Nutanix goes all-in on Kubernetes, bids for VMware defectors

Nutanix Inc. at this time introduced a broad set of enhancements to its core infrastructure software program and its Challenge Beacon portfolio of data-centric platform-as-a-service choices that may run throughout a number of cloud and on-premises platforms.

The corporate is aiming to cater to the 80% of organizations that use a number of public cloud platforms or plan to sooner or later. It’s additionally trying to steal a share of the 80% of VMware Inc. prospects that Forrester Analysis Inc. expects will abandon the vSphere hypervisor this yr after Broadcom Inc.‘s acquisition of the virtualization large.

Cloud-agnostic Kubernetes

The Nutanix Kubernetes Platform supplies a Cloud Native Computing Basis-compliant stack for securely managing the Kubernetes software program container orchestrator throughout on-premises, hybrid and multicloud environments. Prospects can handle a number of clusters operating containers on Nutanix on-premises and within the public cloud from a single pane of glass. That features clusters operating in non-Nutanix environments, together with the preferred public cloud Kubernetes companies, and disconnected “air-gapped” configurations.

“For the primary time, we’re not operating our stack on a hypervisor both delivered or managed by us,” stated Lee Caswell, senior vp of product and options advertising. “It’s a possibility to run in a containerized method on infrastructure delivered by another person.”

NKP integrates with Nutanix’s portfolio of knowledge companies, together with scale-out block, file, and object storage and databases-as-a-service. It supplies excessive ranges of automation and synthetic intelligence-powered analysts to cut back complexity. As a result of it’s constructed on CNCF-conformant Kubernetes, there is no such thing as a cloud lock-in, the corporate stated.

The providing is available in three tiers. The Starter tier is included in Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure and successfully replaces the present Nutanix Kubernetes Engine. NKP Professional provides a set of cloud-native tasks for particular person clusters, together with built-in Nutanix Information companies. NKP Final is for managing giant fleets of clusters on-premises and within the public cloud.

“Whereas nearly all of cloud-native purposes are born in a cloud, only a few are literally multicloud and constructed to  be moved simply from one cloud to a different, or on-premises,” wrote Thomas Cornely, senior vp of product administration at Nutanix, “Additionally they lack constant information companies to retailer, shield and course of information throughout clouds.”

Storage companies are additionally sometimes particular to the host supplier’s cloud platform, requiring further work by Kubernetes platform engineering groups to ship constant companies securely and manageably, he wrote.

AOS containerized

As a part of Challenge Beacon, Nutanix can be containerizing its Cloud-Native AOS working system, with the primary use case being Nutanix Information Companies. This enables cloud-native purposes to stay out there throughout failures in availability zones, areas, and even full cloud companies. Cloud-Native AOS will help automated replication of all container information throughout availability zones and areas. A future model of Nutanix Recordsdata operating natively on the general public cloud will present enterprise-grade file companies.

Nutanix can be including new choices to its AHV hypervisor that allow customers modernize infrastructure whereas reusing current server {hardware}. The corporate stated it’s working with Cisco Programs Inc. to certify Cisco’s Unified Computing System for AHV. Nutanix plans to develop AHV compatibility throughout a broader set of server configurations and can help migrating most of the hottest VMware vSAN ReadyNode configurations operating on current {hardware}.

AHV’s Safe Snapshot functionality is being strengthened with a brand new multiparty approval management for privileged operations akin to snapshot adjustments. AHV will even get enhanced multisite catastrophe restoration options for restoration from simultaneous web site failures. Computerized Cluster Choice is meant to simplify self-service by intelligently inserting newly created digital machines throughout a set of clusters whereas balancing useful resource utilization robotically.

“Clusters can have totally different traits for blended nodes,” Caswell stated. “Putting clusters was guide prior to now. Now you inform us the traits, and we’ll direct you the place to put it in probably the most optimum method.”

GPT partnerships

Lastly, the whimsically named GPT-in-a-Field toolset for creating generative pre-trained transformer purposes Nutanix launched final yr is getting integrations with Nvidia Corp.’s NIM inference microservices and Hugging Face Inc.’s giant language mannequin library.

GPT-in-a-Field is described as a full-stack enterprise AI growth setting that integrates with Nutanix Objects and Recordsdata. GPT-in-a-Field 2.0 permits builders to simply entry validated LLMs from Hugging Face. It sports activities a unified consumer interface for basis mannequin administration, utility program interface endpoint creation, end-user entry key administration and integration with Nvidia Tensor Core graphics processing items.

For extra bold AI builders, Nutanix enhanced its unstructured information platform with elevated efficiency and density. Nutanix Unified Storage now helps a brand new non-volatile reminiscence express-based platform with greater than 550 terabytes of storage and as much as to 10 gigabit-per-second sequential learn throughput from a single node. Nutanix will even help Nvidia GPUDirect Storage, a household of applied sciences that establishes a direct information path between GPU reminiscence and native or distant storage gadgets.

The corporate additionally introduced an AI Companion Program that gives simplified entry to an ecosystem of generative AI companions.

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