Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster

Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster

High availability Azure Stack HCI-certified micro-cluster systems

The Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster systems with Windows Server or Azure Stack HCI OS combine secure, flexible and scalable storage management with excellent storage performance. The micro-clusters allow 2 to 16 certified nodes, are available with AMD or Intel processors and can be purchased either as compact tower servers for office environments or as 1U rack servers for the server room. Our Deployment team is also happy to optionally support you with the pre-installation of Windows Server and the configuration of Azure Stack HCI.

The features of the Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster at a glance:
  • Highly available Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster with 2-16 nodes
  • Certified for Azure Stack HCI with Storage Spaces Direct (S2D)
  • Certified for Windows Server 2022 & Azure Stack HCI 21H2
  • Includes Intel Xeon CPUs (8 cores) or AMD CPUs (4 cores) with 16-256 GB of RAM
  • Compact tower format for office environments
  • 10 Gbit/s Ethernet network switches
  • Optional: Pre-installation of Windows Server 2022 or Azure Stack HCI
  • Optional: Best Practice configuration Azure Stack HCI (S2D)

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Branch offices and edge

Run workloads from branch offices or edge infrastructure. Deploy container-developed edge workloads and essential business applications in highly available virtual machines (VMs) and use Azure Monitor to have a perfect overview of your system status.

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Virtual Desktop Infrastructure

Support comprehensive VDI solutions with remote desktop services, high-availability VMs and integrated scalable storage solutions With Azure's update management solution, you connect virtual desktops to control your VDI configuration in the cloud.

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Trusted enterprise virtualization

Protect your security-critical workloads with certified hardware and virtualization-based security. In conjunction with the Azure Security Center, you also have access to behavioral analysis and reporting capabilities to help you manage rapidly changing workloads and threats at all times.

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General-purpose Kubernetes

By running a Kubernetes cluster on your HCI, you enable automatic deployment, scaling and management of container applications. For holistic monitoring, use Azure Monitor for Containers to get an accurate view of the performance and health of your clusters.

CertificateAzure Stack HCI certification

Our high-availability Azure Stack HCI micro-clusters also received Azure Stack HCI certification from Microsoft for Windows Server 2022 and Azure Stack HCI. This allows you to run virtualized applications in a modern hyperconvergent infrastructure (HCI). Due to our close cooperation with Microsoft and the systems' successful completion of the demanding validation program, the Azure Stack HCI micro-clusters are also listed in the Azure Stack HCI catalog. This means you benefit from certified hardware for Azure Stack HCI solutions.

 

High availability 2-node cluster

Should one node go offline (due to maintenance or component failure), the second node takes over and your systems continue to run seamlessly.

 

Extreme scalability

The Azure Stack HCI micro-clusters from Thomas-Krenn can be expanded to up to 16 nodes.

 

Ideal for SMEs

Easily transition to innovative hybrid applications with the compact and easy-to-manage Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster for small and medium businesses.

High availability Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster

The powerful hardware of the Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster in combination with the included Datacenter licenses of Windows Server 2019 provides you with a perfect all-round package for the secure management of your storage system. With the integrated Storage Spaces Direct (S2D) solution, you enjoy the benefits of software-defined storage in the form of a simple and flexibly scalable storage system.

The Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster consists of two servers and provides a high availability environment for your IT system. For instance, should one node go offline (maintenance or component failure), the second node can take over and your systems continue to run undisturbed. Data can optionally be mirrored four times using two nodes and Azure Stack HCI – providing double data security in one node. By reducing downtimes, this highly available 2-node system can save you money and headaches!

Support from our Presales team

On request, our Presales team service will handle the pre-installation and setup of Azure Stack HCI for you. The complete user-specific installation of the cluster and its commissioning via remote configuration Client Access Licenses (CALs) can also be booked on a user or device basis. Simply select the option in the order process and benefit from a convenient commissioning of your new server cluster.

High availability for SMEs

The Azure Stack HCI micro-clusters stand out with their simple, inexpensive standard network technology via 10 Gigabit Ethernet. Thanks to their compact format in the tower variants, the micro clusters can be easily integrated into office environments. This makes them ideal for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) such as doctors’ practices, law firms and tax consultancies, with sensitive customer data being securely stored on site in the highly available cluster. This allows SMEs to enjoy the advantages of highly available server systems and optimally protect their IT systems against downtime.

Licensing with Windows Server or Azure Stack HCI

You have flexibility when it comes to licensing Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster systems. If you prefer traditional licensing, you can purchase a Windows Server Datacenter license once and own it permanently. For a micro-cluster system with two highly available nodes, this roughly corresponds to a price of around € 2,500 per node.

If, on the other hand, you want to save on upfront costs, the second variant with licensing via an Azure Stack HCI subscription could be a good choice. Licensing is charged at € 9 per processor core per month.

Example Azure Stack HCI subscription: Example Windows Server Datacenter license:
Smallest system with 4 cores and 2 nodes: 4 cores x € 9 x 2 nodes
= € 72 per month		 Smallest system with two nodes: 2 nodes x € 2,500
= ca. € 5,000 one-time
Get a brief overview of our Azure Stack HCI micro-cluster systems (formerly S2D micro-clusters) in this video and experience the many benefits for yourself.
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