Some things in cloud are complex.
Okay, that’s too kind – most aspects of cloud computing are typified by their inherent complexity and the lengthy technical specifications, intertwined dependencies and intricate deployment (and ongoing management) process that they require in order to function.
At the other end of the scale, some things in cloud are more obvious – possibly even existing as ‘no brainer’ fundamentals that should happen and become part of the cloud firmament.
One of those hyperscaler no brainers might be Nutanix forming a stronger bond with Microsoft Azure to deliver a more direct ability to seamlessly extend Nutanix environments to the Azure cloud.
Has this happened then? Yes. Nutanix has now announced the general availability of Nutanix Cloud Clusters (NC2) on Microsoft Azure, extending its hybrid cloud environment to Microsoft Azure dedicated bare metal nodes.
Seamless hyperconverged infrastructure
NC2 on Azure offers what the company calls a seamless hyperconverged infrastructure and unified management service spanning private and public cloud environments. Why is that good? Because it could help accelerate hybrid cloud adoption.
NC2 on Azure enables customers to deploy and manage their workloads in their own Azure account and VNet enabling them to keep the operating model simple and consistent between Azure and on-premises.
With license portability of Nutanix term-based software and the ability to leverage all Microsoft Azure benefits, NC2 on Azure provides customers the investment protection and choice to run their workloads in a hybrid cloud environment. NC2 on Azure is now generally available to customers on Azure dedicated bare metal nodes in North America Azure regions, with additional global Azure regions to follow in 2023.
“Organizations are embracing hybrid multi-cloud to scale from on-prem to the public cloud, optimize costs for performant and secure workloads, and tap into a flexible subscription model,” said Rajiv Ramaswami, president and CEO of Nutanix. “NC2 on Azure gives our customers a frictionless on-ramp to Azure with consistent management of apps and data across their hybrid multicloud environment.”
No re-architecting jacket required
Organizations can now run workloads on NC2 on Azure and manage Azure instances from Nutanix’s management interface. This enables customers to run hybrid workloads seamlessly across private clouds and Microsoft Azure without needing to re-architect their applications.
The expected result is simplified and consistent IT operations across clouds, hybrid cloud adoption in hours, and lower total cost of ownership when compared to other cloud deployment solutions.
“While public cloud has solidified as a crucial investment for businesses, many customers need to run and manage workloads across public and private cloud environments,” said Scott Guthrie, executive vice president, cloud + AI Group, Microsoft. “NC2 on Azure provides consistent management for businesses’ infrastructure across on-premises and cloud, reduces network latency, and increases cost efficiency.”
Customers can also take advantage of Azure Hybrid Benefit as well as Extended Security Updates to improve cost, security, and efficiency. Nutanix customers will be able to port their existing term licenses to NC2 on Azure or get on-demand consumption of Nutanix software through the Azure Marketplace, enabling frictionless movement between private clouds and Microsoft Azure.
No-brainer bottom line
The no-brainer factor here comes down to the fact that many customers are struggling with the reality of managing workloads across private and public clouds and this challenge is not going away.
This Nutanix and Azure solution addresses key challenges many enterprises are facing by providing unified management across clouds with applications, data and license portability.
