SanDisk announced this morning that FlashSoft has been certified to run on systems powered by NetApp Data ONTAP, the vendor’s homegrown storage operating system.

FlashSoft is a software-based flash caching solution that eliminates I/O latency and
enables users to rapidly process frequently-accessed information, also known as hot data. The solution is named after the original developer of the software, a startup that SanDisk acquired in February 2012. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it’s safe to assume that the transaction delivered a handsome return on the $3 million Thomvest Ventures and Divergent Ventures injected into the developer.

SanDisk says that FlashDisk enables NetApp customers to improve application performance by three to five times or more, target performance enhancement on specific servers – preferably the ones used to crunch Big Data – and ‘confidentially’ run apps in VMware-virtualized environments.

“We’re pleased to have been selected by NetApp as one of the first partners whose software is fully tested and validated for the NetApp platform,” said Tom Shea, vice president and general manager of Software Solutions at SanDisk. “The NetApp and FlashSoft joint solution adds new, high performance capabilities to reliable storage and data management for enterprise customers and extends the value of NetApp to the server.”

NetApp is adapting to the new trends that are sweeping through the storage industry. A couple weeks ago the vendor unveiled file-share service for OpenStack Block Storage that aims to address the current lack of support for a broad range of file-system types.

The announcement came on the heels of a massive product launch. NetApp introduced 8 new reference architectures, including 4 specifically designed to run Oracle databases, just a few days before it the file-share prototype was debuted at the OpenStack Summit.