EMC ViPR Helps ISVs Tap Into $46.8 Billion Public, Private and Hybrid Cloud Market

Casette_PlayerOne of the reasons I bought my 1998 Nissan Pathfinder was for its integrated radio/cassette/CD system. (Don’t laugh,

Even though I was purchasing new music on CDs I still had a huge tape collection. The Pathfinder offered a perfect solution — until I got an iPod in 2004.   Technology had evolved but my Pathfinder didn’t support this new innovation.  I didn’t need a new car; I just needed a way (See iPod cassette adapter) to adapt the existing stereo system to play my iPod.

The same thing is happening with storage.  Enterprise IT needs to support new 3rd Platform mobility, social, Big Data and cloud applications, but their traditional 2nd Platform storage isn’t designed to support these new innovations.

Like the iPod cassette adapter did for my Pathfinder, ViPR software-defined storage is doing for traditional storage. ViPR provides a software-only solution that transforms storage into a simple, extensible and open platform to enable 3rd Platform applications and services on existing infrastructure.

ViPR Provides ISVs with Write Once, Run Anywhere Approach 
ViPR extends traditional storage with ViPR Data Services. Just like the cassette adapter transformed my old car stereo into an iPod docking station, ViPR Data Services transform traditional storage into a private cloud-capable platform. Unlike the cassette adapter, however, you don’t have to buy an appliance!

Data Services are cloud-scale storage services, implemented in software, and layered over ViPR managed arrays. The ViPR Object Data Service enables ISV applications written to industry standard Object APIs (such as Amazon S3, OpenStack Swift, and EMC Atmos) to store, access and manipulate unstructured data as objects directly on ViPR managed storagewithout having to rewrite or rework existing applications.

This write once, run anywhere approach eliminates the need to write to multiple storage vendor’s APIs and opens ISV applications and data services up to a variety of private, hybrid and public storage platforms within the cloud storage ecosystem.

You can Test Your Application Compatibility with ViPR in Three Simple Steps 
In as little as three steps, all you need to do is to test compatibility with ViPR is change the application endpoint (S3, Swift or Atmos) from the existing public cloud service to the local ViPR Object Data Service.  From here, the application operates as designed, using its existing interface to instantly connect to ViPR-managed storage.   The example below uses the S3 Browser application to illustrate how easy and fast it is is to connect your application or service to ViPR. Note: the same approach is taken – with some minor modifications – for OpenStack Swift and EMC Atmos.

Example:  How to Test an S3 Application for ViPR compatibility

Open the S3 Browser
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Step 1:  Enter the ViPR Account Credentials: (Accounts -> Add New Account)
a. Account Name: Description of this account.
b. Access Key ID: User Name recognized by the ViPR system.
c. Secret Access Key: Secret Key owned by the ViPR user supplied above.

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Step 2:  Specify the location (or endpoint) of your local ViPR installation There are two methods to accomplish this: 

a. METHOD 1 – Direct Access: Click ‘Advanced’ in Account Dialog, and enter the IP Address or Host Name that can be resolved to one of the ViPR Installation’s Object Data Service nodes.

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b.  METHOD 2 – Proxy Access: Click ‘Tools -> Options’ from the main application window, then select  the ‘Connection’ tab to enter the IP Address or Host Name, and port that can be resolved to one of the  ViPR Installation’s Object Data Service nodes into the Proxy settings.

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Step 3:  Create buckets, upload files, download files, delete files, version files, etc. directly to ViPR, as if you were connected to an S3 account!

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Get Started with ViPR Today
ViPR software-defined storage is revolutionizing storage.  ISVs with compatible applications gain new opportunities to market solutions to enterprises and service providers that use ViPR to manage their public, private and hybrid storage environments.

To get started, we invite you to:

Explore the EMC ViPR Community:  Learn about, try, develop and collaborate on ViPR. Join the community to learn about how ViPR can help you get the most out of your storage investments, try ViPR software at no charge, access developer resources, and participate in technical discussions.
Learn more about the EMC Business Partner Program:  EMC Technology Connect  A formal program forISVs and Business Partners to integrate, test, and market solutions withEMC solutions.

Watch the Webcast: Open Applications to New Markets with EMC ViPR Software-Defined Storage to learn how easy it is to test Amazon S3, OpenStack Swift, or EMC Atmos apps for compatibility with EMC ViPR.

Contact EMC ViPR Business Development:  Have questions, send us an email at vipr.isv.help@emc.com.

About the Author: Michelle Scardino