Pure Storage has recently unveiled a series of groundbreaking products and features at the Accelerate roadshow, aimed at enhancing data management and efficiency for businesses. With the next stop in Melbourne on October 29, this event showcases how Pure Storage is positioning itself as a leader in the data storage industry.
The Roadshow’s Catalyst for Change
The Accelerate roadshow, which kicked off in Mumbai and continues to London, reflects Pure Storage’s commitment to addressing the evolving needs of customers in Australia and New Zealand. The company’s Area Vice President for Australia and New Zealand, Amy Rushall, emphasized the importance of innovation in today’s data-driven landscape. “Our continued growth is a testament to the strength of our platform,” Rushall stated in an exclusive interview with TechDay. She noted that customers are seeking solutions to eliminate complexity and enhance their storage capabilities.
Two standout innovations introduced during the roadshow are Zero Move Tiering and Real-time Enterprise File, which aim to meet the demands of modern workloads that often involve artificial intelligence, analytics, and virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI).
Real-time Enterprise File: Redefining Storage
The Real-time Enterprise File service represents a significant shift in file storage. Traditional systems struggle to adapt to rapidly changing business requirements, often confining organizations to rigid silos. Mark Jobbins, Chief Technology Officer at Pure Storage, outlined how Real-time Enterprise File addresses these limitations.
“Legacy file storage often forces organizations into rigid silos that can’t adjust to dynamic business changes,” Jobbins explained. With this new approach, companies can leverage agility across global storage pools, maximizing their resources without complicated planning. The underlying technology is Pure Fusion, an orchestration layer that automates workload placement and resource allocation, effectively streamlining large-scale data management.
Zero Move Tiering: Efficiency Without Disruption
Another critical announcement was the introduction of Zero Move Tiering. This innovative feature allows data to switch between hot and cold storage tiers without the need to physically move it between systems. “Traditional tiering methods don’t make sense anymore,” Jobbins emphasized. “With Zero Move Tiering, we dynamically adjust performance without shifting data, ensuring that customers enjoy high performance for frequently accessed data and cost-effective storage for less accessed data.”
The Zero Move Tiering feature not only enhances performance but also minimizes operational errors and disruptions, offering a seamless experience for customers managing large datasets.
Expanding Flexibility with FlashBlade
In a move to broaden its product offerings, Pure Storage is expanding its FlashBlade line with the S100, S200, and S500 models. These new options cater to various customer needs, providing a lower entry point while allowing for seamless scaling as data requirements grow. Jobbins remarked, “The Evergreen architecture ensures that customers can scale non-disruptively, which is a significant advantage.”
Customers are now able to start small and gradually expand their infrastructure without the need for complete overhauls, making it easier to adapt to changing business landscapes.
Universal Credits: Aligning Financial Strategy with Storage Solutions
Among the most intriguing announcements is Universal Credits, which offers businesses the flexibility to purchase a pool of credits applicable across different storage services rather than being locked into specific subscriptions. Jobbins described Universal Credits as a “game-changer,” allowing organizations to allocate resources where needed most, thus catering to the demands of on-prem, hybrid, and cloud environments.
This innovative model, which is gaining rapid traction in the ANZ region, enables enterprises to consume storage as a service, effectively lowering upfront costs and providing predictable pricing.
AI and VMware: Enhancing Management Capabilities
As part of its commitment to modern solutions, Pure Storage has integrated new features into its AI and VMware services. The Generative AI Copilot, now included in Pure Storage’s management suite, enhances user experiences by allowing natural language queries for system insights. This feature simplifies management tasks for IT teams, delivering real-time performance snapshots and identifying areas needing attention.
Additionally, the newly introduced VM Assessment tool offers visibility into VMware environments, empowering customers to optimize their virtualization strategies amidst uncertainties, particularly in light of Broadcom’s acquisition of VMware.
Sustainability in Focus
Addressing sustainability, Pure Storage has doubled the capacity of its Direct Flash Modules from 75 TB to 150 TB, with plans for 300 TB modules. This initiative not only allows higher data storage in a smaller physical footprint but also contributes to energy and cooling efficiency in data centers. “By consolidating more data into smaller spaces, we’re helping to reduce the carbon and energy footprint of data centers,” Jobbins remarked, highlighting the dual focus on performance and environmental responsibility.
Looking Ahead
As the roadshow progresses to Melbourne, businesses in Australia and New Zealand will gain firsthand experience with Pure Storage’s innovative offerings. These advancements reflect a forward-thinking approach aimed at helping customers navigate today’s challenges in data management and storage solutions.
With a clear focus on flexibility, efficiency, and sustainability, Pure Storage’s new innovations are set to redefine industry standards and empower enterprises to thrive in a competitive landscape.
