Databricks and MinIO OpenSharing Over Equinix Fabric: When to Use it and What to Expect
The Challenge:
Enterprises increasingly need to use data for AI and analytics without moving sensitive or regulated datasets out of their existing environments. Moving or replicating the data can create additional governance concerns while introducing network and data movement considerations.
A Better Approach:
The Databricks, MinIO, and Equinix integration enables enterprises to access data where it resides using OpenSharing over Equinix Fabric. OpenSharing provides zero-copy data access, making the necessary data available when it is needed without requiring it to persist in the cloud. This can be particularly important for sovereign or regulated workloads.
MinIO AIStor exposes data to the Databricks Data + AI Platform through OpenSharing, while Equinix Fabric provides private connectivity between the data and Databricks environment. Data remains in its existing location while access is governed through Unity Catalog, allowing customers to work with sensitive or regulated data without creating and maintaining a separate copy.
As shown below, OpenSharing allows data to remain in its existing environment while making it accessible to Databricks for AI and analytics. Equinix Fabric provides the private connectivity between those environments.
When to Use This:
- When sensitive or regulated data needs to remain in its existing environment while being used with Databricks
- When private connectivity is preferred over sending data between environments across the public internet
- When data residency requirements make moving or replicating datasets impractical
- When jurisdictional requirements call for data and associated network traffic to remain within defined geographic boundaries