Qumulo

Qumulo is a Seattle-based storage vendor that sells what it calls data-aware scale-out NAS. Qumulo's flagship product is the Qumulo Core, a Linux-based software application that provides detailed data analytics. Qumulo was founded in 2012 by a group of engineers who had previously developed a successful storage system for Isilon Systems a decade earlier.

The Qumulo Core was officially launched to the public on March 16, 2015, although Qumulo began shipping systems to select customers in 2014. The Qumulo Core shows customers which pieces of data are being used, how often each piece of data is being used, and which applications are using the most data. By knowing which data is being used most often and which is being used rarely, companies can make informed decisions about moving and archiving data.

Qumulo Core's value is in its software, but Qumulo also sells hybrid flash storage systems packaged with the Qumulo Core.  Customers can also purchase the software independently and install it on their own hardware.

Qumulo targets the media and entertainment, life sciences, oil and gas, and higher education vertical markets.

Data-aware storage is a relatively new type of storage. Qumulo is among the pioneers of this type of storage, along with DataGravity and Tarmin. Qumulo's founders -- CEO Peter Godman, CTO Aaron Passey, and vice president of engineering Neal Fachan  --  helped develop Isilon's scale-out NAS. EMC purchased Isilon for $2.25 billion in 2010. The founders' success with Isilon helped establish credibility and secure investments for Qumulo.  Qumulo now may find itself competing against Isilon, as both companies attempt to offer competitive storage options. For instance, the University of Utah Scientific Computing and Imaging institute bought Qumulo Core systems to replace Isilon arrays in early 2016.