HCI combines all aspects of the data center—compute, storage, networking, and virtualization—into a single software-defined platform made up of multiple nodes. All data center functions are virtualized and merged onto commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) server hardware connected over standard Ethernet. Server nodes are collected into clusters, which are pools of compute and storage resources, similar to cloud infrastructure. Data and software are then distributed across the cluster, which enhances availability, durability, and resilience.
Hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) virtualizes and integrates compute, storage, and networking into a single unified system with centralized management. This consolidation and modernization of IT infrastructure enables businesses to manage a growing volume of data and range of workloads with agility at a lower cost. This is opposed to a traditional, three-tier data center infrastructure, where servers, storage (SAN/NAS), and networking are siloed and separately managed.