Microsoft announced that it acquired Avere Systems and its cloud-based offerings for high-performance computing. 

Through the purchase, Microsoft gains Network File System and Server Message Block file-based storage technologies. Microsoft will incorporate Avere’s capabilities, which run on both Windows and Linux, into its own Azure cloud portfolio.  

The purchase comes from Microsoft and cloud rivals Amazon, Google and IBM are building out their infrastructure-as-a-service offerings as they focus more on winning customers in the healthcare realm.

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Microsoft pointed to animations and special effects in Hollywood blockbusters as well as discovering new disease treatments as two examples of what it anticipates Azure customers will be able to do with the new high-performance computing services.

“Avere uses a combination of file system and caching technologies to support performance requirements for customers who run large-scale compute workloads,” Jason Zander, Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Azure, wrote on the company’s site in early January.

Avere CEO Ronald Bianchini said integrating its technologies with Microsoft’s Azure enables it to continue focusing on enterprise applications.

“Our shared vision is to continue our focus on all of Avere’s use cases - in the datacenter, in the cloud and in hybrid cloud storage and cloud bursting environments,” Bianchini added.

The companies did not disclose terms of the deal.

Twitter: SullyHIT
Email the writer: tom.sullivan@himssmedia.com