Nutanix is expanding the infrastructure choices available to customers with a new solution that combines Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure (NCI), including the Nutanix AHV hypervisor, with NetApp ONTAP storage.
Planned for availability this fall with an upcoming NCI release, the solution is designed to connect Nutanix compute powered by AHV with NetApp ONTAP storage using NFS. For organisations reassessing their virtualisation strategies, this creates a route to adopt Nutanix while continuing to use existing NetApp AFF and FAS storage investments.
The integration builds on the strategic alliance announced by Nutanix and NetApp in April 2026 and introduces greater separation between the virtualisation and storage layers. Rather than requiring an organisation to replace both as part of the same modernisation project, Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure for External Storage allows customers to evaluate a change to their virtualisation platform while retaining supported NetApp storage infrastructure and established storage operations.
“Organisations shouldn’t have to choose between preserving their trusted data infrastructure and reclaiming control of their virtualisation roadmap,” said Ketan Shah, Vice President, Product Management, Nutanix. “By combining Nutanix Cloud Platform and AHV hypervisor, with NetApp ONTAP storage, we are empowering IT leaders to modernise on their own terms, with greater choice and control over infrastructure costs.”
The solution is designed to help customers:
- Modernise virtualisation without replacing existing storage: Organisations can adopt Nutanix and AHV while continuing to use supported NetApp AFF and FAS storage arrays.
- Scale compute and storage independently: Separating the virtualisation layer from storage gives customers additional flexibility in how infrastructure is architected and expanded.
- Simplify migration: Nutanix Move can automate workload migration at scale, including network mapping and validation. Nutanix and NetApp are also working to bring support for the NetApp Shift Toolkit, enabling zero-copy virtual disk conversion without moving the underlying data.
- Maintain familiar operational models: Virtualisation teams can manage virtual machines and applications through Nutanix Prism, while storage teams continue to use NetApp ONTAP tools and workflows.
- Preserve infrastructure investments: Customers can evaluate the reuse of existing NetApp storage as they plan their virtualisation modernisation rather than making storage replacement a prerequisite for changing platforms.
The integration comes as enterprises reconsider long-standing virtualisation architectures amid changes in licensing, costs and platform strategies. By supporting external ONTAP storage, Nutanix is extending the deployment options available to organisations that want to move to AHV while determining when, where and how other parts of their infrastructure should change.
“Organisations across the Middle East and Africa are reassessing their infrastructure strategies as they balance the need to modernise IT environments with the imperative to optimise costs and maximise existing investments. The ability to modernise virtualisation independently of the storage layer gives businesses greater flexibility to evolve at their own pace, without making wholesale infrastructure replacement a prerequisite. By combining Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure and AHV with NetApp ONTAP storage, we are expanding the choices available to regional customers, helping them take greater control of their virtualisation strategy while maintaining familiar storage operations and protecting the value of their existing infrastructure,” said Reshma Naik, Senior Director for Presales, Middle East and Africa at Nutanix.
The Nutanix and NetApp solution is planned for availability this fall with an upcoming Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure release.
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