This is Not a Drill: Why You Need to Migrate Off StorSimple Now

If your organization still has file data on StorSimple, you have a unique opportunity ahead of you. Effective December 31, 2022, Microsoft’s StorSimple service will reach end of life (EOL). Microsoft is being very transparent about what’s happening. Cloud management capabilities, customer support resources, repair services, replacement parts, software updates ­— all of it stops. More importantly, you’ll no longer have access to your live data and backups.

Yes, you read that correctly.

The good news is that IT can transform this potentially disruptive event into a major win by upgrading to a file data services platform that delivers enhanced file sharing, anywhere access, advanced ransomware protection, significant long-term savings, and more. Now that StorSimple has beaten NAS hardware in the race to extinction, you have a chance to move your organization’s file services architecture into the future.

Microsoft is offering its own migration services, and you should absolutely explore these options, but we’re confident that if you examine the bigger picture and long-term potential for savings, Nasuni will emerge as the clear choice.

Here are 6 Reasons you should initiate your migration from StorSimple to the Nasuni File Data Platform as soon as possible:

1. We make it easy for you

Experience matters. We’ve done these StorSimple migrations many times and at multiple levels, from tens and hundreds of TBs up to the PB scale. Our process is designed to facilitate an easy transition with minimal impact on end user performance and productivity. “I actually got an award,” says Michael Oehlert, Infrastructure Team Lead for TGI Fridays, one of our recent migrations, “because everyone was convinced it was going to be a nightmare, and no one even knew it happened. My bosses were asking when it was going to happen, and I replied, ‘We already did it. The job’s done.’”

2. You get cloud flexibility

When we initiate a migration, all file data is copied over from your StorSimple environment and associated Azure volume. There are no egress fees with Azure-to-Azure migrations, but Nasuni’s cloud portability gives you cloud freedom and optionality.

3. You get more out of your file data solution

Once your file data has been migrated, the Nasuni File Data Platform takes over. Virtual Nasuni Edges cache frequently accessed files locally for fast performance, but the gold or master copy of each file resides in the cloud. Files are continuously versioned to the cloud as they change and synchronize globally to accelerate file sharing and collaboration.

That’s only the start. Abiomed, a healthcare technology pioneer, switched to Nasuni to accelerate its transition off StorSimple, and IT was pleasantly surprised with added features such as the Nasuni Management Console. To them, Nasuni means no more late nights spent fixing frozen file shares.

Finally, Nasuni’s platform architecture allows you to add services like Ransomware Protection and Access Anywhere, which is designed for the hybrid workforce.

4. Ransomware protection is built-in

Although the new ransomware protection and detection technology is an add-on service, rapid ransomware recovery is included with the platform. Since files are stored as immutable objects in the cloud, customers impacted by a ransomware attack are able to point back to previous, unencrypted versions of files and get their teams back to work. Nasuni enables you to recover millions of files in minutes. And for organizations that would like to be able to quarantine and mitigate an attack as soon as possible, our in-line Ransomware Protection add-on service delivers an extra layer of defense.

5. You could shrink your cloud storage footprint

Microsoft has been warning its StorSimple customers about this deadline for years, and one of our customers jumped at the opportunity early. When they did so, they found that Nasuni compression and deduplication actually reduced their Azure footprint from 400 TBs to 350 TBs. They saved 50 TBs on day one.

6. You’re not too late…but you’re pushing it

This isn’t a repeat of Windows Server 2003 going EOS. I remember when that went into effect, and I was shocked at how many customers stuck with the technology, opting to cut a very, very large check to Microsoft support if something went wrong after the EOS deadline. StorSimple is different. It’s not just support for the physical box that’s expiring. It’s the service behind the box that’s going away. All of it will be gone on December 31^st. This isn’t an EOS scenario in which you can roll the dice and hope it works out. Your data is not going to be accessible anymore.

You do have until December 31^st, so you’re not too late, but you’re getting close. Migrating large file volumes out of StorSimple is not a weekend job. The more data you have, the more time it’s going to take. If you have upward of 400 TBs, you need to start the process as soon as possible.

Again, though, I wouldn’t look at this as an unfortunate event. As our customers have testified, it’s an opportunity to transition to a more powerful file data services platform.

One more note on the timing. We’re adding new customers at an unprecedented rate. This StorSimple deadline is only accelerating Nasuni adoption. Our Professional Services team is helping more customers than ever right now, and we are ready to help you turn this potentially disruptive event into an IT win. So, if you’re considering migrating off StorSimple to Nasuni, I’d reach out to a Nasuni representative as soon as possible at our dedicated StorSimple EOL email address. Someone will get back to you quickly, answer any questions, and help get you started on the way to a better file services future.

 
Contact Nasuni today at [email protected].