FINDING A DATA MANAGEMENT & FILE SERVICE FIT FOR GROWTH

Kärcher had a self-hosted (on-premise) NetApp ONTAP system to run their file services, but they wanted a fresh approach with greater transparency. Kärcher needed to service more than 14,000 users and simply using standard cloud-native storage was not the best option. To add to the complexity, the migration had to be done live and within 3 months and it was paramount that business operations were not interrupted. 

Migrating such a large user base required specialized knowledge and a technology partner who is intimately familiar with Enterprise Cloud Migrations – this is where Zoi came in. 

Cloud Volumes ONTAP unites proven ONTAP data management with cloud flexibility. Kärcher primarily uses AWS as its cloud provider and it made sense to continue using the world’s leading cloud platform. 

Migrations like this also provide an excellent opportunity to work on reducing costs, improving security, and increasing the flexibility of current processes and solutions. 

Many detailed considerations on economic efficiency were also presented. Among others, it proved that the bring-your-own-license (BYOL) price model cost approximately 15% less than a pay-as-you-go model.

Data volumes remained low using intelligent tiering. NetApp FabricPool automatically moves files that are unused for 30 days to S3 storage; 80% of the data is currently on S3. The more data that is offloaded, the greater the savings. This data movement also helped to expand the backup horizon from 30 days to 6 months.

ONTAP in the public cloud delivers flexibility and performance. New projects quickly get the required storage capacity. Since the files are now also on AWS, the access paths are shorter. Distributed data storage and disaster recovery have increased security.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Access times are never short enough. Kärcher is exploring using NetApp Global File Cache between its Winnenden and Obersontheim locations and AWS Frankfurt. The software accelerates remote file loading. It streams a file from the cloud to a local site and makes it available there for future use. The technology allows a user to run CAD simulations with 10s of gigabytes of data easily in a home office. Kärcher can also employ the concept globally, for example with AWS in Northern Virginia for its companies in the United States and Mexico, or wherever data is needed.

This story was originally published here.

COMBINING THE INNOVATIVE WITH THE CLASSIC

Kärcher and Zoi discussed concepts and costs extensively in workshops with NetApp. It was determined that NetApp Cloud Volumes ONTAP for AWS was the perfect fit. Since the source and target of the migration were both ONTAP, the process would be simpler. 

A PAINLESS CHANGE TO A NEW PROVIDER AND OPERATION MODEL

File services never stop. Therefore, there could not be any interruptions in business operations. The right technology, a successful test run, and tight teamwork made it happen.

More than 30 ONTAP 7-Mode volumes were mapped to storage virtual machines. Kärcher, Zoi, and NetApp set up a step-by-step plan and worked through it together. Drives, authorizations, and connectivity had to be aligned worldwide. The data was transferred in blocks, meaning the size of the files, including gigabyte-heavy ZIP files, didn’t matter.

ABOUT KÄRCHER

Alfred Kärcher SE & Co. KG is headquartered in Winnenden, Germany, and has 150 subsidiaries in 80 countries. They are the world's leading supplier of cleaning technology and are probably best known for their high-pressure cleaners and range of products and services for professional cleaning of offices, hotels, and supermarkets. The family-owned company employs around 15,000 people and looks back on a company history spanning more than 85 years.

IT must add value. Flexibility, scalability, and new technologies help us to serve our business more stably and faster. In the end, it’s all about innovation and cost reduction.

NetApp knows how the cloud works, has true cloud products and understands the business context. Combining the innovative with the classic and matching it with customer needs is a NetApp core strength.

Migrating 190TB to Cloud Volumes ONTAP went without a glitch. Free weekends, no rollback, hardly any rework. We also moved volumes ourselves.

With 20% fewer storage costs, we can now hold backups longer and support users better.