Originally posted by: TonyPearson
Two years ago, IBM and Nirvanix formed a [Strategic Relationship for Enterprise Cloud Storage]. This was to complement IBM SmartCloud Enterprise (SCE) persistent block storage, as we had no offering back then to provide object-based access.
Earlier this week, in my blog post summarizing the [IBM 2013 Storage Announcements for October 8], I mentioned:
"SmartCloud Enterprise Object Storage is switching from 3rd-party Nirvanix to its internal IBM Softlayer. This one involves more in-depth explanation which I will save for another post."
It's time to make good on that promise! Here is a quick diagram to help visualize the agreement (with sincere apologies to [Jessica Hagy]!) but not to scale, of course!
Last month, Nirvanix announced it was shutting down October 15. Here was the exact wording from their website:
"Nirvanix Customers,
For the past seven years, we have worked to deliver cloud storage solutions. We have concluded that we must begin a wind-down of our business and we need your active participation to achieve the best outcome.
We are dedicating the resources we can to assisting our customers in either returning their data or transitioning their data to alternative providers who provide similar services including IBM SoftLayer, Amazon S3, Google Storage or Microsoft Azure.
We have an agreement with IBM, and a team from IBM is ready to help you. In addition, we have established a higher speed connection with some companies to increase the rate of data transfer from Nirvanix to their servers.
We are working hard to have resources available through October 15 to assist you with the transition process, and have set up a rapid response team that can be reached at (619) 764-5650 [press 2 for customer support during normal business hours] or (888) 791-0365 after business hours, or contact customersupport@nirvanix.com.
Please check back to this web page periodically for status updates.
We thank you for your support and patience.
The Nirvanix team
UPDATE ON NIRVANIX
On October 1, 2013, Nirvanix voluntarily sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in order to pursue all alternatives to maximize value for its creditors while continuing its efforts to provide the best possible transition for customers."
In response, IBM put out this press release:
"In light of reports that Nivanix has decided to soon cease operations, IBM is moving quickly to help clients of our Nivanix-based Object Storage offering to move their data to other solutions such as the robust and highly scalable IBM SoftLayer Object Storage or IBM's persistent storage solution."
To understand why this is a big deal, consider the difference between Cloud Computing and Cloud Storage. Cloud Computing is like buying gasoline at your favorite gas station. If the station is closed, you can just drive a few blocks to another gas station. The ease with which customers can switch from one Cloud Compute provider to another is part of the appeal, forcing Cloud Compute providers to be extremely efficient at what they do to offer the lowest price.
Cloud Storage is completely different, more like a safety-deposit box at the bank, or a storage unit to hold all of your boxes of tax receipts. Now if you have a small amount stored away in a safety-deposit box, this is probably just a minor inconvenience. You can take out the contents and store at home, or find another bank and open a new safe deposit account.
However, if you have a lot stored in a storage unit, it may be more difficult.
For example, I am in the process of remodeling my home, so I have moved a lot of my stuff to a 400 cubic-foot storage unit during the process. There were a variety of storage units within miles of my home. Some are fully air-conditioned, some offered 24x7 access, while others are not air-conditioned, or only allowed access during business hours. It has taken me several weekends to box up and move them to the storage unit. My car only holds 12-14 boxes at a time, so many trips were involved.
If the Storage Unit company told me that they were closing down, and that I would have to move all of these boxes to another facility, I would have to hire moving professionals to do all the work. This is in effect what companies need to do with their data. They must take the data off Nirvanix systems, and either store it in-house, or find another cloud storage provider.
IBM offers three options:
- IBM [SoftLayer Object Storage] offering which is an OpenStack Swift-based Object Storage solution. IBM's SoftLayer object based storage solution provides a robust, highly scalable solution, with the ability to retrieve and leverage data the way you want to, and grow when you need. You can choose to store your objects in Dallas, Texas (USA), Amsterdam (Europe), and/or Singapore (Asia).
- SCE persistent storage solution where you will be able to manage storage resources by attaching an instance during the instance creation process.
- An alternate storage solution of your choice. Yes, IBM will help you move your data to Amazon, Google, Microsoft, etc. While technically competitors, IBM also has strategic partnerships in place with each to facilitate the movement.
These options are not just for IBM's SmartCloud Enterprise Object Storage clients. Nirvanix has named IBM the savior for all of its other non-IBM customers as well. Why IBM? Well, IBM is one of the most recognized names in the IT industry. Not just one of the biggest Cloud Service providers, IBM also has an army of professionals in its Global Services division to help.
For more details, here are [SmartCloud Object Storage FAQ] and [Options for Moving Data from IBM SmartCloud Enterprise Object Storage] documents.
technorati tags: IBM, Nirvanix, SmartCloud, SmartCloud Enterprise, Object Storage, Jessica Hagy, Softlayer, Amazon, Google, Microsoft