DATA MANAGEMENT

accelerated shift to virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, to support the now remote workforce without having to worry about disrupting project delivery, global collaboration or productivity.

Nasuni’s data backup and recovery capabilities have also proven invaluable, given the need to manage the growing threat of ransomware. Having had to manage instances of files and folders caught by ransomware, the organisation utilised Nasuni’s Continuous File Versioning to dial back files to the last snapshot before the attack, enabling them to get back up and running within a few hours.

Penspen’s shift to Nasuni delivered real value as the entire global workforce was transitioned to a working from home model, without having to worry about disrupting project delivery, global collaboration or productivity. With Nasuni, Penspen can now spin up Edge Appliances to cache active files wherever fast access is needed – and spin those VMs down just as quickly. Yet that single source of truth is still the gold copies of all files stored in Azure Blob.

Nasuni ensures that all file data scales in low-cost Azure Blob storage, while the Edge Appliances running in Azure use only a small amount of Azure premium disk to deliver high-performance I/O for frequently used files. Thanks to Nasuni’s intelligent caching algorithms, Penspen only provisions premium disk for 1.8% of its total storage footprint. Even that could be overkill, and the infrastructure team might successfully reduce that number.

Major oilfield services provider Ithaca Energy was struggling with slow and cumbersome information sharing across worldwide locations due to its existing file storage set-up. With a diverse portfolio of offshore assets and an onshore office, the company aims to deliver sustainable growth underpinned by operational excellence and financial discipline. The acquisition of Chevron’s Central North Sea assets had expanded Ithaca’s file data by 250% but the infrastructure team had already begun looking for a new way to store, protect, and share its unstructured data, long before that deal.

The company decided to invest in a new cloud-native storage system that would replace the existing legacy network attached storage (NAS) file system and chose Nasuni. The company put together a cost model which included, amongst other things, hardware file storage, tape backups and other products incurring annual maintenance fees.

Ithaca offshore users can now access data locally without the requirement for additional equipment. Meanwhile, the onshore teams are able to access the same files and folders simultaneously. If Ithaca lost their on-site storage or Aberdeen headquarters, the Nasuni platform would enable them to load an appliance into Microsoft Azure, allowing access to their files through a web browser for seamless business continuity.

When Ithaca analysed the new set-up, it was clear that the Nasuni subscription-based model offered cost savings. In addition, its infrastructure team would not have to go through a refresh every three to five years or purchase large volumes of tapes. These cost efficiencies that played a critical role in its selection of Nasuni. The new infrastructure resulted in file access being reduced to merely minutes, helping the company save a staggering $15 million in resource costs across the business. The upgrade improved the company’s operations, making its data management far more efficient and agile.

Improved file sharing without compromise

Cloud storage and file data services are proving to be a real game-changer for energy companies struggling with data management challenges, allowing them to share business-critical data with greater ease and security while substantially cutting costs associated with traditional legacy infrastructures.

Despite tough operational constraints, energy companies are now able to benefit from sharing critical data with each other and third parties, without the traditional downsides, thanks to modern cloud storage architecture and file data services. The real-time access to data that is inherent in these modern approaches means companies can respond rapidly to fast-changing conditions and opportunities. Combined with efficient data analysis and processing capabilities, this presents immense operational and business benefits for energy companies to shape the future of their industry.