Category: technical writing

Containers are not built to persist data. When a container is created, it only runs the process it hosts and terminates. Any data that it creates or processes are also discarded when the container exits. Containers are built to be ephemeral as this makes them lightweight and helps to keep containerized workloads independent of a host’s filesystem which results in flexible, portable and platform-agnostic applications. These benefits, however, creates a few challenges as well when it comes to orchestrating storage for containerized workloads: 

• The need for appropriate tools that enable data sharing across immutable containers
• Options for backup and discovery in the event of application failure
• Means to get rid of stored data once it is no longer needed so that hosts can efficiently handle newer workloads 

In Kubernetes, PODs are also ephemeral. Kubernetes supports various options to persist data for containerized workloads in different formats. This article explores various tools and strategies that facilitate persistent data storage in Kubernetes.

An Overview of Disaggregated Storage

Infrastructure disaggregation allows organizations to use computing resources more effectively by enabling scalability and flexibility. Disaggregation involves decoupling data center resources of memory, compute and storage, so that each resource can be scaled and provisioned independently. Disaggregation is already widely adopted in cloud computing platforms, with various clouds offering storage systems that are completely independent of compute instances.

Disaggregated storage is a version of composable disaggregated infrastructure that offers scalable storage by connecting various physical storage devices over a network fabric to form a logical storage pool, in some cases on demand. Disaggregated storage enables the creation of dynamic environments where the compute and storage resources scale elastically based on the application’s workload. Separating storage and compute instances also means that storage can be scaled and managed without interfering with the availability of an application’s services. 

Introduction

Local storage volumes remain the preferred choice when it comes to the control of managing cluster services and achieving higher performance.

In this article, we highlight how Vadim Tkachenko, CTO, Percona, deployed a Percona Kubernetes Operator using OpenEBS Local Persistent Volumes for enhanced database efficiency. 

Kubernetes needs no introduction in this cloud-native world. It was born when I was a middle-aged man. Years later, I am still as young as earlier (take with a pinch of salt) while Kubernetes grew out to be a fine tool that outperformed other platforms in enabling operational efficiency and application resilience. 

In the past, I wrote several articles and guides on Kubernetes and supported platforms. But then, in the pursuit of appyness, there is no end to innovation.