EMC has launched new VPLEX technology, which combines scale-out clustering and advanced data caching with distributed cache coherence intelligence to allow data to be accessed and shared across hosts and clusters within and across data centers.
In addition, VPLEX is architected to be ‘array aware’ to preserve investments in existing storage infrastructure and software functionality while adding new value through federation and the ability to pool resources over distance, EMC said.
The company claims that the VPLEX Local and VPLEX Metro, the first two products to utilise the new technology, address the challenges of relocating applications and large amounts of information on-demand within and across data centres which is a key enabler of the private cloud.
According to EMC, the VPLEX Local features a single cluster with up to 4 VPLEX Engines (8 Directors) with support for up to 8,000 virtualised storage volumes and offers non-disruptive, transparent data mobility within, across and between storage platforms within a single site/data centre. The VPLEX Metro features non-disruptive, transparent data mobility between EMC and non-EMC platforms and provides the ability to link two separate VPLEX clusters within a data centre or up to 100km apart.
The VPLEX Metro synchronously relocates and synchronies data I/O, between two sites up to 100km apart and provides the ability for any data volume to be configured for simultaneous access by applications in two locations, enabling relocation, sharing and balancing infrastructure resources, the company said.
In addition, Metro features two clusters with up to 4 VPLEX Engines each and support for up to 16,000 virtualized data volumes and offers support for Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper-V and Live Migration to transparently move and relocate active virtual machines for IT operations.
EMC also plans to launch VPLEX Geo and VPLEX Global starting in 2011. VPLEX Geo will enable asynchronous federation of VPLEX clusters to support requirements such as data centre migrations/consolidation and application relocation over cross-continental distances; and VPLEX Global will allow distributed concurrent data access and workload relocations across multiple global locations over both synchronous and asynchronous distances.
Patrick Gelsinger, president and chief operating officer of EMC Information Infrastructure Products, said: “The ability to share, move and access large amounts of data regardless of location is a key element of the Journey to the Private Cloud. VPLEX technology will enable follow the sun computing, the relocating of workloads to low-cost energy regions or moving them out of the way of approaching storms in general, IT environments will be more dynamic and flexible than ever before.”
