Contents

1. Distributed storage fabric consists of: -........................................................................................2

2. Nutanix App Mobility Fabric (AMF)............................................................................................20
 1.Distributed storage fabric consists of: -
1. Nutanix Storage Pool

Definition: -

A storage pool in Nutanix is a logical construct that combines storage resources (such as SSDs, HDDs, and
NVMe drives) from multiple nodes in a cluster into a single, unified pool of storage. This pooled storage
is then used to create and manage storage containers that hold virtual machine (VM) data and other
types of data.

1.1.Key Features: -

Aggregation of Resources:
The storage pool aggregates the physical storage devices from all nodes in the Nutanix cluster, providing
a large, shared pool of storage. This aggregation allows for efficient use of resources and simplifies
storage management.

Scalability:
As more nodes are added to the Nutanix cluster, their storage resources are automatically added to the
existing storage pool, enabling seamless scalability. This allows for easy expansion of storage capacity
without disrupting ongoing operations.

Redundancy and Resilience:

The storage pool leverages the distributed nature of the Nutanix Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF) to
ensure data redundancy and high availability. Data is distributed and replicated across multiple nodes,
providing fault tolerance and protection against hardware failures.

Performance Optimization:
Nutanix uses tiering within the storage pool to optimize performance. Frequently accessed data (hot
data) is stored on faster storage media (such as SSDs), while less frequently accessed data (cold data) is
stored on slower media (such as HDDs). This ensures that the most critical data is always quickly
accessible.

Data Services:
The storage pool provides various advanced data services such as deduplication, compression, and
erasure coding. These services help optimize storage efficiency and performance.
Components and Management

Physical Storage Devices:

The underlying physical storage devices (SSDs, HDDs, NVMe) are contributed by each node in the
Nutanix cluster to form the storage pool.

Storage Containers:
Within the storage pool, storage containers (or volumes) are created. These containers are logical
partitions that provide storage for virtual machines, applications, and other data. Containers inherit the
performance and data protection policies configured for the storage pool.

Cluster-Wide Management:
The storage pool is managed at the cluster level, allowing administrators to configure and monitor
storage resources across all nodes from a centralized interface. Nutanix Prism is the management tool
that provides this functionality, offering an easy-to-use interface for managing storage pools and other
cluster resources.

Data Distribution and Replication:

Data written to the storage pool is automatically distributed and replicated across multiple nodes. This
ensures that the loss of any single node does not result in data loss, as copies of the data exist on other
nodes within the cluster.
Benefits

Simplified Storage Management:

By aggregating all storage resources into a single pool, Nutanix simplifies storage management and
eliminates the need for traditional SAN or NAS solutions.

High Availability:
The distributed nature of the storage pool ensures high availability and data protection, making it
suitable for mission-critical applications.

Efficiency:
Advanced data services like deduplication and compression help maximize storage efficiency, reducing
the amount of physical storage required.

Performance:
Intelligent tiering and caching mechanisms within the storage pool ensure high performance for both
read and write operations.

1.2.Summary:
In Nutanix, a storage pool is a central concept that aggregates storage resources from across the cluster,
providing a unified, scalable, and resilient storage solution. This pool supports the creation of storage
containers that host VM data and other types of data, leveraging Nutanix's advanced data services and
distributed architecture to deliver high performance and efficient storage management.

2. Nutanix Container
Definition:
A container in Nutanix is a logical storage entity created within a storage pool. It acts as a namespace
and provides storage for various data objects, including virtual disks, VM data, and application data.
Containers leverage the aggregated storage resources of the storage pool and inherit the performance,
data protection, and optimization features configured at the storage pool level.

1.1.Key Features:

Logical Partitioning:
Containers allow for logical partitioning of the storage pool, enabling administrators to organize and
isolate different types of data. Each container can have its own set of policies and configurations.

Data Services:
Containers benefit from Nutanix’s advanced data services, including deduplication, compression, and
erasure coding, which help optimize storage efficiency and performance.

Performance Management:
Quality of Service (QoS) policies can be applied to containers to manage performance and ensure that
critical applications receive the necessary resources.

Scalability:
Containers can grow and shrink dynamically as data is written and deleted, making them highly flexible
and scalable.

Data Protection:
Nutanix provides various data protection mechanisms, including snapshots and replication, which can be
configured at the container level to ensure data resilience and availability.
Components and Management

Creation and Configuration:

Containers are created within a storage pool using the Nutanix management interface (Prism).
Administrators can specify configurations such as replication factor, compression, and deduplication
settings.

Namespace and Isolation:

Each container acts as a separate namespace, isolating the data it contains from other containers. This
isolation can be useful for multi-tenancy environments or separating different workloads.

Snapshots and Clones:

Containers support snapshots, which provide point-in-time copies of the data for backup and recovery
purposes. Clones can also be created from snapshots to quickly spin up new instances of data.

Data Placement and Tiering:

The Nutanix Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF) handles the placement of data within containers across
different nodes and storage tiers, ensuring optimal performance and resource utilization.

Access Control:
Access control policies can be defined for containers to manage permissions and ensure that only
authorized users or applications can access the data.

1.2.How Containers Work

Integration with VMs:

When a VM is created on a Nutanix cluster, its virtual disks (vDisks) are stored in a container. The
container provides the necessary storage backend for the VM’s data, leveraging the storage pool’s
resources.

Dynamic Allocation:
As the VM writes data, the container dynamically allocates space from the storage pool. This dynamic
allocation allows for efficient use of storage resources.

Policy Application:
Policies configured at the container level, such as deduplication and compression, are applied to the data
within the container. This ensures that all data benefits from the same optimization and protection
mechanisms.

1.3.Benefits

Simplified Management:
Containers simplify storage management by providing a logical way to organize and manage data within
a large storage pool. This reduces complexity and makes it easier to manage storage resources.

Flexibility:
The ability to create multiple containers with different configurations and policies provides flexibility in
managing different workloads and data types.

Efficiency:
Advanced data services like deduplication and compression help maximize storage efficiency, reducing
the overall storage footprint.

Resilience:
Data protection features like snapshots and replication ensure that data within containers is resilient and
can be quickly recovered in case of failures or disasters.
Summary
In Nutanix, a container is a logical storage construct within a storage pool that provides organization,
management, and optimization of data. Containers leverage the aggregated resources of the storage
pool and benefit from Nutanix’s advanced data services, offering flexible, efficient, and resilient storage
solutions for virtual machines and applications. They play a crucial role in the Nutanix HCI architecture by
simplifying storage management and enhancing the overall efficiency and performance of the storage
system.

2. Nutanix vDisk
Definition:
A vDisk in Nutanix is a virtual disk that serves as the virtual storage for VMs. vDisks abstract the physical
storage resources, providing a logical representation of storage that VMs interact with. They are the
basic units of storage that VMs use to store their data, including operating systems, applications, and
user data.

2.1.Key Features:

Virtualization:
vDisks abstract the physical storage, making it appear as a traditional disk drive to the VMs. This
abstraction allows VMs to operate independently of the underlying hardware.

Integration with VMs:

Each VM can have multiple vDisks, which are used to store different types of data such as system files,
application data, and user files. vDisks are attached to VMs through the hypervisor (such as VMware
ESXi, Microsoft Hyper-V, or Nutanix AHV).

Data Services:
vDisks benefit from Nutanix’s advanced data services, including deduplication, compression, and
snapshots, which enhance storage efficiency and performance.

High Availability and Fault Tolerance:

Nutanix’s Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF) ensures that vDisks are highly available and resilient. Data is
replicated across multiple nodes in the cluster, protecting against hardware failures.

Performance Optimization:
The DSF uses intelligent tiering and caching to optimize the performance of vDisks. Frequently accessed
data (hot data) is stored on faster storage media (such as SSDs), while less frequently accessed data (cold
data) is stored on slower media (such as HDDs).

2.2.Components and Management

Storage Containers:
vDisks reside within storage containers. A storage container is a logical construct within a storage pool
that organizes and manages vDisks and other data objects.

Snapshots and Clones:

vDisks support snapshots, which provide point-in-time copies of the data for backup and recovery
purposes. Clones can also be created from snapshots to quickly deploy new instances of VMs or
applications.

Metadata:
Nutanix DSF maintains metadata for each vDisk, tracking information such as the location of data blocks,
deduplication status, and compression settings. This metadata is distributed across the cluster to ensure
high availability and quick access.

Replication:
vDisks can be replicated to other clusters for disaster recovery purposes. Nutanix provides asynchronous
and synchronous replication options to meet different recovery point objectives (RPOs) and recovery
time objectives (RTOs).

2.3.How vDisks Work

Creation and Attachment:

When a VM is created, its virtual disks are instantiated as vDisks within a storage container. These vDisks
are then attached to the VM through the hypervisor, making them available for the VM to use.

Data Operations:
Read and write operations performed by the VM on its virtual disks are translated into operations on the
vDisks. The DSF handles these operations, ensuring that data is correctly placed, tiered, and replicated
across the cluster.

Data Protection:
vDisks benefit from Nutanix’s data protection features. Snapshots can be taken to capture the state of a
vDisk at a specific point in time, and these snapshots can be used for backup or cloning purposes.
Replication ensures that vDisks are protected against site failures.

2.4.Benefits

Simplified Management:
vDisks abstract the complexity of physical storage management, providing a simplified, logical interface
for managing VM storage.

Flexibility:
vDisks can be easily resized, moved, and cloned, offering flexibility in managing VM storage
requirements.

Efficiency:
Advanced data services like deduplication and compression help reduce the storage footprint of vDisks,
maximizing the use of available storage resources.
Resilience:
The DSF ensures that vDisks are resilient to hardware failures, providing high availability and robust data
protection.

2.5.Summary

In Nutanix’s hyper-converged infrastructure, a vDisk is a virtual disk associated with a VM that provides a
logical representation of storage. vDisks leverage the aggregated storage resources of the Nutanix cluster
and benefit from advanced data services, high availability, and performance optimizations provided by
the Distributed Storage Fabric. They play a vital role in simplifying storage management, enhancing
storage efficiency, and ensuring data resilience for virtual machines and applications.

3. Nutanix vBlock

In Nutanix, a "vBlock" (virtual block) is a core concept within their storage architecture. Nutanix employs
a hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) model, which integrates computing, storage, and networking
into a single system. The vBlock is a critical component of this model and is closely related to how data is
managed and stored within the Nutanix Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF).

3.1.Key Aspects of vBlocks in Nutanix:

Data Structure:
A vBlock represents a contiguous block of data, typically 1 MB in size. These blocks are the fundamental
units of data storage and management within the Nutanix system.

Data Distribution:
vBlocks are distributed across the Nutanix cluster. The Nutanix DSF ensures that these blocks are spread
across multiple nodes to provide high availability, redundancy, and fault tolerance.

Deduplication and Compression:

Nutanix uses various data optimization techniques such as deduplication and compression at the vBlock
level. This helps in efficient storage utilization and improves performance by reducing the amount of
data that needs to be read from or written to the storage media.

Replication and Snapshots:

vBlocks are also the units of data replication and snapshotting. Nutanix can create snapshots of vBlocks
to provide point-in-time recovery and can replicate these blocks to other clusters for disaster recovery
purposes.

Erasure Coding:
For enhanced data protection and storage efficiency, Nutanix can use erasure coding at the vBlock level.
This allows the system to provide similar levels of fault tolerance as traditional RAID systems but with
lower storage overhead.
I/O Optimization:
Nutanix employs intelligent tiering and caching strategies to optimize I/O performance. Frequently
accessed vBlocks may be stored in a faster storage tier (such as SSDs) while less frequently accessed
data may reside in slower storage (such as HDDs).

3.2.How vBlocks Work in Practice:

When data is written to a Nutanix system, it is divided into vBlocks. These vBlocks are then distributed
across the various nodes in the cluster. This distribution ensures that even if one node fails, the data
remains accessible from other nodes that contain copies of the affected vBlocks.
For instance, if a virtual machine (VM) writes data to the Nutanix storage, the data is split into 1 MB
vBlocks, each of which may be deduplicated, compressed, and then stored on different nodes. The
Nutanix DSF manages these blocks, ensuring optimal placement, replication, and access patterns to
maintain high performance and reliability.

3.3.Conclusion:

The concept of vBlocks is integral to Nutanix's approach to storage in a hyper-converged infrastructure.

By breaking down data into manageable, optimized, and distributed blocks, Nutanix ensures that the
storage system is highly resilient, efficient, and performant, meeting the needs of modern enterprise IT
environments.

4. Extent

Definition:
An extent is a contiguous range of logical blocks within a vBlock. Typically, an extent is a smaller unit of
data, often 4 KB in size, that is part of a vBlock.

Role in Data Management:

Extents are the smallest unit of data that Nutanix's Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF) manages. They are
used for various data operations such as read/write, deduplication, compression, and snapshots.

Optimization:
The DSF optimizes data storage by performing operations like deduplication and compression at the
extent level. This granularity helps in achieving better storage efficiency and performance.

I/O Operations:
When a virtual machine (VM) reads or writes data, these operations are performed on extents. The DSF
intelligently caches and tiers extents to optimize I/O performance.

5. Extent Group

Definition:
An extent group is a collection of extents that are logically grouped together within a vBlock. It can be
thought of as a higher-level abstraction that helps in organizing and managing extents.

Role in Data Management:

Extent groups simplify the management of extents by grouping related extents together. This
organization helps the DSF efficiently track and manage data location, replication, and recovery.

Snapshot and Replication:

Extent groups play a critical role in snapshots and replication. When a snapshot is taken, the metadata
of extent groups is captured, allowing the system to efficiently recreate the state of the data at a specific
point in time.

Metadata Management:
The DSF maintains metadata about extent groups to facilitate quick access and efficient management of
data. This metadata includes information about the location, size, and state of extents within each
group.

5.1.How Extents and Extent Groups Work Together:

When data is written to a Nutanix system, it is broken down into vBlocks, which are further subdivided
into extents. These extents are then organized into extent groups.
The DSF manages these extent groups, ensuring data is distributed across the cluster for redundancy
and performance.
For example, if a VM writes a file, that file is split into multiple extents, which are then grouped into
extent groups. The DSF tracks which extents belong to which extent groups and where they are stored
within the cluster.
This structure allows for efficient data operations such as deduplication (eliminating duplicate extents),
compression (reducing the size of extents), and replication (copying extent groups to other nodes or
clusters for redundancy)

5.2.Summary

In summary, in Nutanix's storage architecture:

Extents are small, contiguous units of data within a vBlock, typically 4 KB in size, which are managed for
efficient data operations.
Extent groups are collections of extents, providing a higher-level organization to simplify management
and optimize performance, replication, and recovery operations.
Together, these concepts help Nutanix's Distributed Storage Fabric deliver a highly efficient, resilient, and
performant storage system.

6. Performance acceleration

Performance acceleration in Nutanix’s hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) is achieved through various

mechanisms and technologies designed to optimize the performance of virtualized workloads. Nutanix
leverages its Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF) along with several other advanced features to ensure high
performance, efficiency, and low latency. Here’s a detailed look at the key components and strategies
Nutanix uses to accelerate performance:

1. Data Tiering
Nutanix implements a tiered storage architecture to optimize performance:

Hot Tier (SSD/NVMe): Frequently accessed data (hot data) is stored on high-performance SSDs or NVMe
drives, which provide low latency and high throughput.

Cold Tier (HDD): Less frequently accessed data (cold data) is stored on traditional HDDs, which offer
higher storage capacity at a lower cost.

Data is dynamically moved between tiers based on access patterns, ensuring that the most critical data is
always quickly accessible.

2. Caching
Nutanix uses caching mechanisms to accelerate read and write operations:

Content Cache (Extent Cache): Frequently accessed data blocks are cached in the RAM of each node.
This dramatically reduces read latency by serving data directly from memory.

Oplog (Opportunistic Log): Write operations are first logged in a high-performance SSD-based write
buffer called the Oplog. This provides immediate acknowledgment of writes, reducing write latency. The
data is then asynchronously flushed to the storage tier.

3. Data Locality
Data locality is a key performance optimization in Nutanix:

Local Read/Write: Nutanix ensures that VMs read and write data from the local node as much as
possible. This minimizes network latency and improves performance.

Dynamic Data Migration: If a VM moves to a different node, Nutanix dynamically migrates the relevant
data to the new local storage, maintaining data locality.

4. Compression and Deduplication

Advanced data reduction techniques enhance storage efficiency and performance:

Inline Compression: Data is compressed in real-time as it is written to the storage tier, reducing the
amount of physical storage used and improving read performance.

Post-Process Compression: Additional compression is applied to data that has already been written,
further reducing storage usage.
Inline Deduplication: Duplicate data blocks are identified and stored only once, reducing the amount of
data that needs to be read or written.

5. Erasure Coding (EC-X)

Erasure coding provides data protection with less storage overhead compared to traditional replication:

Reduced Storage Overhead: EC-X reduces the amount of storage required for redundancy while
maintaining data protection.

Performance Optimization: Erasure coding operations are performed in the background, minimizing the
impact on foreground I/O operations.

6. Quality of Service (QoS)

Nutanix allows administrators to define QoS policies to control the performance of individual workloads:

I/O Throttling: QoS policies can limit the IOPS (Input/Output Operations Per Second) or bandwidth
available to specific workloads, preventing any single workload from monopolizing resources.

Prioritization: Critical workloads can be prioritized to ensure they receive the necessary resources for
optimal performance.

7. Adaptive Replica Selection

To further optimize read performance, Nutanix uses adaptive replica selection:

Optimal Replica Selection: Nutanix dynamically selects the best replica (copy of data) to serve read
requests based on current workload and network conditions, ensuring the fastest possible response
times.

8. Hardware Acceleration
Nutanix takes advantage of modern hardware features to boost performance:

NVMe Drives: The use of NVMe drives offers significantly lower latency and higher throughput
compared to traditional SSDs.

RDMA (Remote Direct Memory Access): Nutanix supports RDMA to reduce latency and increase the
bandwidth of inter-node communication, especially beneficial for high-performance workloads.

9. Intelligent Data Placement

The DSF intelligently places data across the cluster:

Automatic Rebalancing: Nutanix automatically rebalances data to ensure even distribution across nodes,
preventing hotspots and ensuring consistent performance.
Proactive Healing: In the event of a hardware failure, Nutanix proactively re-replicates data to maintain
redundancy and performance.

Summary
Nutanix’s performance acceleration strategies encompass a combination of advanced software features
and hardware optimizations designed to deliver high performance, low latency, and efficient resource
utilization. By leveraging data tiering, caching, data locality, compression, deduplication, erasure coding,
QoS, adaptive replica selection, hardware acceleration, and intelligent data placement, Nutanix ensures
that virtualized workloads run efficiently and reliably in a hyper-converged infrastructure environment.

7. Nutanix Storage Optimization

Nutanix employs various storage optimization techniques to enhance performance, improve storage
efficiency, and ensure high availability in its hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI). These optimizations
are integral to Nutanix’s Distributed Storage Fabric (DSF) and are designed to make the most efficient use
of the available storage resources while maintaining robust performance and data protection. Here are
the key storage optimization techniques used by Nutanix:

1. Inline and Post-Process Compression

Compression reduces the amount of physical storage required by reducing the size of data:
Inline Compression: Data is compressed as it is written to the storage, reducing the amount of storage
needed and improving read performance due to reduced data sizes.
Post-Process Compression: Additional compression is applied to data that has already been stored,
further enhancing storage efficiency.

2. Inline and Post-Process Deduplication

Deduplication eliminates duplicate copies of repeating data, further reducing storage consumption:
Inline Deduplication: Duplicate data blocks are identified and eliminated in real-time as data is written to
the storage.
Post-Process Deduplication: Additional deduplication is performed on data that has already been
written, optimizing storage usage even further.

3. Erasure Coding (EC-X)

Erasure coding provides data protection with less storage overhead compared to traditional replication:
Reduced Storage Overhead: EC-X allows for the same level of data protection as replication but with less
storage required, typically reducing overhead from 2x or 3x to 1.5x.
Performance Optimization: Erasure coding is performed in the background to minimize the impact on
front-end performance.
8. How deduplication perform in both performance tier and capacity tier

Deduplication in Nutanix operates across different storage tiers—performance tier and capacity tier—
optimizing storage efficiency by eliminating duplicate data. Here's how deduplication works in both tiers:

Performance Tier Deduplication

Definition:
The performance tier typically consists of high-speed storage such as SSDs or NVMe drives, designed to
handle frequently accessed (hot) data with low latency and high throughput.

Inline Deduplication:
Process: Inline deduplication occurs in real-time as data is written to the performance tier. When data is
ingested, the system checks for duplicate data blocks before writing them to the SSDs or NVMe drives.

Mechanism: A hash is generated for each data block. If an incoming data block's hash matches an
existing hash in the performance tier, the system references the existing block instead of writing a new
one.

Impact on Performance:

Efficiency: Reduces the amount of data written to the high-performance storage, conserving space and
improving write performance.

Latency: Inline deduplication introduces minimal latency due to the high processing power of modern
SSDs and NVMe drives.

Benefits:

Space Savings: Reduces the physical storage required, allowing more data to fit into the performance
tier.

Enhanced Read Performance: By storing unique blocks only once, deduplication can improve cache hit
rates, leading to faster read operations.

Capacity Tier Deduplication

Definition:
The capacity tier consists of higher-capacity, lower-cost storage such as HDDs, designed to handle less
frequently accessed (cold) data.

Post-Process Deduplication:

Process: Deduplication in the capacity tier often occurs after data is written (post-process deduplication).
This method is applied to data that has already been ingested and stored.
Mechanism: The system periodically scans the stored data, identifies duplicates, and replaces redundant
copies with references to a single data block.

Impact on Performance:

Resource Intensive: Post-process deduplication can be resource-intensive, as it requires scanning and

processing existing data. However, it is typically scheduled during off-peak hours to minimize impact on
system performance.

Latency: Since deduplication is performed after initial data writes, it does not affect the immediate write
latency but can impact system performance during the deduplication process.

Benefits:

Storage Efficiency: Significantly reduces the amount of physical storage needed, maximizing the storage
capacity of the HDDs.

Improved Storage Utilization: Frees up space in the capacity tier, allowing for more efficient storage
management and longer retention periods for data.

Combining Inline and Post-Process Deduplication

In Nutanix’s architecture, the combination of inline and post-process deduplication ensures optimal
storage efficiency across both performance and capacity tiers:

Inline Deduplication in Performance Tier:

Ensures that the performance tier is utilized efficiently by eliminating duplicates as data is written.
Maintains high performance with minimal impact on write latency.

Post-Process Deduplication in Capacity Tier:

Further optimizes storage by processing and removing duplicates after data has been written.
Ensures that long-term storage is used efficiently without affecting immediate data write operations.

Summary
Deduplication in Nutanix is designed to maximize storage efficiency while maintaining high performance.
In the performance tier, inline deduplication minimizes write amplification and enhances storage
utilization with minimal latency impact. In the capacity tier, post-process deduplication ensures that
long-term data storage is optimized, freeing up space and improving overall storage efficiency. By
leveraging both inline and post-process deduplication, Nutanix provides a balanced approach to
managing storage resources effectively across different tiers.

9. Data Protection Feature: -

Nutanix offers various data protection and disaster recovery solutions, each tailored to meet different
requirements for recovery point objectives (RPO) and recovery time objectives (RTO). Below is an
overview of Nutanix Cloud Connect, Time Stream, Async, NearSync, and Sync:

1.1. Nutanix Cloud Connect

Overview:
Nutanix Cloud Connect provides a seamless way to use public clouds as backup targets, enabling
customers to leverage the cloud for disaster recovery and long-term data retention.

Key Features:

Cloud Backup: Allows customers to back up their on-premises data to public cloud services like AWS and
Microsoft Azure.

Data Protection: Ensures that data is securely transmitted and stored in the cloud, providing an
additional layer of protection.

Ease of Use: Integrated into the Nutanix Prism management interface, simplifying the setup and
management of cloud backups.

1.1. Time Stream

Overview:

Time Stream is Nutanix’s implementation of space-efficient snapshots for data protection and recovery.

Key Features:

Space-Efficient Snapshots: Uses redirect-on-write technology to create point-in-time copies of data

without consuming significant storage space.

Frequent Snapshots: Enables the creation of frequent snapshots to provide multiple recovery points,
reducing data loss in case of a failure.

Policy-Based Management: Allows administrators to create snapshot policies based on RPO and
retention requirements.

1.2. Async Replication

Overview:
Asynchronous (Async) replication is used for disaster recovery scenarios where some data loss is
acceptable. It provides a balance between data protection and performance.
Key Features:

Periodic Replication: Data changes are replicated to a remote site at configurable intervals (e.g., every
15 minutes, 1 hour).

Recovery Point Objective (RPO): RPO is determined by the interval set for replication, typically
measured in minutes or hours.

Use Cases: Suitable for less critical workloads where a small amount of data loss is acceptable.

1.3. NearSync

Overview:
NearSync replication provides a middle ground between asynchronous and synchronous replication,
offering low RPOs with minimal impact on performance.

Key Features:

Low RPO: Replication intervals can be as low as 1 minute, reducing data loss in the event of a failure.

Efficient Replication: Minimizes the impact on performance by efficiently capturing and transmitting
changes.

Use Cases: Ideal for workloads that require more frequent data protection than traditional async
replication but do not need zero data loss.

1.4. Sync Replication

Overview:

Synchronous (Sync) replication ensures zero data loss by replicating data in real-time to a remote site,
providing the highest level of data protection.

Key Features:

Zero RPO: Ensures that all data changes are immediately replicated to the remote site, guaranteeing no
data loss.

Immediate Failover: In the event of a failure, workloads can failover to the remote site with no data loss.

Use Cases: Suitable for mission-critical workloads that require the highest level of data protection, such
as financial transactions or healthcare records.
 1.5. Snapshots

Overview:

Snapshots are a fundamental feature for data protection, providing point-in-time copies of virtual
machines (VMs) and data.

Key Features:

Point-in-Time Copies: Capture the state of a VM or dataset at a specific point in time.

Space Efficiency: Nutanix snapshots are space-efficient, leveraging metadata and redirect-on-write to
minimize storage impact.

Fast Creation and Restoration: Snapshots can be created and restored quickly, providing rapid recovery
options.

Integration with Backup Solutions: Can be integrated with backup and recovery solutions for enhanced
data protection.

1.6.Summary

Nutanix offers a variety of data protection features to cater to different business needs:

Nutanix Cloud Connect: Utilizes public cloud services for backup and disaster recovery, providing secure
and cost-effective offsite data protection.

Time Stream: Offers space-efficient snapshots for frequent, low-impact data protection and recovery.

Async Replication: Provides periodic data replication with configurable RPOs, suitable for less critical
applications.

NearSync: Balances frequent replication with minimal performance impact, ideal for applications
needing near-continuous data protection.

Sync Replication: Ensures zero data loss with real-time replication, essential for mission-critical
workloads.

Snapshots: Provides quick, space-efficient point-in-time copies of data for backup, recovery, and cloning.

These features collectively ensure comprehensive data protection, disaster recovery, and business
continuity for enterprises using Nutanix’s hyper-converged infrastructure.
2. Nutanix App Mobility Fabric (AMF)
Nutanix App Mobility Fabric (AMF) encompasses a suite of features aimed at enhancing workload
mobility, resource optimization, and disaster recovery across heterogeneous IT environments. Here's a
breakdown of the key capabilities:

1.7.Intelligent VM Placement and Migration

Overview:

AMF leverages machine learning algorithms and analytics to intelligently place and migrate virtual
machines (VMs) across the infrastructure.
Key Features:

Predictive Analytics: Analyzes historical workload patterns and resource utilization to predict future
demands and optimize VM placement.

Dynamic Resource Allocation: Automatically adjusts VM placement based on real-time performance

metrics and workload requirements.

Cost Optimization: Considers factors like licensing costs, resource availability, and performance
requirements to optimize VM placement.

1. Hypervisor Conversion

 Convert a cluster from ESXI to AHV

 All VMs are automatically converted
 VM downtime is host-independent and less than five minutes. Automatically being
power on once conversion is over.

Overview:

Nutanix AMF supports seamless conversion of VMs between different hypervisors, enabling flexibility
and interoperability.

Key Features:

Hypervisor Agnosticism: Supports conversion between various hypervisors such as Nutanix AHV,
VMware ESXi, and Microsoft Hyper-V.

Automated Conversion: Streamlines the conversion process with automated tools and workflows,
reducing manual effort and errors.

Application Compatibility: Ensures application compatibility and performance post-conversion through

validation and testing mechanisms.
 2. Cross-Hypervisor Disaster Recovery

 Migrate VMs from one hypervisor to another

 Achieved by taking and replicating snapshots and then recovering VMs from snapshots

Overview:

AMF enables disaster recovery (DR) capabilities across heterogeneous hypervisor environments,
ensuring business continuity and data protection.

Key Features:

Multi-Hypervisor Support: Facilitates DR between different hypervisors, allowing organizations to

choose the most suitable DR target.

Synchronous and Asynchronous Replication: Supports both synchronous and asynchronous replication
methods for data consistency and RPO/RTO optimization.

Automated Failover and Failback: Automates the failover and failback processes across different
hypervisor environments, minimizing downtime and data loss.

DR Orchestration: Provides centralized DR orchestration and management, simplifying DR planning,

testing, and execution.

Benefits of Nutanix App Mobility Fabric

Flexibility: AMF enables organizations to adopt a multi-hypervisor strategy without being tied to a single
vendor, enhancing flexibility and choice.

Efficiency: By optimizing VM placement and resource utilization, AMF improves infrastructure efficiency
and reduces operational overhead.

Resilience: Cross-hypervisor disaster recovery capabilities ensure that organizations can maintain
business continuity even in the event of infrastructure failures or disasters.

Simplicity: Nutanix's integrated approach to workload mobility and disaster recovery simplifies
management and reduces complexity, enabling IT teams to focus on strategic initiatives.

Conclusion
Nutanix App Mobility Fabric offers a comprehensive suite of capabilities for intelligent VM placement
and migration, hypervisor conversion, and cross-hypervisor disaster recovery. These features empower
organizations to optimize their infrastructure, enhance resilience, and adapt to changing business
requirements in a dynamic IT landscape.
Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling (ADS) (Intelligent VM Placement and Migration continuity)

 Automatic on every AHV cluster.

 Monitors data points for VM placement and migration
 Automatically makes migration decisions to avoid hotspots
Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling (ADS) is a feature within the Nutanix Acropolis Operating System (AOS)
that optimizes the placement of virtual machines (VMs) and workloads across the Nutanix cluster. It
uses machine learning algorithms and real-time analytics to ensure that VMs are placed on the most
suitable hosts within the cluster, taking into account factors such as resource utilization, performance
requirements, and cluster capacity. Here’s a deeper dive into the key aspects of Acropolis Dynamic
Scheduling:

1. Resource Optimization

Automatic Balancing: ADS continuously monitors resource utilization across the cluster and dynamically
redistributes VMs to balance workload demands and optimize resource utilization.

Efficient Utilization: It ensures that compute, storage, and network resources are utilized efficiently
across the cluster, maximizing performance and minimizing waste.

2. Performance Management

Performance-Aware Placement: ADS considers performance metrics such as CPU, memory, and storage
I/O to determine the best placement for VMs, ensuring that critical workloads receive the necessary
resources.

Load Balancing: It redistributes VMs based on real-time performance data to prevent hotspots and
bottlenecks, maintaining consistent performance across the cluster.

3. Capacity Planning

Predictive Analysis: ADS uses historical data and predictive analytics to forecast future resource
demands and capacity requirements, allowing proactive capacity planning and expansion.

Scale-Out Architecture: It supports seamless scale-out of the Nutanix cluster by intelligently distributing
VMs across new nodes, ensuring that resources are efficiently utilized as the cluster grows.

4. Automation and Orchestration

Policy-Based Management: Administrators can define policies and rules for workload placement and
resource allocation, automating routine tasks and ensuring consistent application of best practices.
Integration with Nutanix Prism: ADS is tightly integrated with Nutanix Prism, providing a unified
management interface for monitoring and managing workload placement, performance, and capacity
across the cluster.

5. Machine Learning and AI

Intelligent Decision-Making: ADS leverages machine learning algorithms and AI techniques to make
intelligent decisions about workload placement and resource allocation, adapting dynamically to
changing workload patterns and cluster conditions.

Continuous Improvement: It continuously learns from historical data and performance metrics to refine
its algorithms and improve decision-making over time, optimizing cluster efficiency and performance.

Benefits of Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling

Efficiency: ADS optimizes resource utilization and workload placement, maximizing the efficiency of the
Nutanix cluster and reducing infrastructure costs.

Performance: By ensuring that VMs are placed on the most suitable hosts and balancing workload
demands, ADS enhances overall performance and responsiveness.

Scalability: It enables seamless scale-out of the Nutanix cluster by intelligently distributing VMs and
resources across new nodes, supporting business growth and expansion.

Automation: ADS automates routine tasks and workload management, freeing up IT resources and
enabling administrators to focus on strategic initiatives.

Resilience: By dynamically adapting to changing workload conditions and cluster capacity, ADS enhances
the resilience and reliability of the Nutanix infrastructure, minimizing downtime and disruptions.

Conclusion
Acropolis Dynamic Scheduling (ADS) is a powerful feature within the Nutanix Acropolis Operating
System (AOS) that optimizes workload placement, resource utilization, and capacity planning across the
Nutanix cluster. By leveraging machine learning algorithms, real-time analytics, and policy-based
management, ADS ensures efficient, high-performance operation of the Nutanix infrastructure,
supporting business agility, scalability, and resilience.