Cloudian boarded the Kubernetes train set for distributed storage with the introduction of Kubernetes S3 Operator. It's a new developer-friendly tool for container-based applications to provision Cloudian’s HyperStore S3-compatible object storage platform.

The Kubernetes S3 Operator extends the company’s support for cloud-native environments where it already serves as a scale-out backup target for open source Kubernetes applications and data through software tools such as VMware Velero and MayaData Kubera. 

As the cloud craze continues, organizations are “increasingly interested in leveraging container-based applications to accelerate digital transformation,” said Jon Toor, CMO of Cloudian. “Many DevOps teams have been using containers in test environments, but as production teams deploy these applications on-premises, it creates new challenges.”

The Kubernetes-enabled private cloud tool is a lightweight software extension that will allow developers to write applications on Cloudian’s native S3-API platform and deploy them in the public cloud, thereby solving the problem of application portability. 

And, because HyperStore is built on a peer-to-peer network of nodes, it also solves the problem of cloud compatibility with a price tag that is 60% less than either traditional storage or public cloud, Toor said.

The Kubernetes S3 Operator expands Cloudian’s core business in two ways, he added. First, it introduces a new family of Kubernetes-based use cases, thus enabling customers to deploy Cloudian as a multi-use private cloud. “Second, many organizations now see Kubernetes as a coming wave,” Toor explained. “For them, Cloudian offers two things: an answer for today’s storage growth and cost control challenges plus a future-proof foundation for building Kubernetes deployments.” 

Gartner predicts by 2022 more than 75% of global organizations will be running containerized applications in production, up from less than 30% today.

However enterprises are still trying to confront the transient nature of container-based applications — a fact that Toor said “breaks many of the rigid rules of traditional storage management.” Legacy storage systems need adult supervision via a graphical user interface to allocate storage because they lack the agility to support cloud-native workloads.

This, he added, creates the need for a complex layer of management middleware or gateways between the application and storage. Cloudian’s fully native S3-compatibility means storage is attached to each Kubernetes cluster, eliminating the need for complex middleware.

Simplicity is key, especially with the uncertainty of our time. As IoT, big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) continue to enter new markets, companies will need to properly evaluate their data storage options. Large portions of the population are now at home streaming, video conferencing, and engaging with other data rich activities at a tremendous rate. 

Toor said the company is seeing on-premises object storage gaining speed right now. This form of storage prevents additional costs involved with data traffic, provides scalability, reduces file system limitations, maintains higher security, and supports metadata tagging.

"Uncertain times drive cost-control measures, and Cloudian is proven to save cost," he added.