Network Attached Storage (NAS) systems were once the primary storage destination for all unstructured data but with file-counts soaring past one billion and with machines replacing users as the primary creators of data, the industry is seemingly moving past NAS to other technologies like object storage. Even cloud-based file systems seem set to cut into the NAS systems last remaining stronghold, user data.
NAS though, still has a prominent place in the data center. In fact, initiatives like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and big data analytics all need higher performing, more scalable NAS systems. Additionally, industry-specific use cases like Media and Entertainment (M&E), Oil and Gas and Healthcare need high performance, highly scalable file systems.
To learn more about the role of NAS in the modern data center, join Storage Switzerland and Qumulo for our roundtable discussion “NAS vs. Object – Can NAS Make a Comeback“.
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I think stronghold is more appropriate here as a beachhead is something established during invasion, as a staging area for troops to fan out and attack other parts of the enemy territory. In other words, it’s relatively new. But NAS has been around a long time, so it’s data collective is actually its stronghold which is now being chipped away at by these other technologies.
George Crump is the Chief Marketing Officer at VergeIO, the leader in Ultraconverged Infrastructure. Prior to VergeIO he was Chief Product Strategist at StorONE. Before assuming roles with innovative technology vendors, George spent almost 14 years as the founder and lead analyst at Storage Switzerland. In his spare time, he continues to write blogs on Storage Switzerland to educate IT professionals on all aspects of data center storage. He is the primary contributor to Storage Switzerland and is a heavily sought-after public speaker. With over 30 years of experience designing storage solutions for data centers across the US, he has seen the birth of such technologies as RAID, NAS, SAN, Virtualization, Cloud, and Enterprise Flash. Before founding Storage Switzerland, he was CTO at one of the nation's largest storage integrators, where he was in charge of technology testing, integration, and product selection.
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