Nutanix Releases Validated Reference Architecture

Nutanix, Inc. published a reference architecture that empowers virtualization and cloud teams to design and deploy the complete VMware Horizon Suitel on a single platform.

Data center architects no longer have to build separate environments for delivering virtual desktops and enterprise data services. The Nutanix reference architecture for Horizon Suite can provide scalable, high-performance and flexible datacenter infrastructure to meet end-user computing and cloud-based service needs.

VMware engineers have validated the Nutanix Reference Architecture to enable interoperability and rapid time-to-value for Horizon Suite deployments. The technical blueprint provides a performance-optimized and design that unifies the delivery and management of all virtual desktops, application catalog services and enterprise data offerings. Horizon Suite components, including VMware Horizon, Horizon Workspace run seamlessly on a single Nutanix appliance to give users easy on-demand access to their applications using any device, from any location.

"Nutanix provides an all-in-one, converged platform that delivers a building block for the virtual workspace running on the software-defined datacenter," said Mason Uyeda, director of technical marketing, end-user computing, VMware. "We are pleased to see Nutanix’s reference architecture for VMware Horizon Suite."

The Nutanix platform ships with vSphere 5.1 pre-installed, the proven virtualization platform upon which Horizon Suite is built. Enterprise IT managers can seamlessly and linearly scale their Nutanix-based infrastructure one node at a time. Unlike traditional compute and storage solutions, Nutanix provides a predictable and scalable infrastructure that can grow with the business potentially eliminating the need to overprovision the datacenter. And, because the Nutanix platform converges both compute and storage resources, IT teams can deploy a truly turnkey solution without having to re-configure or upgrade existing SAN or NAS storage systems.

In addition to detailing how all Horizon Suite services can run seamlessly in a single Nutanix-powered infrastructure, the Nutanix Reference Architecture for Horizon Suite also includes guidance on how to integrate other datacenter services, such as VMware vCenter Operations Manager, Active Directory, SQL Server and more. The document supports the entire Nutanix product family, including the recently introduced NX-3000 platform.

"We’re excited to build on our success powering virtual desktops with VMware View, and extend that support to the complete VMware Horizon Suite," said Howard Ting, VP of marketing at Nutanix. "Continuing our pattern of innovation, we’re proud to be producing the industry’s first RA for creating a single environment for delivering desktops, apps and data."