manual processes.
HCI simplifies and unifies management using a single pane of glass. Compute, storage, and networking can all be controlled through the user interface. Because HCI eliminates the need for multiple vendors, management is uniform across the infrastructure.
4) Migration Risk
Companies that want to modernize their data centers may put it off because of the risk of migration. A failed migration is a major disaster that leads to excessive downtime. In the process of moving data and applications, critical information may be lost and applications may not be compatible with the new environment.
Migrating to HCI can be risk-free and fast. Preparation is the key to a successful migration. Nutanix has software that automates many of the migration preparation and execution tasks. For example, data is replicated and synced before the migration, preventing data loss during the process.
5) Outdated Technology
Keeping up with the pace of digital transformation can be difficult. Missing out on technology upgrades heightens your company’s level of risk by creating vulnerabilities that can be exploited by bad actors or trigger expensive downtime.
With HCI, keeping up with upgrades is simple. Upgrades can be accomplished with a single click. HCI makes it easy to migrate to the cloud, and switching to HCI is, in itself, a move in the direction of data center modernization because of its software-defined approach to infrastructure.
Where to Go for HCI
The benefits of moving to HCI make it a great option for companies that want to progress along their data center transformation journey. However, taking the next step takes some guidance from the right technology partner.
ProActive Solutions takes a consultative approach to helping organizations reach data center transformation goals, including adopting HCI. We partner with leaders in HCI technology Nutanix and Cisco. The ProActive team can help you evaluate HCI and the state of your current data center so you can make the best decision for your company.
Explore HCI and other types of transformative data center solutions. Check out the ProActive eBook The Complete Guide to Software-Defined Everything.