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ROUNDTABLE: SOFTWARE SOFTWARE USHERS IN A NEW AGE OF DATA STORAGE STORAGE MAGAZINE GATHERED THE VIEWS OF INDUSTRY EXPERTS ON THE DRIVERS BEHIND THE EVOLUTION OF SOFTWARE, ITS GAME-CHANGING CAPABILITIES, ITS CHALLENGES, AND HOW FAR ALONG ORGANISATIONS ARE IN REALISING THE FULL POTENTIAL OF SOFTWARE OVER HARDWARE IN THE DATA STORAGE INDUSTRY With data increasingly stored in cloudbased architectures or in off-prem locations, discussions that once purely focused on data storage hardware have notably shifted towards software. This includes software-defined storage, software managing virtualisation, and automation capabilities utilising artificial intelligence and machine learning integration to improve storage optimisation. THE EVOLUTION OF SOFTWARE IN DATA STORAGE Software in data storage is clearly a mainstay today, but what were the catalysts triggering its development? Opinions across the industry reveal a variety of disparate factors coalesced to drive the adoption of data storage software. According to Randy Kerns, Senior Strategist and Analyst at Futurum Group, "The trend of software in data storage initially arose from a perception that savings could be made utilising commodity hardware." He adds, "Interestingly, data services in software were not an initial consideration and developed over time. The evolution drivers continue to be simplicity, stability/reliability, advanced data services, and support/managed services." Alexander Ivanyuk, Senior Director, Technology, at Acronis agrees: "Convenience and cost are the drivers behind software evolution. Traditional storage is a monolithic bundle of hardware and software. You depend on this hardware and quite often on software that may only work with this hardware. Software-defined storage (SDS) allows abstract storage resources from the underlying hardware platform and that results in greater flexibility, efficiency, and scalability." Another major driver in the development of software in data storage is, of course, the emergence of cloud and hybrid infrastructure. As Fred Lherault, Field CTO, EMEA and Emerging Markets, Pure Storage, comments, "Almost every customer in the world uses hybrid infrastructure these days and that's a big driver in terms of changes in software development and deployment." Enrico Signoretti, VP of Product and Partnerships, Cubbit, agrees: "Everything is now about having the same platform on different clouds and on-prem. Enabling users to move data and access it where, when, and how they need it." 'GAME-CHANGING' CAPABILITIES In exploring the capabilities of a software-led approach that have the greatest industry impact, Sergei Serdyuk, VP of Product Management at NAKIVO eulogises the performance potential enabled by software, "The most ground-breaking capability is perhaps the ability to optimise performance - both by using a logical layer for inter-operable hardware for data movement and processing and an additional 'intelligent abstraction' of AImanaged storage provisioning and management. In combination, these two capabilities show the greatest potential for enabling cost-efficient operations." Cubbit's Signoretti stressed the importance of visibility across environments with a single domain approach, adding: "On the other hand, you want flexibility (multiple tiers) for better data placement and cost optimisation." Paul Speciale, Chief Marketing Officer, Scality, highlights another attribute: "Initially, the major game changer in software-defined storage was the ability to deliver enterprise levels of data durability and high-availability, but way below the multi-million dollar price points required for custom built legacy systems. This made it possible to deploy systems at cloud-scale that could be trusted with enterprise and user data." Pure Storage's Lherault agrees: "All storage needs the ability to work in a hybrid and multi cloud manner. For vendors, this allows them to release new software faster and adopt new generations of hardware faster. It's important to make the distinction that 'software defined' doesn't necessarily mean software only with commodity hardware. Modern storage arrays are defined and driven by their software capabilities but leverage hardware innovation to enhance the software and deliver greater efficiency." Indeed, software has taken data storage capabilities to another level. As Tim Klein, President, CEO, and Co-founder, at ATTO Technology states, "Without a doubt the two game-changing 'characteristics', would be cost and flexibility. The cost savings with softwaredefined storage versus hardware platforms speaks for itself. With flexibility, we're talking about the ability to take relatively any storage platform and define what it is and how it can be used - virtually or otherwise." And there is yet another key advantage, as Shawn Meyers, Field CTO at Tintri highlights the value of software to gather data insights: "A software-led approach can provide valuable insight into each managed object and each I/O to help determine the best way to service 24 STORAGE Jan/Feb 2024 @STMagAndAwards www.storagemagazine.co.uk MAGAZINE
ROUNDTABLE: SOFTWARE "Convenience and cost are the drivers behind software evolution. Traditional storage is a monolithic bundle of hardware and software. You depend on this hardware and quite often on software that may only work with this hardware. Software-defined storage (SDS) allows abstract storage resources from the underlying hardware platform and that results in greater flexibility, efficiency, and scalability." - Alexander Ivanyuk, Acronis these with the available hardware." However, when it comes to software's potential in data storage, there is much more still to be explored and realised, as Roy Illsley, Chief Analyst at Omdia reminds us: "In a software-defined world the potential is for storage to be deployed where it is needed to meet the customer demand. The real 'game changer' would be if this was universal and could support any technology and include with it the ability to find and secure all data." NAVIGATING 'SOFTWARE-DEFINED' The term 'software-defined' is being used to describe so many storage solutions today (with generally some aspect of commodity hardware at the platform level), but when it comes to software, there are many varying degrees. With software-defined, open-source, and infrastructure-as-a-service, how are data storage vendors differentiating their solutions at the software level? And how do customers navigate the path of data comparison, when there are so many overlapping capabilities between storage software solutions? According to Omdia's Illsley, "This is the million-dollar question: if it is done correctly and is truly agnostic then it is differentiated. Too many software defined solutions are only able to work with a sub-set of infrastructure and are not universal - which is a reality we have to live with." Illsley suggests the key to ascertaining how software is differentiated is to ask: "How easy is it to extend its capabilities by the customer to meet their specific needs?" NAKIVO's Serdyuk recommends that customers analyse approaches and outcomes: "The offerings can look similar as they address the same pain points. However, the solutions themselves use different approaches, which might be a good starting point. For example, storage virtualisation and ML-powered storage provisioning are both defined as a part of the software-defined storage concept. Focusing on the outcomes of specific solutions could help differentiate between vendors and their solutions." Tintri's Meyers goes a step further: "Vendors need to differentiate by reducing complexity and lowering labour costs for their customers. This is done by ease of use, automation, and leveraging AI and ML to automatically tune IT infrastructure based on active usage patterns." "The only sensible way to differentiate," argues David Norfolk, Practice Leader, Development and Governance at Bloor: "is by capability (performance, functionality, security etc.). It doesn't matter much what you call it, it is what it does that matters - and even if it has a flashy new acronym, you have to evaluate its actual capabilities and whether they are fit for your purposes." Jeff Whitaker, VP of Product Strategy and Marketing, Panasas, points out the reality that there is often a balancing act between attributes of a solution, where one must be forfeited for another: "Software-defined is a very nebulous term… Customers often ask for three things: flexibility to choose the best-inclass solution, with the highest reliability, and at the best price point. But these three elements don't always work together." THE IMPACT OF TRANSFORMATION The shift from hardware to software has had a tremendous impact on the industry, encouraging innovation and causing traditional vendors to continue to rethink their product lines and approaches. Spectra Logic's Director of Product Marketing Deanna Hoover reflects: "Prior to the adoption of software-defined storage, we saw fewer new vendors entering the market. The engineering and development of storage hardware is more complex and costly than that of softwaredefined storage," She adds, "The shift has www.storagemagazine.co.uk @STMagAndAwards Jan/Feb 2024 STORAGE MAGAZINE 25
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Page 7 and 8: STRATEGY: STRATEGY: DATA MANAGEMENT
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