Hybrid multi-cloud computing company Nutanix used its .NEXT conference in Barcelona this week to announce Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP). The technology here is designed to simplify the management of container-based so-called ‘modern’ applications using Kubernetes.
NKP promises to provide users with a complete CNCF-compliant cloud-native stack that gives platform engineering teams a consistent operating model for securely managing Kubernetes clusters across on-premises, hybrid and multi-cloud environments.
A new class
NKP targets a ‘new class’ of Kubernetes Platform Engineering teams to bring enterprise resilience, day-2 operations and compliance to modern applications at scale. For example, customers can manage clusters running containers on Nutanix on-premises and clusters running in the public cloud with one single pane of glass, cutting down on complexity and operating costs.
It also enables organizations to manage clusters running in non-Nutanix environments, including popular public cloud Kubernetes services, as well as both connected and air-gapped environments. This helps customers innovate faster by removing the hurdles in adopting cloud-native architectures for their applications.
NKP comes in three tiers, giving customers what they need at their stage of maturity in cloud native adoption. NKP Starter is included in Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure and effectively replaces the existing Nutanix Kubernetes Engine.
It delivers turnkey clusters with pure, upstream Kubernetes. NKP Pro adds a suite of cloud-native projects to provide a complete platform to securely run and operate individual clusters, including built-in Nutanix Data services for Kubernetes when deployed on Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure. Lastly, NKP Ultimate brings fleet management capabilities, including the ability to install, run and monitor clusters in the public cloud.
“One of the biggest challenges organizations face with cloud native applications is deploying, securing and managing the rapidly expanding fleets of Kubernetes clusters being deployed on premises and in public clouds and NKP simplifies this,” said Tobi Knaup, GM cloud-native at Nutanix. “This work directly supports our vision, along with Project Beacon, to enable customers to run modern applications and their data anywhere.”
NKP helps enterprises manage the operational complexity of running enterprise-grade Kubernetes deployments. Specifically, it delivers Kubernetes Platform for data-driven apps: NKP integrates with the Nutanix portfolio of data services, providing scale-out block, file and object storage, as well as databases-as-a-service.
Project Beacon
This solution also builds on the work that Nutanix will deliver as part of Project Beacon to help customers deploy more cloud-native and containerized applications that can ultimately run anywhere. Organizations will be able to leverage NKP to manage Kubernetes applications and their data as well as the modern data services available natively in public clouds, on-premises, at the edge and even other hypervisors.
NKP builds upon mature Kubernetes management technologies proven at scale by D2iQ’s Kubernetes Platform, which was acquired by Nutanix in 2023. NKP is expected to be available in the summer of 2024.
