Issue link: http://hub-fr.insight.com/i/532074
34 Virtualized Storage Virtual machines require storage. Lots of it. The world's stored data doubles nearly every 24 months. This creates constant pressure in the data center where, all too often, legacy storage solutions pre-date the shift to virtual infra- structure. It creates a functional gap – and no small amount of stress – since the needs of the business are being met in many areas, but rarely in the area of storage. It used to be easier. In the days before VMs, traditional stor- age solutions such as storage-area networks (SANs) pro- vided a centralized approach to storage, so multiple machines, workgroups or departments could share storage resources. VMs added a layer of complexity to the storage picture. IT managers suddenly were expected to provide the same level of service to a virtual environment that was available with a SAN. The answer: Virtual storage-area networks A virtual storage-area network is created by software that can pool storage components in standard x86 servers and present them as a shared datastore through the hypervisor to virtual machines. VMware Virtual SAN™ pools the solid- state drives (SSDs) and hard-disk drives (HDDs) that are inside physical servers, and make them appear as a single, shared storage resource. They're designed for today's virtu- alized, software-defined data centers, removing the com- plexity of deploying and managing storage for virtual environments. That means IT managers can set and change application service levels on the fly, in software, and control storage that's as fluid and dynamic as the virtual data center it serves.