Cisco Systems Inc. and NetApp Inc. are turning their FlexPod technology, a pre-validated data center platform, into a vertical application. The move comes as the healthcare industry’s demands continue to increase for improved infrastructures, better latencies, and better performances, according to Arun Garg (pictured), director of product management for the Converged Infrastructure Group at NetApp Inc. FlexPod includes Cisco Unified Computing System servers, Cisco Nexus switches, and NetApp unified storage systems.

NetApp and Cisco have also begun to focus on the managed private cloud on FlexPod technology. Before a cloud can be built, however, a service, orchestration and monitoring platform all need to be created, as well as many more tools that need to be both created and integrated, Garg explained. Therefore, NetApp and Cisco have paired with different partners who have already created the cloud atmosphere for their customers.

“So when you combine the fact that you have a private cloud infrastructure in the software domain as well as a managed service and you put it on the on-prem FlexPod that are already sold, then the customer benefits from having the best of both worlds, a cloud-like experience on their own premise,” Garg said.

Garg spoke with John Furrier (@furrier) and Stu Miniman (@stu), co-hosts of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile livestreaming studio, during the Cisco Live event in Orlando, Florida. They discussed NetApp’s collaboration with Cisco on vertical solutions for the FlexPod technology, as well as a managed private cloud on that technology. (* Disclosure below.)

Solutions built on integration

Cisco and NetApp work closely to develop the FlexPod solutions, and there is no FlexPod brand on a product without the total agreement of the two companies, Garg explained.

“That’s the whole value that the end customer gets, because when a partner goes to a high-end enterprise customer, he knows that both Cisco and NetApp teams can be brought to the table for the customer to showcase the value, as well as help them through it all,” he added.

The company pairings are also allowing customers more options and flexibility in how they migrate to and architect the new managed cloud, according to Garg.

“There are customers who are doing all this as separate silos, but the advantage of taking a converged infrastructure approach is that you benefit from the years of … person experience that we have put behind in our labs to architect this, make sure that everything is working correctly. And, therefore, it reduces their deployment time and reduces the risk,” Garg concluded.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the Cisco Live event. (* Disclosure: NetApp Inc. sponsored this segment of theCUBE. Neither NetApp nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE