Hewlett Packard Enterprise Releases Docker Solutions Portfolio

Hewlett Packard Enterprise is following up the biggest update to its 3PAR portfolio since becoming an independent company with the introduction of Docker support in its flagship StoreServ arrays and the StoreVirtual management software for server-attached drives.

Analysts say making containers enterprise-ready will be a key focus over the next two years.

Containers are changing the way applications are developed and managed, HPE’s CTO Martin Fink said.

Docker VP of business development and technical alliances Nick Stinemates said, “Developers today require a new model to build, ship and run distributed applications that existing infrastructures were not designed for”.

Docker is the most popular technology for automating the creation and deployment of apps in containers, a lighter-weight form of virtualisation.

Docker Reference Guide offers guidance based on an internal HPE Docker implementation for improving the software development and deployment process using Docker on HPE BladeSystem to make CI/CD pipelines more efficient.

In addition to HPE Helion Development Platform 2.0 support for Docker, HPE said it would provide support throughout a range of products for test, deployment and monitoring, plus support for Remote Docker Swarm cluster monitoring with HPE Sitescope.

ClusterHQ now boasts the support of no fewer than 13 storage vendors, a sizable crowd from which HPE hopes to stand out by extending Docker integration to the other parts of its extensive portfolio. It features tools for load-testing and application-performance monitoring, plus full transaction tracing across containerized and traditional backend systems and smart cloud-based load-testing.

HPE’s Sitescope agentless application-monitoring software, meanwhile, can now use a Docker Swarm address to automatically build a cluster map and monitor Docker Swarm along with cluster nodes, Docker daemon, running containers and specific workloads. On November 16, HPE introduced several new 3PAR StoreServ products and services: -3PAR Flash Acceleration for Oracle: This is an HPE validated package that boosts database performance while enabling legacy systems such as EMC VMAX to remain in place.

Availability HPE solutions that leverage Docker, guidance and services are now available.

The release is accompanied by a raft of other tools to provide lifecycle management and monitoring capabilities for application deployment. “To meet those demands, Hewlett Packard Enterprise simplifies storage with a single flash-optimized 3PAR StoreServ line from the entry to enterprise with tier-1 resiliency and built-in data protection”. Visit the “Converged Data Infrastructure” blog posts for more information on the Docker Machine plugin for HPE Composable Infrastructure and the Docker Reference Architecture.

HPE also announced new systems to help customers as they move away from traditional backup silos in favour of integrated flash array and application data protection. Such statements involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co (NYSE:HPE)’s CEO, Meg Whitman, mocked the move by Dell to tie up with EMC.