Fusion-io today announced that it is working closely with storage industry leader NetApp to provide solutions using server-side flash and caching software products when used in conjunction with the NetApp Virtual Storage Tier. The two companies are collaborating on low-latency, high-performance solutions for compatibility between the Fusion ioMemory platform and NetApp's Data ONTAP operating system, as well as key caching solutions, including NetApp Flash Cache, NetApp Flash Pool and Fusion-io caching software.

The momentum behind shared IT infrastructure and the need for always-on application availability is fueling a rethinking of automated storage tiering models. The proliferation of storage media technologies (SATA, Fibre Channel, SAS and flash) can complicate decisions of how to get the right data to the right place at the right time. The NetApp Virtual Storage Tier offers a unique approach to automated storage tiering, that matches data with the specific technology that can best align with lifecycle and performance objectives.

"Our collaboration with Fusion-io will help customers implement a more dynamic and cost-effective infrastructure," said Tim Russell, vice president of Data Lifecycle Ecosystem Group, NetApp. "Fusion-io provides leading data acceleration technology that, in combination with technologies in our Virtual Storage Tier, such as Flash Cache and Flash Pool, will enable rapid, low-latency assessment of workload priorities, resulting in low-cost high performance solutions to the exponential data growth our customers face today."

An industry innovator in storage and data management solutions, NetApp creates storage systems and software that help customers around the world manage, protect, and retain critical information. NetApp solutions allow customers to significantly reduce their datacenter footprint and boost storage utilization and system performance, while achieving substantial return on investment. Fusion-io solutions are focused on server-side application acceleration to increase ultra low-latency data performance in virtualization, cloud and big data environments. Working together, the two companies are cooperating closely to drive innovation in optimizing for industry-leading performance through ioMemory solutions for NetApp environments.

"NetApp is a visionary company that understands that today's data centers need to go beyond yesterday's storage to power the applications driving business today," said Neil Carson, Fusion-io Chief Technology Officer. "With powerful technology from Fusion-io and NetApp, we believe software-defined solutions will be able to deliver much greater efficiency for customers, enabling them to do more than ever before at a fraction of the cost of legacy systems. This is what real innovation is all about, and it's exciting to work with NetApp on advanced solutions."

To learn more about NetApp solutions, go to https://www.netapp.com. To learn more about Fusion-io, go to http://www.fusionio.com