Hystax Expands Support to Apache CloudStack and STACKIT

Hystax, a provider of cloud migration, disaster recovery, and backup software, has expanded its platform to support Apache CloudStack and STACKIT, a sovereign European cloud. This integration allows organizations to migrate and protect their workloads across multiple cloud environments, enhancing flexibility and data sovereignty.

Apache CloudStack, an open-source Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) platform developed under the Apache Software Foundation, is now fully supported by Hystax. This platform is utilized by cloud service providers, managed service providers, and enterprise IT teams to build and manage public and private clouds. Hystax’s solution handles cloud migration into CloudStack from various sources, including VMware vSphere, Microsoft Hyper-V, KVM-based platforms, public clouds, and physical servers. The most common scenario for migration into CloudStack involves VMware exits.

STACKIT, the sovereign cloud of Schwarz Digits, the IT and digital division of the Schwarz Group, is also now supported by Hystax. STACKIT stores data only in its own data centers in Germany and Austria, ensuring strict data sovereignty. Hystax developed the integration at STACKIT's request and is listed as a migration automation partner in the STACKIT Cloud Framework. The main scenarios for migration to STACKIT involve VMware exits and moves from hyperscalers to a sovereign cloud.

Hystax’s solution offers seamless migration and protection for workloads running on CloudStack and STACKIT. The platform replicates running machines with a hypervisor-level agent or an agent installed in the guest operating system. Workloads remain online during the migration process, with block-level changes synchronized incrementally to the target. Hystax Platform provisions target volumes, instances, and networks through each platform’s native API, specifically, the CloudStack API and the STACKIT API for compute, block storage, and networking. This approach ensures that the integration does not rely on a generic compatibility layer, providing a more robust and reliable experience.

Teams can run unlimited test migrations before the actual cutover. Each test migration runs in an isolated network inside the target cloud, allowing engineers to validate applications, databases, and network connectivity without interrupting production. At cutover, Hystax Platform performs a final incremental sync and starts the machines in the new environment.

Both integrations also cover disaster recovery and backup. Workloads running on CloudStack or STACKIT can be replicated or backed up to another environment on the same platform or to any other site the Hystax solution supports, ensuring portability if the workloads need to move later. In the other direction, either platform can serve as the disaster recovery site. Workloads from VMware, Hyper-V, physical servers, or another cloud can be replicated there and started if the primary site fails.

Hystax’s solution is designed to be flexible, with no platform-specific limitations. Recovery works the same way as on any other site the Hystax solution supports. Recovery plans set boot order, dependencies, and network mappings in advance, and disaster recovery drills run in isolated networks without affecting live systems. By default, the recovery point objective (RPO) is measured in minutes, and with Continuous Data Replication, it can drop below one minute, depending on the amount of data that changes on the source machines.

Backup restore points can be stored on S3-compatible object storage or on Samba or NFS shares. With S3 Object Lock, these restore points cannot be deleted or overwritten during the retention period, ensuring data integrity and security.

For organizations that choose STACKIT for data sovereignty, Hystax Platform can be deployed inside the STACKIT Cloud. The control panel, replication, and backup storage then stay in the customer’s own environment, and replication agents only need to reach the controller, not the internet. This setup enhances security and compliance, aligning with the stringent data protection requirements of European organizations.

This expansion into Apache CloudStack and STACKIT underscores Hystax’s commitment to supporting a diverse range of cloud environments and meeting the needs of organizations seeking flexibility and data sovereignty.