DataCore has acquired StarWind, completing its hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) offering. StarWind’s HCI solutions are designed for SMBs, edge locations, and remote office/branch office (ROBO) applications.
We spoke with DataCore CEO Dave Zabrowski when the acquisition was announced. He said that StarWind is a key player in his company’s vision to offer a universal storage portfolio – from the core to the cloud and the edge. This is also referred to as the DataCore.NEXT vision, which came into being when Zabrowski took office in 2018. The goal was to transform the company from a single-product company into an all-round storage provider with block, file, object, and container storage solutions. This latest acquisition focuses specifically on strengthening the edge applications within the DataCore offering.
StarWind’s place in the offering
Before discussing StarWind’s place, let’s first look at the current offering. In 2021, Caringo was acquired for S3 object storage, the product now known as Swarm. A year later, MayaData followed for the OpenEBS container-native storage product, and in 2023, WIN (AI+) was added for AI-enabled workflows.
However, 2025 appears to be the year DataCore is going all in. In February, it acquired Arcastream, further strengthening its position in file storage. Arcastream offers a parallel file system to complement block-based and object-based storage. Now, with the addition of StarWind, the company is adding a purpose-built HCI appliance for small and medium-sized businesses, edge locations, and remote office/branch office applications.
“This truly completes our DataCore.NEXT vision,” said Zabrowski. “We now have best-in-class products for block, file, object, and containers. These are all standalone products that excel in performance, availability, and total cost of ownership.”
Differences between existing and new HCI solutions
Although DataCore was already active in the HCI market, the StarWind solution offers significant differentiation. DataCore’s existing SANsymphony product could be deployed in an HCI configuration, but it required a partner to combine the block storage with a networking stack and hypervisor in an appliance.
StarWind, on the other hand, offers a ready-to-use integrated solution. “Unlike our current solution, StarWind has done all the integration itself,” explains Zabrowski. “They are hypervisor-agnostic, so they have products that work with VMware, Microsoft Hyper-V, and KVM. All of this is brought together in a purpose-built appliance, including networking stack, compute, storage, and hypervisor.”
StarWind specializes in environments with few or no IT resources. It offers a fleet manager for remote management. For example, the product can be placed in a store with no IT resources—there may only be a store manager. The box is delivered, turned on, and connected to Wi-Fi, and everything is done remotely.
In addition to retail, StarWind is also doing well in the shipping industry, such as cruise ships that need a data center-in-a-box, sometimes offline and sometimes online. The product is also finding its way into IoT applications for manufacturing, where factories produce goods at different locations.
Market opportunities through Broadcom-VMware acquisition
Zabrowski sees the recent acquisition of VMware by Broadcom as an opportunity for DataCore and StarWind. “Broadcom has created a very good opportunity for us in the market,” he says. “StarWind has benefited from this. Their business has grown significantly compared to last year, mainly by filling the gap created by the Broadcom-VMware acquisition.”
According to Zabrowski, IT departments worldwide face the same problem: they are actively moving away from VMware, regardless of size or industry. This happens either by switching to other hypervisors, which benefits a hypervisor-agnostic product like StarWind, or by seizing the opportunity to migrate to Kubernetes containers and bypass hypervisors altogether.
Future plans and integration
DataCore is integrating the entire StarWind team, including management, into its own organization. StarWind’s approximately 2,000 customers will also be transferred. The underlying products will continue to exist as standalone solutions. “The code will remain as it is,” said Zabrowski. “We will have a management layer and an integrated solution that will also include some AI applications. We are targeting the fall for this solution, but that will happen at the management level. At the data level, they will remain unique products with their best-in-class capabilities today.”
For existing DataCore users interested in StarWind, the company will introduce recurring term licenses in addition to its current offering of perpetual licenses and complete appliances. This will allow users to purchase on an OPEX basis, just as they do with other DataCore products.
Unique selling point
When asked what sets StarWind apart from its competitors, Zabrowski points to the target audience and specific features: “Nutanix is a very expensive solution, usually for large enterprises with IT departments. Scale has older technology and is not hypervisor-agnostic. StorMagic is struggling to gain commercial traction because they haven’t built an effective channel.”
According to him, StarWind’s key differentiator lies in its fleet management system. This makes the product particularly suitable for distributed environments without on-site IT staff. Combined with DataCore’s broader portfolio, this now offers customers a universal storage solution that covers all scenarios, from core to cloud and edge.
Tip: DataCore strengthens file storage with acquisition of Arcastream