Gluster, one of the more creatively named IT companies here in the Valley of Silicon, issued a beta release of open-source GlusterFS 3.3 on July 20.
This newest version of the virtual appliance-type file system for data storage enables access to the same data as both an object and as a file, which would be a godsend for storage managers.
The software comes in several deployment versions: for on-premises installation, for virtual machines, and for public and private cloud environments. Gluster positions this as the first “true unified file and object data storage software.”
GlusterFS 3.3 allows users to access data as objects from an Amazon S3-compatible interface and access files from a NAS interface including NFS and CIFS.
For infrastructure-as-a-service providers, GlusterFS 3.3 enables organizations to build their own Amazon-like storage offerings for their customers. Companies can use GlusterFS to accelerate the process of preparing applications for the cloud, simplify new application development for cloud computing environments, and back up data center unified files and objects to Amazon Web Services (AWS) or to a private cloud.
So there are plenty of options for storage developers and architects here.
Version 3.3 of GlusterFS for all of its Storage Appliances, including the open-source edition, became available July 20 for beta testing. To sign up, email glusterfs3.3beta@gluster.com or info@gluster.com.
