The enterprise computing industry has historically been focused on two separate technology vectors, refining traditional data center architectures and service-based cloud computing. The next-generation data center that combines scalable cloud technology with on-premises control is now at the forefront of technology development, according to Tim Pitcher (pictured), vice president of the Next-Generation Data Center business unit at NetApp Inc.

“There’s a third piece to the jigsaw, which is the next-generation data center. And the way we think about that … you want to take advantage of the sort of simple, scalable, automated nature of cloud,” Pitcher said.

Pitcher spoke with Rebecca Knight (@knightrm) and Peter Burris (@plburris), co-hosts of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile livestreaming studio, during the NetApp Insight event in Berlin, Germany. They discussed what goes into defining next-generation technologies. (* Disclosure below.)

Cloud simplicity for private clients

The appeal of cloud-based architectures stems from the simplicity and scalable economics that companies have become accustomed to with the large public cloud offerings. A key focus of NetApp has been designing private, next-generation data centers to deliver the same automated experience for its customers.

“They really focus on a more performance outcome that’s focused on simplicity … how you scale your business and being able to have truly multi-tenant environments that give you the predictability of your traditional architectures. … But you want to be able to do that in a cloud-like environment because you get the economics of cloud,” Pitcher said. 

While migrating from a traditional architecture to a next-generation data center leveraging cloud technology, one of the primary concerns — especially for multi-tenant configurations — had been ensuring performance remains as high as private stacks. Addressing this concern is what motivated the founding of SolidFire in 2009, a service provider of solid-state storage systems that was acquired by NetApp in 2016. This problem-solving relationship between service providers and customers is what Pitcher views as the primary vehicle for continued innovation, according to Pitcher.

“Service providers are really at the forefront of how they deliver services to their customers, and they leverage SolidFire. We were very successful as an independent company selling to service providers and have been increasingly successful now that we’re part of NetApp,” Pitcher said.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of NetApp Insight Berlin. (* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the NetApp Insight Berlin event. Neither NetApp Inc., the event sponsor, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE