vSAN — VMware vSAN (formerly Virtual SAN)
Definition
VMware's software-defined storage solution that pools local SSDs/NVMe across multiple ESXi hosts to create a shared storage fabric without external SAN/NAS hardware.
Context & Usage
vSAN enables hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) on VMware. Each ESXi host contributes local storage to the cluster pool. Two tiers: cache (high-DWPD NVMe) + capacity (standard NVMe or SAS SSDs). Minimum 3-node cluster; scales to 64 nodes. Major adoption in mid-market and enterprise virtualization. Replaces traditional 3-tier (compute + storage + network) architecture.
Examples
- Dell vSAN Ready Node R740xd
- HPE SimpliVity with vSAN integration
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