Chapter 8. Special topics 195
/SM590000Limelight Object Storage
/SM590000HDFS 
/SM590000HGST
/SM590000NetApp Object Storage
For more information about the benefits of using IBM Aspera with third-party cloud storage 
services, see the white paper IBM Aspera Direct-to-Cloud Storage.
8.3  Configuring a multicloud data lake
This section introduces the concept of a data lake and how it fits in a multicloud environment.
8.3.1  Data lake overview
A data lake is a next-generation hybrid data management solution that is designed to meet 
the challenge and need to deal with big data in a hybrid multicloud environment. It is not a 
product; rather, it is a hybrid data management reference architecture that is designed to form 
part of your data governance strategy. 
The use of a data lake offers greater flexibility than a data warehouse. A data lake 
consolidates an organization’s data into a governed and well-managed environment that 
supports production workloads and analytics development.
The use of a data lake includes the following benefits:
/SM590000Storing data in its native format means less time spent on data preparation
/SM590000Simplified data access
/SM590000Enhanced agility for applications data users
/SM590000Improved decision-making
/SM590000Reduced costs
For more information about data lakes and their benefits, see the following resources:
/SM590000What is a Data Lake? 
/SM590000Build a better data lake
The following data lake providers operate in a multicloud environment:
/SM590000IBM (through a partnership with Cloudera)
/SM590000Google
/SM590000Amazon AWS
/SM590000Microsoft Azure
/SM590000Hadoop
/SM590000Terradata
/SM590000Hortonworks
8.3.2  Using a data lake in a multicloud environment
Using a data lake in a multicloud environment enables secure integration and provides a 
means to achieve unified data governance in a hybrid environment. Your data lake 
repositories accept data from any data source in its native format, which provides a common 
platform for containerized applications to use in both on-premises data centers and in the 
cloud.