OPINION – One of the key selling points to software defined storage (SDS) solutions is the ability to manage the storage infrastructure independent of hardware. However, because the software still requires hardware to run, many organizations are finding performance bottlenecks, inefficiencies and limited benefits from running these SDS solutions on hardware not optimized for these environments.Author: Philip Roberto, CEO of Savage IO“Software defined storage solutions allow organizations to leverage existing investment in commodity equipment while gaining the benefits of new data services in a flexible and cost-effective manner.”“To fully leverage SDS solutions, organizations need to implement an SDS-optimized storage server without the inherent physical bottlenecks or software incompatibilities that plague traditional storage hardware designs in conjunction with their software solutions.”“Software engineers continue to raise the bar as to what SDS solutions can offer, but quite often these attributes can’t fully be realized in real-world applications because the hardware they are running on simply wasn’t designed to handle what’s being asked of it.”“What organizations looking to maximize their investment in SDS need is a hardware storage platform that is designed to complement the software solution of choice. SDS needs a platform like our solution, SavageStor. This solution cannot only host the software itself, but also provides capacity in a high-performing, highly reliable package.”About SavageStorDesigned without the inherent physical bottlenecks, SavageStor is an all-in-hardware (server, storage, and controller) solution that would satisfy the ruthless capacity and I/O requirements of cloud storage, big data analytics, HPC, enterprise and ROBO environments.SavageStor systems are assembled in the U.S. with top-of-the-line components from audited suppliers, to omit cross talk, packet loss, and power jitter. SavageStor systems are sold software-free and would work seamlessly with existing networks, whether they incorporate NAS, SAN, or other protocols. SavageStor can combine HDD or SSD in any configuration of SATA or SAS hard drives, depending on user workload.About Savage IO and CEO Phillip RobertoCofounded by CEO Phillip Roberto, Savage IO is based in Rochester, NY, Savage IO designs, manufactures, and sells high-performance storage, networking, and server systems for demanding I/O environments. The company was founded in 2010 to build a mechanically flawless hardware architecture without the inherent physical bottlenecks.Philip Roberto led the design, implementation, and production of the SavageStor product line. A nine-year veteran of the U.S. Navy, Mr. Roberto’s career highlights include serving as the leading petty officer in the Fleet Operations Center, responsible for Naval Computer and Telecommunications for the entire Pacific Fleet. Prior to starting Savage IO, he spent ten years in IT administration, managing storage, networking, virtualization, and cloud computing.