At Dell Technologies World 2023, we unveiled the next evolution in the Dell APEX portfolio to help customers go from ground-to-cloud by introducing Dell APEX Storage for Public Cloud. This family of native public cloud offers spans block, file, data protection and centralized management solutions that are multicloud by design. This means we built them specifically to address common multicloud challenges such as limited visibility, siloed management experiences, inconsistent security and unpredictable costs. These offers help solve these challenges and establish a universal storage layer, with common software-defined storage services deployed across public cloud, private cloud and edge locations so you can unleash your innovation with seamless workload mobility and streamlined multicloud operations.

In October, we expanded this family by adding block storage support for Microsoft Azure. And today, we’re excited to announce the next step in delivering on our strategy: the upcoming availability of Dell APEX Navigator, an integrated Dell APEX Console experience that supports Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS in this initial release. We will showcase Dell APEX Navigator at the AWS re:Invent conference later this month.

Unlock a New Standard of Excellence for Multicloud Management and Operations

Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage simplifies management and operations through an integrated experience for Dell APEX Storage for Public Cloud. With Dell APEX Navigator, ITOps teams streamline multicloud storage management, boost productivity and fortify multicloud operations, all in one unified location.

This combination of the world’s most scalable cloud block storage¹ and a centralized, intuitive management experience helps organizations:

• Optimize block storage expenditure in the public cloud. Retire committed cloud spend while saving up to 87%² compared to native AWS offerings. Experience the benefits of this solution, including 100X better performance,³ with a risk-free 90-day evaluation at no cost.⁴
• Simplify management and secure operations. Accelerate the initial deployment of Dell storage software within AWS, completed in just four steps⁵ and gain quick, easy access to day-to-day management tools. Plus, you’re protected with features like SSO, RBAC and federated identity, all built following Zero Trust principles.
• Make informed decisions based on intelligent insights. Centralize oversight of storage deployed in the public cloud through proven tools that monitor health, performance, capacity and subscriptions.
• Optimize workload placement. Seamlessly move data between Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and on-premises Dell PowerFlex storage to get workloads where you want them.⁶
• Integrate with familiar DevOps tools. APEX Navigator is built with an API-first architecture and the ability to automate with familiar infrastructure as code tools such as Terraform.

Dell was able to preview this solution with information technology solutions providers who shared their thoughts on the potential Dell APEX Navigator unlocks for their customers.

“Dell is ushering in a new era for multicloud storage management and operations with their Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage. For our joint customers, this is more than just a tool; it’s your partner in simplifying complex IT tasks in the public cloud.”

                                                   -Paul Clifford, President at Davenport Group

“As customers’ strategies and initiatives for multicloud adoption continue to increase, they are faced with complexities of properly storing, securing, and managing their data. With Dell APEX Navigator, customers get an all-encompassing solution that helps them alleviate the challenges of multicloud adoption and management, while providing key benefits such as automated provisioning and deployment, enhanced data security with zero trust, seamless data mobility, comprehensive monitoring across all clouds with AIOps and lifecycle management.”

                                                 -Vitaly Zvagelsky, Solutions Architect at CDW

“With Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage, Dell is breaking down IT silos and empowering customers by making complex IT tasks easy, such as seamlessly moving data across clouds and on-premises. We, at Dell Digital strongly believe that this is essential for a delightful customer experience journey.”

-Amit Thaker, Site Reliability Engineering Product Manager, Dell Digital

Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage is available for quoting on November 30 and will be generally available in December in the U.S. For more information on the risk-free 90-day evaluation,⁴ contact your sales representative.

This is just the beginning. We’re also previewing the integration of Dell APEX Navigator with Dell APEX File Storage for AWS (integration availability expected in the first half of 2024). Dell is committed to expanding our support for more storage offerings, more public cloud providers and more regions.

Enhancements to Dell APEX File Storage for AWS

Dell APEX File Storage for AWS, introduced at Dell Technologies World last May and built upon Dell’s #1 NAS solution⁷ and a Leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for the eighth consecutive year, is set to advance even further with an update slated for December 13. This release includes:

• Increased storage capacity within a single namespace, from 1PiB to up to 1.6PiB of hot data per cluster. This expanded capacity accommodates the needs of numerous workloads, from high-capacity requirements of AI and analytics to cloud burst, file sharing, disaster recovery and more.
• Expanded geo availability with additional AWS EC2 compute instance types available in more AWS regions.
• Added support for the Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS) protocol, enabling the expansion of analytics use cases in AWS and for QoS.

Want to Learn More? Meet Us at AWS re:Invent!

Dell experts will be available to answer all your questions at AWS re:Invent starting on November 27 in Las Vegas. Meet us in booth #507 or contact your sales representative to discuss the latest ways Dell Technologies is empowering businesses to adopt a multicloud-by-design approach.

Stop by to see how you can achieve breakthrough efficiency and multicloud versatility for your workloads with Dell APEX Navigator, Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS and Dell APEX Block Storage for Microsoft Azure. Explore the expansion of Dell’s APEX Storage for Public Cloud family of native public cloud offers with Dell APEX File Storage for AWS and Dell APEX Protection Storage for Public Cloud. Learn how you can unlock the value of AWS on-premises with AWS Outposts and Dell PowerFlex through our recently announced AWS Outposts Ready designation for Dell PowerFlex. Gain a better understanding of how Dell’s solutions establish the foundation for a universal storage layer that connects your multicloud locations. And see how you can bring the power of cloud platforms on-premises with an in-depth look at the Dell APEX Cloud Platform for Red Hat OpenShift.

Join us at AWS re:Invent 2023 to see how you can elevate your multicloud experience with Dell APEX.

¹ Based on Dell analysis of storage software deployable on AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, May 2023.
² Based on a Silverton Consulting white paper, sponsored by Dell Technologies, “Conceptual TCO: Dell APEX Block Storage for Public Cloud,” October 2023. Systems were configured to support IOPS performance of 7,740 KIOPS. The Dell solution assumes 4:1 thin provisioning vs thick provisioning for AWS EBS. Actual costs will vary depending on the thing provisioning factor used, region, data change/snapshot rates, capacity, type of storage and instances used, and other factors. Full report.
³  Based on Dell analysis comparing maximum IOPS published results, September 2023. APEX Block Storage for AWS maximum performance using a single AWS EC2 instance store (i3en.12xlarge), NVME attached storage, running 4KB IO size, 100% random read per SDS and assumes public cloud volumes consolidate performance of entire storage pool in a single volume. Actual results may vary.
⁴90-day evaluation: Applies to Dell licenses only for APEX Block Storage for AWS and APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage. Terms and conditions apply. For Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Storage view the Dell Cloud Service Offering Agreement and the Dell APEX Navigator for Multicloud Service Offering Description. For Dell APEX Block Storage for AWS, view Dell’s Software Evaluation Agreement.
⁵Based on internal Dell Testing, April 2023.
⁶ Available as a Technical Preview feature.
⁷ Dell is ranked #1 globally in NAS solutions for external OEM storage in IDC WW Quarterly Enterprise Storage Systems Tracker, 2023 Q2 historical release, September 7, 2023. Ranking by vendor revenue.