Report:
Magic Quadrant for Distributed File Systems and Object Storage
How does Gartner define the Distributed File Systems and Object Storage market in 2023?
Gartner defines distributed file systems and object storage as software and hardware appliance products that offer object and distributed file system technologies for unstructured data. Their purpose is to store, secure, protect and scale unstructured data with access over the network using file and object protocols, such as Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), Network File System (NFS) and Server Message Block (SMB). Gartner's view of the market is focused on transformational technologies or approaches delivering on the future needs of end users, not the market as it is today.
Key Facts for Magic Quadrant for Distributed File Systems and Object Storage in 2023
- Publication Date: 1 November 2023
- Document ID: G00781198
- Coverage: Global
- Authors: Chandra Mukhyala, Jeff Vogel
- Core Purpose: Distributed file systems and object storage platforms serve as the foundation for where the majority of enterprise unstructured data is stored and analyzed to drive business insights and outcomes. I&O leaders can use this research to shortlist vendors for unstructured data management.
Strategic Planning Assumptions
- By 2027, 60% of infrastructure and operations leaders will implement hybrid cloud file deployments, up from 20% in early 2023.
- By 2027, at least 40% of organizations will deploy data storage management solutions for classification, insights and optimization, up from 15% in early 2023.
- By 2028, 70% of file and object data will be deployed on a consolidated, unstructured data storage platform, up from 35% in early 2023.
- By 2028, 100% of storage products will include cyberstorage capabilities focused on active defense beyond recovery from cyber events, up from 10% in early 2023.
How was the Distributed File Systems and Object Storage market evolved in 2023?
- Markets for distributed file systems and object storage have merged into a single unified market
- Vendors are offering single platforms to manage all unstructured data with both file and object services
- Amazon S3 API has become the industry standard for object storage protocols
- Hybrid cloud storage capabilities are evolving to enable data mobility between on-premises and public cloud
- Cyber resilience features are expanding from recovery to detection and active defense against ransomware
- Storage-as-a-service (STaaS) models are gaining traction as alternatives to owned infrastructure
- Innovation from startups using clean-sheet designs is gaining acceptance in formerly risk-averse enterprises
- Vendors are providing indexing and cataloging tools with custom metadata capabilities
- Organizations are seeking flexible deployment options including appliances, software-only, and cloud-based solutions
- Focus is shifting from basic scale and performance to data management, governance, and cyber resilience
What product features are required to be included in this year's evaluation?
- Provides a POSIX file system, a flat namespace or a key-value store that can span multiple servers/nodes to scale performance and/or capacity.
- Data and metadata are distributed over multiple nodes in the cluster to handle availability and data protection in a self-healing manner.
What are the common features of top products in the Distributed File Systems and Object Storage space?
- Distributed file systems storage presents a single namespace from capacity pooled across multiple storage nodes based on shared nothing or shared everything architectural principles.
- Object storage should house data in structures called "objects" that are in a flat namespace. Each stored object has a unique identifier plus detailed metadata that makes it easy to find among potentially billions of other objects.
- Serve clients through standard network access protocols like NFS and SMB, or RESTful HTTP APIs such as Amazon S3.
- Scale throughput and elastic capacity nondisruptively with the addition or subtraction of each new node to the cluster.
Scope Exclusions
- Products exclusively offered as-a-service
- Products designed as pass-through solutions where data is permanently stored elsewhere
- Products that rely on third-party company's product for commercial usability
- Products without file and/or object protocol access to common namespace/file system
- Products without fully distributed architecture for data and metadata
- Products that cannot handle failures gracefully without impacting availability
- Products with single file system capacity under 500TB
- Products with global namespace under 2PB
- Products with clusters spanning four nodes or fewer
- Products without horizontal scaling capability
Inclusion Criteria
Vendors must, among other requirements:
- Revenue above $25 million or $15 million with 30% YoY growth rate (5/1/2022-4/30/2023)
- At least 150 active production customers each consuming more than 500TB of raw capacity
- Production use in at least three out of four major geographies with 25 customers of at least 500TB each
- Deployed across at least five out of seven use cases
- Designed for primarily on-premises workloads
- Not exclusively an as-a-service offering
- Vendor owns storage software intellectual property or is top 10 contributor to open-source community
- Does not rely on third-party product for commercial usability
- Product generally available before 30 April 2023
Ability to Execute — Relative Weighting
- Product or Service - High
- Overall Viability - High
- Sales Execution/Pricing - Medium
- Market Responsiveness/Record - High
- Marketing Execution - Low
- Customer Experience - High
- Operations - Low
Completeness of Vision — Relative Weighting
- Market Understanding - High
- Marketing Strategy - Medium
- Sales Strategy - High
- Offering (Product) Strategy - High
- Business Model - Medium
- Vertical/Industry Strategy - Medium
- Innovation - High
- Geographic Strategy - Medium
FAQs
Q: What does this research cover?
A: This research evaluates vendors offering distributed file systems and object storage solutions for enterprise unstructured data. It covers software and hardware appliance products that offer object and distributed file system technologies with capabilities for storing, securing, protecting and scaling unstructured data accessed via file protocols (NFS, SMB) and object protocols (Amazon S3). The research assesses vendors on their ability to execute and completeness of vision across product capabilities, market presence, customer experience, and strategic direction.
Q: Who should use this research?
A: Infrastructure and operations (I&O) leaders responsible for unstructured data management should use this research to shortlist and evaluate vendors for distributed file systems and object storage solutions. This is particularly relevant for organizations looking to consolidate file and object workloads on a single platform, implement hybrid cloud strategies, enhance cyber resilience capabilities, or adopt storage-as-a-service models. The research helps identify vendors that align with specific use cases including backup/archive, analytics, high-performance computing, AI/ML workloads, and cloud-native applications.
Q: What are the mandatory features of vendors included in this market?
A: Vendors must provide a POSIX file system, flat namespace, or key-value store that spans multiple servers/nodes to scale performance and/or capacity. Additionally, data and metadata must be distributed over multiple nodes in the cluster to handle availability and data protection in a self-healing manner.
Q: What are some reasons for not being included in this report?
A:
- Revenue below threshold ($25 million or $15 million with 30% YoY growth)
- Fewer than 150 active production customers with 500TB+ each
- Limited geographic presence (fewer than three out of four major geographies)
- Limited use case deployment (fewer than five out of seven use cases)
- Exclusively as-a-service offering
- Reliance on third-party products for commercial usability
- Not owning software intellectual property or being top 10 open-source contributor
- Product designed as pass-through to other storage locations
- Lack of distributed architecture for data and metadata
- Product not generally available before April 30, 2023
Q: What differentiates Ability to Execute vs. Completeness of Vision?
A: Ability to Execute reflects market conditions and analyzes vendor capabilities across business functions including product quality, sales effectiveness, customer experience, and operational efficiency. It measures current market performance and execution. Completeness of Vision is based on direct vendor interactions and analyzes the vendor's view of market evolution, future direction, and strategic planning. It evaluates how well vendors understand and can shape future market needs rather than current execution.
Reference
- Gartner, Magic Quadrant for Distributed File Systems and Object Storage, 1 November 2023, ID G00781198
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