Citrix Synergy is taking place in Orlando next Tuesday through Thursday, and Nimble Storage will be there, focusing on VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) deployments leveraging our SmartStack reference architecture with Cisco and Citrix.
VDI has now gone mainstream, but designing the right infrastructure stack can still be a huge challenge for many organizations, especially those with limited IT resources. To get it right, you have to tightly integrate storage, compute, and virtualization to create a quick and hassle-free experience for your users. That’s why Nimble worked closely with our technology partners to develop the SmartStack integrated infrastructure reference architectures – best-of-breed technology in a turnkey solution.
The SmartStack solutions Nimble has created with Citrix and Cisco have enabled many customers to accelerate their VDI deployments and reduce risk, with the number of total SmartStack implementations tripling year over year. We’ve recently added SmartStack solutions that are specifically targeted at compact, cost-effective deployments, partnering with Cisco to leverage the UCS Mini platform along with our CS-300 series arrays.
This latest SmartStack solution with Citrix, Cisco, and Nimble Storage is right-sized for smaller IT environments, including ROBO and edge-scale enterprise environments. It is based on a validated reference architecture for up to 500 users running Citrix XenDesktop 7.6 (mix of HSD and HVD desktops), the Cisco UCS Mini (4 blades), and a Nimble Storage CS-300 series array. It cost-effectively delivers performance and power in a compact footprint that is also scalable – you can start with an initial configuration of two blade servers and 12TB of raw storage capacity, and scale up to 15 servers and 640 TB of effective storage capacity on a single array. The SmartStack with UCS Mini brings the power of UCS integration to the smaller IT environments. The UCS Mini embeds the unified server and networking capabilities of the top-of-rack UCS Fabric Interconnect directly within the UCS Mini chassis, enabling the SmartStack solution to deliver compute, storage and networking into a single, easy-to-manage, compact solution. By deploying an optimized desktop virtualization solution on-site at remote or branch offices rather than a central data center, businesses can deliver a predictable end-user experience by eliminating network dependent performance issues between sites.
Nimble Storage arrays make a great storage platform for VDI, because Nimble’s CASL architecture can easily handle both the read and write bursts that characterize VDI I/O (input/output) profiles. The diagram below sums this up nicely:
And Nimble makes monitoring your VDI environment easy – with InfoSight, you can understand how your storage is performing for VDI, but also what to do if there’s a problem (for example – do you need more flash or not?) with a few mouse clicks:
To make this solution simple to deploy, we’ve partnered with Citrix and Cisco to create easy-to-order bundles for 300, 500, and 800 user deployments. Scaling is easy – simply add blades and flash or capacity as needed, without having to resort to any forklift upgrades as your needs grow. We’ll be showcasing these VDI solutions at booth # 419 at Citrix Synergy next week. Stop by to find out more about how these bundles provide a simple, easy way to deploy your VDI solution.
You can learn more about Nimble’s VDI solutions here.
For more on Nimble’s presence at Citrix Synergy, click here, and register to win an Apple Watch.
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