HCI Frequently Asked Questions

What is a hyperconverged infrastructure?

A hyperconverged infrastructure, or hyperconvergence infrastructure, is defined as an IT framework that combines storage, computing, and networking into a single system to reduce data center complexity and streamline operations.

How does a hyperconverged infrastructure work?

Hyperconverged software-defined infrastructure virtualizes all elements of the traditional hardware stack, including compute, storage, networking, and hypervisor, and is centrally managed by a single piece of software. A typical HCI system consists of a hypervisor for virtualized computing, a software-defined networking (SDN) component. These resources are combined into pools that can be dynamically balanced and allocated to deliver the right amount of capacity, performance, and protection needed by a virtual machine to run business applications.

What are the benefits of a hyperconverged infrastructure?

Hyperconverged systems in a hyperconverged infrastructure enable you to seamlessly manage complex infrastructure, accelerate virtualized workloads, accelerate virtualized workloads, reduce complexity, improve operational efficiency, and reduce cost. Hyperconvergence offers the reliability, availability, performance and capacity needed for virtualized workloads – while future proofing IT infrastructure and lowering total cost of ownership (TCO).

Hyperconverged infrastructure:

• Enables centralized management of virtual environments via a single interface
• Provides data protection, disaster recovery and resiliency
• Includes advanced data services enabling high data efficiency
• Offers streamlined acquisition, deployment, support, and management

What is the difference between a converged and hyperconverged infrastructure?

Hyperconverged and converged infrastructures each have simplified architectures and integrate the main components of the data center – storage, compute, networking – into a simplified management experience. While hyperconverged systems accomplish this through software and so are hardware agnostic, converged solutions rely on hardware.

A key difference between these two technologies is that in a converged infrastructure, each of the components is discrete and can be used for its intended purpose the server can be separated and used as a server, just as storage can be separated and used as functional storage. In a hyperconverged infrastructure, the architecture is software defined meaning all the components are tightly integrated and cannot be broken out into separate parts.

Another key difference is how each handles storage. In a converged architecture, the storage is attached directly to the physical servers. Hyperconverged infrastructure has the storage controller function running as a service on each node in the cluster, thereby improving scalability and resilience. Flash storage is generally used for each to ensure high performance for applications.

How can you use a hyperconverged infrastructure?

There are many use cases for HCI, including:

• Data center consolidation/mixed workloads
  For customers who want a smaller data center footprint, lower TCO, and an escape from endless update and refresh cycles, data consolidation with HCI is an ideal choice. In one integrated solution, it simplifies data center consolidation initiatives and reduces the cost and complexity of ongoing operations.
• Edge
  Multi-site remote locations are witnessing application and data growth that requires a simplified experience for management and protection. HCI is a perfect solution for these environments because it provides the enterprise with features needed to run what is essentially a small data center in a compact, all-in-one system.
• Business-critical applications
  With HCI, business-critical applications run faster and are easier to manage compared to traditional infrastructure. With accelerated performance, high data efficiency, and easy scaling, HCI is very well suited for the applications that are critical to run your business.
• Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
  When an organization makes the switch from physical to virtual desktops, the expectation is that virtual desktops will perform just as well. VDI deployments must deliver a couple of key capabilities including ultra-fast application provisioning and predictable performance at peak demand. The great thing about a top-notch HCI solution is that not only does it deliver these capabilities, but it can also provide more desktops on less hardware, as well as high-performance graphics support, data protection and resiliency, simple management, and scalability.
• Containers
  Containers and microservices are the new normal for application development, particularly for the emerging breed of cloud-native applications. These new application development architectures need a modernized infrastructure approach like HCI to achieve the speed, simplicity, and insights necessary to drive transformation.