HDS lays-out three-tier strategy for cloud

SANTA CLARA, USA: Hitachi Data Systems Corporation (HDS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd., has aligned its product and solutions portfolio around a three-tiered strategy of infrastructure cloud, content cloud and information cloud that builds on existing IT investments to provide a single virtualization platform for all data.

"We realized early on the tremendous value that businesses could gain by putting disparate pieces of raw data onto a single platform where layers of intelligence could be wrapped around it," said Jack Domme, CEO, Hitachi Data Systems. "As the pioneer in storage virtualization, we have years of expertise in developing the fundamental technology that makes this all possible. Through both internal R&D as well as strategic acquisitions, we have built a portfolio that spans the storage, protection and accessibility of data, transforming it into actionable information and providing customers with a 360 degree view to tackle their toughest business challenges."

The Hitachi Data Systems strategy for infrastructure cloud is to unify server, storage and networking silos using virtualized and converged resources that scale on-demand.

This will provide a dynamic infrastructure and a single platform for all data that can be the foundation for various cloud services such as storage, infrastructure, platform and even software-as-a-service, says the company in a release.

"What sets our approach apart from others is that we provide an open framework that enables customers to transition their data centers to information centers at their own pace, leveraging their existing assets without vendor lock-in," he added.

The company is introducing new Hitachi Cloud Services, Hitachi Cloud Solution Packages and a cloud management portal to help customers manage and control unstructured data environments and deliver file and SharePoint services to users.

New Hitachi Cloud Solution Packages provide the technology stack that enables the same use cases as the new cloud services, but delivered as a traditional CAPEX purchase for customers who want to manage and deliver their own cloud environment.

A cloud management portal is included with these new services and solution packages, providing customers with a self-service interface to access bill, payment and chargeback information.

HDS is developing technology through its acquisition of ParaScale in August 2010 that will help create an information cloud where information analytics tools and processes can be integrated with the underlining infrastructure.

The ParaScale technology serves as a key element of information cloud by providing a scale-out file system that can store and process both structured and unstructured data in parallel and at scale, adds the company.

HDS will enable information cloud by leaveraging the ParaScale technology in addition to Hitachi Virtual Storage Platform (VSP), high-performance network attached storage (NAS) from BlueArc and other existing products as well as products in development.