StorPool Integration OpenStack

StorPool updates its deep OpenStack integration to Queens release, goes upstream!

StorPool storage is proud to announce its native integration with OpenStack! The StorPool services are now integrated with OpenStack’s block storage (Cinder) and compute (Nova) components. This integration comes out of the box with the next release of OpenStack – Queens.

The OpenStack Queens release is expected on the 28th of February.

A StorPool driver for OpenStack’s image service (Glance) is also being developed.  Even now Cinder’s image caching and snapshots make full use of the benefits of StorPool’s instantaneous cloning of volumes and snapshots, providing virtually the same functionality as the upcoming Glance integration.

OpenStack integration insights: more about StorPool’s integration with OpenStack

StorPool OpenStack Integration

The integration with OpenStack exposes the full functionality of the underlying StorPool storage system. The Cinder driver allows any OpenStack component to create, remove, and extend user volumes, as well as copy data from Glance images to them and vice versa.  Cinder volume types corresponding to StorPool templates may be used to control a volume’s replication count, placement strategy (all-SSD/flash, hybrid with read operations serviced by SSDs, all-HDD), I/O limits, and other capabilities of the StorPool storage system.  All volumes and snapshots are created with thin provisioning, which allows for highly optimized use of the actual physical drive capacity.  StorPool’s space-saving copy-on-write strategy when creating volume snapshots and subsequently cloning them to create other volumes leads to the instantaneous completion of these operations even when creating dozens or hundreds of volumes at once.

OpenStack-Integration-StorPool-storage

The Nova attachment driver allows StorPool-backed Cinder volumes to be used by virtual machine instances.  With Nova’s “root disk on a new volume created from a snapshot” functionality it is very easy to create one or more VM instances from the same OS template.  Even in the standard workflow of creating a VM instance with the root disk populated by an image provided by the Glance service, Cinder’s image caching will create the new volume with no network transfer and no delay, and StorPool’s copy-on-write strategy will make sure that there are no unnecessary identical copies of the data. This will be made even more straightforward with the upcoming StorPool Glance driver expected in October 2018.

The StorPool driver for OpenStack’s internal os-brick component also allows other OpenStack services to attach and make use of StorPool-backed Cinder volumes.

StorPool is already included in the official Cinder Support Matrix:

OpenStack Cinder Support Matrix

The benefits of using OpenStack with StorPool Storage

  • Performance – high speed and efficiency of your public or private cloud built with OpenStack and StorPool storage;
  • High Availability – StorPool provides increased reliability compared to other storage software providers, due to its superior architecture and implementation;
  • Decreased costs – decreased overall TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) and increased ROI (Return on Investment) of your new cloud.

StorPool exhibiting on OpenStack Summit Berlin

OpenStack Summit BerlinTwice a year, community members from more than 60 countries and 1,000 companies gather to share OpenStack use cases, perform live software demos and hold free workshops and trainings. StorPool will be part of the community event in Berlin and will exhibit at OpenStack Summit in Berlin!

The event will take place in Berlin between 13th and 15th of November. At the Forum, OpenStack users and developers will gather to brainstorm the requirements for the next release, gather feedback on the past version and have strategic discussions that go beyond just one release cycle. Development teams, working groups, and interested individuals will discuss release requirements, connect with community members about cross-project collaboration, and exchange feedback between design and operations members.

About OpenStack

OpenStack IntegrationOpenStack is a set of software tools for building and managing cloud computing platforms for public and private clouds. Backed by some of the biggest companies in software development and hosting, as well as thousands of individual community members, many think that OpenStack is the future of cloud computing. OpenStack is managed by the OpenStack Foundation, a non-profit that oversees both development and community-building around the project.

OpenStack is usually used within medium-sized organizations and enterprises. The top industries, with large OpenStack penetration, are Information Technology, Telecommunications, and Finance.

More about OpenStack usage you can learn in the recently released User Survey.

 

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