Netflix looks to IBM for cloud storage revamp

Netflix has deployed IBM storage systems in a bid to consolidate and manage growing data volumes. 

Netflix has selected a high-end storage appliance based on IBM’s XIV architecture. It is using the Gen3 cloud storage system to manage its databases, development, testing and back-up operations.

According to IBM, Netflix was able to replace 16 existing storage systems with just three XIV systems and reduce actual datacentre floor space used by about 80% as well as boost its database transactions-per-minute.

The media streaming giant is also testing IBM’s recently announced Spectrum Storage software, which is designed to optimise storage and ease management within hybrid cloud environments.

The move comes just a few weeks after Netflix said it would completely rethink its architecture. The company said rising demand for its service, which is partly deployed on Amazon Web Services’ infrastructure from multiple locations (initially just in the US) has prompted an effort to simplify its architecture so that it can scale more rapidly and reduce outages.