Lenovo ThinkAgile

What is Lenovo ThinkAgile?

Lenovo ThinkAgile is an HCI (Hyper-Converged Infrastructure) platform - servers that combine compute, storage, and networking in one appliance. Instead of separate servers and disk arrays, you have integrated appliances.

Three variants:

• ThinkAgile VX - with vSAN (software-defined storage)
• ThinkAgile HX - with Nutanix (HCI leader)
• ThinkAgile MX - with Microsoft Azure Stack HCI

What problem does it solve? Traditional infrastructure requires separately: servers + SAN switch + disk array + experts for each element. HCI simplifies this to “add node, get more power”.

How does HCI work?

flowchart LR
    subgraph Traditional
        A[Servers] --- B[SAN Switch]
        B --- C[Array]
    end

    subgraph HCI ThinkAgile
        D[Node 1] --- E[Node 2]
        E --- F[Node 3]
        F --- D
    end

    style A fill:#dc2626,stroke:#b91c1c,color:#fff
    style B fill:#dc2626,stroke:#b91c1c,color:#fff
    style C fill:#dc2626,stroke:#b91c1c,color:#fff
    style D fill:#22c55e,stroke:#16a34a,color:#fff
    style E fill:#22c55e,stroke:#16a34a,color:#fff
    style F fill:#22c55e,stroke:#16a34a,color:#fff

Each node has:

• Processors (compute)
• RAM
• NVMe/SSD disks (storage)
• Network cards

Software combines everything: disks from multiple nodes create one virtual storage, visible to all VMs.

ThinkAgile VX vs HX vs MX

Feature	ThinkAgile VX	ThinkAgile HX	ThinkAgile MX
Storage	vSAN	Nutanix AOS	Storage Spaces Direct
Management	vCenter	Prism	Windows Admin Center
For whom	vSphere shops	Want simplicity	Microsoft shops
Licenses	Broadcom (more expensive)	Nutanix (per node)	Azure subscription

ThinkAgile VX (vSAN)

flowchart TD
    B --> C[vSAN Storage]
    B --> D[vCenter Management]

    C --> E[NVMe disks in each node]
    D --> F[VM Management]

    style A fill:#6366f1,stroke:#4f46e5,color:#fff
    style B fill:#22c55e,stroke:#16a34a,color:#fff
    style C fill:#f59e0b,stroke:#d97706,color:#fff
    style D fill:#f59e0b,stroke:#d97706,color:#fff

For whom: Organizations that already have vSphere and want HCI without changing hypervisor.

Models:

Model	Processors	Disks	Typical use
VX2320	1x Xeon	4-10 NVMe	Edge, ROBO
VX3520	2x Xeon/EPYC	8-24 SSD/NVMe	General purpose
VX7520	2x Xeon/EPYC	24 NVMe	High performance

ThinkAgile HX (Nutanix)

flowchart TD
    A[ThinkAgile HX Cluster] --> B[Nutanix AOS]
    B --> C[Distributed Storage]
    B --> D[Prism Management]

    C --> E[1-click operations]
    D --> F[Prism Central]

    style A fill:#6366f1,stroke:#4f46e5,color:#fff
    style B fill:#22c55e,stroke:#16a34a,color:#fff
    style C fill:#f59e0b,stroke:#d97706,color:#fff
    style D fill:#f59e0b,stroke:#d97706,color:#fff

For whom: Those who want the simplest HCI. Nutanix is known for “it just works”.

Nutanix advantages:

• AHV hypervisor without license costs (alternative to ESXi)
• Prism - intuitive browser-based management
• 1-click upgrade of entire stack
• Excellent deduplication and compression

Models:

Model	Processors	Disks	Typical use
HX1320	1x Xeon	4-10 SSD	Edge, ROBO
HX3520	2x Xeon/EPYC	8-24 SSD/NVMe	General
HX7520	2x Xeon/EPYC	24 NVMe	Database, VDI

ThinkAgile MX (Azure Stack HCI)

For whom: Companies with Microsoft stack who want hybrid cloud with Azure.

Advantages:

• Integration with Azure (Azure Arc, Azure Backup)
• Licensing through Azure subscription
• Windows Admin Center for management
• Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) on-prem

Use Cases

Who is it for?

ThinkAgile vs Competition

Aspect	ThinkAgile HX	Dell VxRail	HPE SimpliVity
Software	Nutanix	vSAN	HPE OmniStack
Hypervisor	AHV (free) / ESXi	ESXi only	ESXi only
Deduplication	Software	vSAN	Hardware (ASIC)
Management	Prism	vCenter	vCenter + SimpliVity
Price	Competitive	Premium	Premium

ThinkAgile HX advantage: AHV without hypervisor fees, Nutanix known for simplicity.

Specifications

Parameter	Value
Minimum configuration	3 nodes (for HA)
Processors	Intel Xeon or AMD EPYC
RAM per node	Up to 4-8 TB DDR5
Storage per node	Up to 24x NVMe/SSD
Networking	10/25/100 GbE
Management	XClarity + Prism/vCenter/WAC

FAQ

How many nodes do I need? Minimum 3 for high availability. Typically 4-8 nodes. Scales to hundreds of nodes.

VX or HX? VX if you have vSphere and want to stay. HX if you want simplest solution or save on licenses (AHV).

Can I mix nodes? Within one cluster - limited (different generations). Between clusters - any.

How does upgrade work? Nutanix/vSAN - 1-click upgrade of entire stack. Node by node, zero downtime.

What about backup? HCI is not backup. You need separate solution (Veeam, Commvault) for VM backup.

Is HCI more expensive than traditional infrastructure? TCO often lower - less equipment, fewer licenses (SAN), less administration. But requires larger initial investment.

Does nFlo deploy ThinkAgile? Yes. HCI design, VX/HX/MX deployments, migrations from traditional infrastructure.