Data storage technology trends debated in inaugural Tweet Chat

Data storage technology trends are often hyped in the market before they see true broad adoption. Whether industry professionals see enough value in those technologies to make a purchase is the real question.

For that reason, we wanted to hold our first Tweet Chat to hear how our followers view the data storage technology trends receiving increased attention in 2016. We focused on all-flash arrays, hyper-convergence and cloud storage by posing a series of questions to followers over a 30-minute period. The commentary from industry analysts and data storage professionals who took part in the discussion proved that a little more convincing and development might be needed before these technologies gain broader adoption -- but they're well on their way.

Take all-flash arrays, for example: The all-flash vs. hybrid array debate is going strong. There's no question all-flash arrays provide a performance boost, but they still don't make economic sense for many organizations. Hyper-converged infrastructure can provide a cost advantage, but concerns over the ability to separate compute and capacity could be giving potential users pause. Cloud storage, while the most established of the three technologies, still needs to address issues concerning cost, compliance and security.

Check out some of the highlights from the chat below to see what followers thought of these storage technology trends, and stay tuned for the next #TTStorageChat.

In the first SearchStorage Tweet Chat, data storage professionals discussed how they viewed some up-and-coming technologies -- and had some varying opinions.

We first asked about all-flash arrays: Do they make more sense than hybrid systems?

Q1: Are hybrid arrays or #allflash arrays more appealing to you and why? #TTStorageChat

— TechTarget Storage (@SearchStorageTT) May 25, 2016

It was clear that for most, the debate comes down to cost versus performance. All-flash arrays are beneficial for enterprises running demanding applications, but the economics of hybrid arrays are hard to beat for many smaller organizations.

#TTStorageChat Both are appealing. Ideally you want a platform that can deliver #allflash performance w/ hybrid economics.

— Narayan Venkat (@_NarayanVenkat) May 25, 2016

#TTStorageChat AFA and Hybrid have their place. It comes down to performance and capacity requirements. Oh and budget plays a role, too ;)

— ChrisTsilipounidakis (@christsili17) May 25, 2016

Too safe of an answer #ttstoragechat -- Hybrid arrays are more apealing

— georgeacrump (@georgeacrump) May 25, 2016

Hybrid arrays give me cheap and deep plus still great performance --just put extra flash in the hybrid array and game over #ttstoragechat

— storageswiss (@storageswiss) May 25, 2016

For midrange hybrid is enough #TTStorageChat

— Marcin Kasak (@KasakMarcin) May 25, 2016

A1: Consider the broader alternative - Auto-tiering across AFA & Hybrids, with server side flash and JBODs for bookends #TTStorageChat

— Augie Gonzalez (@AugieGonzalez) May 25, 2016

A1: Both have their uses, but adopting a primary/secondary plan around apps & svcs can help determine the use of each. #TTStorageChat

— Nick Howell (@datacenterdude) May 25, 2016

Next up we asked about a newer technology. Vendors tout hyper-convergence as being simpler to manage, a good investment cost-wise and an easy technology to move to when an organization is nearing the end of a refresh cycle.

Q2: Would you consider #hyperconvergence for your next tech refresh? #TTStorageChat

— TechTarget Storage (@SearchStorageTT) May 25, 2016

A2:Assuming #Hyperconvergence means compute, storage, and network are on the same stack, there are use cases that support it. #TTstoragechat

— h_ulubay (@h_ulubay) May 25, 2016

Cont. A2. App clusters, ROBO etc. But MAKE SURE you don't create additional siloes in your infrastructure. #TTstoragechat

— h_ulubay (@h_ulubay) May 25, 2016

#hyperconvergence has use cases but can't scale compute & storage independently. Is your compute growing as fast as data?

— Sushant Rao (@SushantSRao) May 25, 2016

Big issue is where are you in the refresh cycles of storage and compute. #TTStorageChat

— storageswiss (@storageswiss) May 25, 2016

Finally, we wanted to hear about cloud storage concerns. It might be a more established storage technology, but many enterprises are still hesitant to store all of their data in a public cloud. Based on the discussion, it's not just security that gives IT pause when it comes to the cloud.

Q3: What's the biggest roadblock keeping you from storing more data in the cloud? #TTStorageChat

— TechTarget Storage (@SearchStorageTT) May 25, 2016

Easiest question so far.... spell it out L-A-T-E-N-C-Y! ##TTStorageChat

— georgeacrump (@georgeacrump) May 25, 2016

#TTStorageChat A3: government, security, control, latency, quite a few things actually. What about #privatecloud ?

— ChrisTsilipounidakis (@christsili17) May 25, 2016

I think concerns over cloud security are over hyped. You can build a very secure public cloud with skill #TTStorageChat

— georgeacrump (@georgeacrump) May 25, 2016

I would say that there’s a general lack of understanding of how to digest svcs in cloud, and assoc costs. #TTStorageChat

— Nick Howell (@datacenterdude) May 25, 2016

Thanks to everyone who participated, and be sure to keep an eye out for the next chat.