Lenovo ThinkAgile Series – Flexible and Scalable Software Defined Infrastructure
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If you are exploring hyperconverged infrastructure solutions, Lenovo’s ThinkAgile line of hyperconverged platforms should be on your shortlist for consideration. Lenovo’s flexible line of hyperconverged infrastructure and software defined storage solutions provide customers with a robust hardware platform and flexibility in the choice of software stack and processor.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a technology giant manufacturing personal computers, servers, storage, smartphones, and more. Headquartered in Hong Kong, Lenovo is one of the largest technology companies in the world. They debuted its line of hyperconverged products in 2020 in partnership with Nutanix, Microsoft, and VMWare, and have continued to improve and expand the solutions since.
Lenovo ThinkAgile Platform
The Lenovo ThinkAgile appliances are storage and compute nodes designed to simplify hyperconverged infrastructure deployments. The platform combines Lenovo’s proven storage, compute, and networking hardware with software from Nutanix, Microsoft, and VMware. The solutions are designed for simplified implementation, outstanding reliability, and scalability. The units are fully integrated, configured, and tested by Lenovo before delivery, to increase the speed of deployment. The entire hardware and software stack is backed by Lenovo’s support services.
Lenovo Software Defined Infrastructure solutions come in four product lines:
ThinkAgile HX Series with Nutanix
Lenovo’s ThinkAgile HX Series is preconfigured with Nutanix Enterprise Cloud software. This includes Nutanix’s license-free, enterprise-class virtualization platform, AHV. Lenovo’s ThinkAgile Orchestrator software solution is integrated with Nutanix Prism to automate configuration changes at the virtualization layer, as well.
The HX series is optimized for a broad set of HCI use cases including Remote Office / Branch Office, virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI), email, and edge computing. The latest generation HX products ship with 4th Gen processors from AMD. Intel options are available, as well.
ThinkAgile SX Series
Lenovo’s ThinkAgile SX for Microsoft Azure Stack Hub allows customers to enable Microsoft’s Azure public cloud services from their own data center. The solution is perfect for customers that want public cloud services coupled with the security of an on-premise data center, or are looking to easily move applications and data between public and provide clouds.
The SX series combines Lenovo SR650 servers and RackSwitch Ethernet switches for high-performance, software-defined infrastructure. The solution is complete with Intel Xeon processors and is an Intel Select Solution.
ThinkAgile MX Series
Lenovo’s ThinkAgile MX Series is a second solution from Microsoft. These systems come with pre-installed Azure Stack HCI OS combined with ThinkAgile Advantage support. The nodes are tested and certified for Azure, to ensure a simple and flawless deployment. The nodes now support AMD EPYC 2nd and 3rdgeneration processors to enable higher performance and higher density deployments.
ThinkAgile VX Series
Lenovo’s ThinkAgile VX series is their collaboration with VMware’s vSAN hyperconverged storage software. The VX series is preloaded with VMware vSAN software and tested before it leaves Lenovo’s factory. Customers can start with as few as three nodes and add more storage or additional nodes to scale. Lenovo’s VX series includes fully integrated lifecycle management capabilities, ensuring that hardware and software can be deployed in compliance with VMware’s standards.
The solutions ship with AMD’s 4th Gen AMD EPYC or 4th Gen Intel Xeon processors. CRN named Lenovo’s ThinkAgile VX series as one of “The 10 Hottest Hyperconverged Infrastructure Systems”.
Lenovo TruScale for Flexible Procurement
Lenovo offers flexibility in the way customer procure their services. Lenovo’s TruScale Infrastructure Services are a flexible IT procurement plan that allows customers to pay as they go. This infrastructure as a service (IaaS) model allows customers to procure hyperconverged infrastructure similar to the way they purchase cloud.
Service and Support
Lenovo combines reliable hardware and flexible software options, with end-to-end service and support options. While implementation is generally simple with the ThinkAgile series, given that the hardware and software are fully integrated and tested, customers that need additional support can leverage Lenovo’s Infrastructure Services. These services provide solution design and implementation worldwide.
Additionally, Lenovo’s ThinkAgile products can be purchased with Lenovo’s Support Services. These provide 24x7x365 support with access to Lenovo technicians for fast problem resolution. These services include support for third-party software like Nutanix, Microsoft, and VMware. For customers that would like additional support, Lenovo also has a managed services option where they will remotely monitor and update your deployment.
Conclusion
For customers looking for a flexible hyperconverged solution, Lenovo’s ThinkAgile Software Defined Infrastructure solutions are a great option. Support from leading software and cloud providers, coupled with flexible procurement options, and excellent support, make Lenovo an option to seriously consider for hyperconvergence use cases.
