Software-Defined Storage Market Growth Analysis - Forecast Trends and Outlook (2025-2034)

The global software-defined storage market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of nearly 30.00% in the forecast period of 2025-2034. In 2024, North America was the largest software-defined storage industry. The region is expected to offer continued maximum growth opportunities over the forecast period.

Software-Defined Storage Market Growth Rate

Software-defined storage is a marketing term, independent of the underlying hardware, for computer data storage software for policy-based data storage and management. One prominent driver aiding the global software-defined storage (SDS) market growth is the unprecedented explosion of data generated from diverse sources such as IoT devices, social media platforms, and digital transactions. This surge in data volume has propelled organisations to seek efficient storage solutions, leading to increased adoption of SDS.

Moreover, the escalating adoption of cloud computing services is fueling the demand for flexible and scalable storage solutions. Software-defined storage aligns well with cloud environments, offering organisations the ability to optimise their storage infrastructure in the cloud. Additionally, the synergy between SDS and virtualisation technologies is driving market growth. SDS allows for the abstraction of storage resources from physical hardware, enabling enhanced agility, scalability, and cost-effectiveness in virtualised environments.

Key Trends and Developments

Increasing adoption of hybrid cloud solutions, growing emphasis on containerisation, and the adoption of open-source SDS solutions are boosting the software-defined storage market growth.

April 2024

Dell Technologies has unveiled APEX File Storage for Microsoft Azure, a new offering that brings the power of Dell's PowerScale OneFS file storage system to the Azure AI cloud. It enables customers to consolidate and manage data more effectively, reducing storage costs and enhancing data protection and security.

April 2024

NetApp and Google Cloud have joined forces to elevate cloud data storage flexibility, with a specific emphasis on generative AI (GenAI) and hybrid cloud workloads. This partnership enables organisations to seamlessly operate existing infrastructure on Google Cloud while leveraging advanced enterprise data management capabilities.

April 2024

Hitachi Vantara has announced the availability of Virtual Storage Platform One, a hybrid cloud platform, which offers a unified data ecosystem that seamlessly integrates block and file storage, eliminating data silos and fragmented landscapes. It guarantees 100% data availability, modern storage assurance, and effective capacity across all its solutions, providing organisations with an unbreakable data foundation.

Hybrid Cloud Adoption

This trend is driven by the need for flexible and scalable storage and hybrid cloud adoption that allows businesses to optimise their storage resources, enhance data mobility, and improve operational efficiency by leveraging the benefits of both on-premises and cloud storage solutions.

Growing Emphasis on Containerisation

There is a growing emphasis on containerisation in software-defined storage environments and by using containerisation technologies like Docker and Kubernetes, organisations can streamline storage management, enhance application portability, and accelerate the deployment of storage solutions.

Rise of Edge Computing

Due to the increasing data generated at the edge by IoT devices is leading to the development of storage solutions that are optimised for edge environments, enabling businesses to efficiently manage and store data at the edge.

Adoption of Open-Source Software-Defined Storage (SDS)

Open-source SDS offers businesses cost-effective, flexible, and customisable storage solutions that provide hardware independence and storage optimisation. This trend is empowering organisations of all sizes to leverage software-defined storage technologies without being tied to proprietary hardware setups.

Software-Defined Storage Market Trends

The increase in cloud adoption will be an essential factor driving the development of the market as it offers multiple advantages, including cost decrease, increased scalability, and high effectiveness. Moreover, the support for hybrid and multi-cloud strategies is another significant driver for the software-defined storage market expansion. SDS provides a unified storage management layer across different cloud environments, facilitating seamless data mobility and reducing vendor lock-in. This capability makes SDS an essential component for organisations adopting hybrid and multi-cloud approaches.

Furthermore, the automation and orchestration capabilities of SDS play a crucial role in driving market expansion. By enabling automated management and orchestration of storage resources, SDS streamlines operations, reduces manual intervention, and enhances overall efficiency in storage infrastructure management. This automation aspect is particularly appealing to organisations looking to optimise their storage operations and improve productivity.

Software-Defined Storage Industry Segmentation

The report titled “Software-Defined Storage Market Report and Forecast 2025-2034” offers a detailed analysis of the market based on the following segments:

Market Breakup by Type

• Block
• File
• Object
• Hyper-Converged Infrastructure Software

Market Breakup by Component

• Solutions
• Services

Market Breakup by Solutions

• Data Management
• Data Security and Compliance Software
• Software-Defined Storage Controller Software
• Software-Defined Storage Server
• Storage Hypervisor
• Others

Market Breakup by Usage

• Data Back Up and Disaster Recovery
• Surveillance
• Storage Provisioning
• Others

Market Breakup by Company Size

• Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
• Large Enterprises

Market Breakup by Platform

• Web Applications
• Mobile Applications
• Devices

Market Breakup by End Use

• BFSI
• Healthcare
• Education
• Telecom
• Media and Entertainment
• Manufacturing

Market Breakup by Region

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East and Africa

Software-Defined Storage Market Share

SDS solutions for data backup and disaster recovery are witnessing higher adoption rates due to increasing need for reliable and efficient data protection solutions

The data backup and disaster recovery segment holds a prominent share due to the increasing need for reliable and efficient data storage solutions that can protect against data loss and ensure business continuity. SDS technologies enable organisations to implement robust backup and recovery strategies, leveraging features like data replication, tiering, and automated failover.

The surveillance segment is another key area of growth in the software-defined storage market. SDS solutions are being adopted to manage the massive volumes of data generated by surveillance cameras, sensors, and other monitoring devices. The scalability, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness of SDS make it well-suited for handling the storage requirements of complex surveillance systems across industries like government, transportation, and security.

SDS also plays a crucial role in storage provisioning, allowing organisations to rapidly provide storage resources as needed. The on-demand, software-driven nature of SDS enables IT teams to quickly allocate and manage storage capacity, improving agility and responsiveness to changing business requirements.

BFSI sector holds a significant market share due to their requirement for efficient storage software in managing big data sets

The BFSI sector is a significant segment in the software-defined storage market as financial organisations require secure and accessible storage solutions to manage big data sets, ensure data encryption, manage file access, and facilitate data backup and recovery.

The education sector is increasingly leveraging software-defined storage to manage the growing volumes of educational data, digital resources, and administrative information. Educational institutions require secure and scalable storage solutions to support e-learning platforms, student records, research data, and other educational applications.

In the media and entertainment industry, large volumes of multimedia content need to be stored, managed, and accessed efficiently, which is creating a demand for software-defined storage solutions. These solutions enable media companies to streamline content management, enhance collaboration, and deliver high-performance storage for media production, broadcasting, and distribution.

As per software-defined storage market analysis, the healthcare industry relies on software-defined storage solutions as it offers secure, compliant, and scalable storage solutions to store and access critical patient information, support medical imaging systems, and facilitate data analytics for improved patient care.

Software-Defined Storage Market Analysis by Region

North America leads the market due to its high level of digitalisation and cloud adoption

North America is expected to hold a sizable software-defined storage market share, with United States being a key player in technological innovation. The region's mature market and prominent level of digitalisation drive the demand for advanced data storage solutions. The regional growth is further characterised by increased cloud adoption, a shift towards advanced IT infrastructures, and significant investments in research and development by leading market vendors.

The Asia-Pacific region is a significant player in the global software-defined storage market, with countries like China and India experiencing rapid economic growth and increasing digitalisation. This region focuses on scalable and cost-effective storage solutions to meet the growing demand for advanced technologies.

Leading Companies in the Software Defined Storage Market

Market players are continuously innovating new products and engaging in strategic activities to drive market growth and meet the increasing demand for software-defined storage solutions.

Dell Technologies Inc.

Dell Technologies Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Texas, United States. The company offers a desktop PCs, laptops, servers, storage solutions, networking equipment, software, cloud computing services, and IT services.

Fujitsu Limited

Established in 1935, has its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan. The company offers computers, telecommunications equipment, software development, electronics, and IT services. Fujitsu has a strong presence in IT infrastructure, cloud computing, and digital transformation sectors.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co.

Originally founded as Hewlett-Packard in 1939, is based in California, United States. The company offers servers, storage solutions, networking equipment, software solutions, and IT services.

Citrix Systems, Inc.

Citrix Systems, Inc. was established in 1989 and is headquartered in Florida, United States. It is renowned for its innovative solutions that enable secure and efficient remote access, collaboration, and virtualisation for businesses of all sizes.

Other prominent software defined storage companies in the market are International Business Machines Corporation, NetApp, Inc., and Seagate Technology PLC, among others.