Skip to main content

OpenStack Cinder

OpenStack Cinder is the OpenStack block storage service that provides persistent block devices to OpenStack compute instances and bare metal workloads (block storage / cloud infrastructure).

  • Provides persistent block storage volumes for virtual machines and other consumers (block storage).
  • Manages the full lifecycle of volumes, including create, delete, attach, detach, and snapshot operations (storage orchestration).
  • Offers a pluggable driver framework to integrate with multiple back-end storage systems such as SAN, Network Attached Storage (NAS), and software-defined storage (storage integration).
  • Supports advanced features such as volume types, quotas, multi-tenant isolation, and volume replication where implemented by drivers (cloud infrastructure management).
  • Integrates with other OpenStack services, including Nova for compute, Horizon for dashboard interaction, and Keystone for authentication and authorization (cloud platform integration).

More About OpenStack Cinder

OpenStack Cinder is the block storage component within the OpenStack cloud computing platform (block storage / cloud infrastructure). It addresses the need for persistent, network-accessible storage volumes that can be attached to and detached from compute instances independently of their lifecycle. This separation between compute and storage allows enterprises to retain data beyond the life of a Virtual Machine (VM), move workloads between hosts, and implement storage policies aligned with application requirements.

Cinder exposes an Application Programming Interface (API) (storage orchestration) for creating, listing, deleting, attaching, detaching, and extending block storage volumes, as well as for creating and managing volume snapshots for backup or cloning purposes (data protection). Each volume appears to a consumer, such as an OpenStack Nova instance or a bare metal server, as a raw block device suitable for use with file systems, databases, and other stateful workloads. The service also supports volume types and extra-specs (policy-based storage management) so operators can expose different performance, availability, or cost characteristics backed by distinct storage back ends.

Architecturally, Cinder uses a modular driver framework (extensibility) to integrate with a wide range of storage technologies, including traditional SAN arrays, NAS systems, and software-defined storage platforms. Back ends typically expose capabilities via protocols such as Internet Small Computer System Interface (iSCSI), Fibre Channel (FC), NFS, or vendor-specific mechanisms (storage connectivity). The Cinder scheduler (resource scheduling) selects appropriate back ends based on filters and weighing functions, while Cinder volume services on storage nodes handle the actual provisioning and management of volumes on those back ends.

In enterprise environments, Cinder is deployed as part of an OpenStack cloud to serve persistent storage for virtual machines provisioned by Nova, containers running on top of OpenStack, or other consumers that can access Cinder volumes through integrated services or APIs (infrastructure as a service). It works with Keystone (identity and access management) for authentication and authorization and exposes quotas and multi-tenant isolation features (multi-tenancy) that align with organizational or project boundaries. Administrators can use Horizon, the OpenStack dashboard (cloud management UI), or command-line and Software Development Kit (SDK) tools to manage volumes and monitor capacity.

From an operational perspective, Cinder supports features such as volume backups, snapshots, replication when supported by the chosen driver, and volume migration between back ends (storage lifecycle management). This enables storage maintenance, hardware refresh, and resilience strategies without necessarily impacting workloads. In a technical taxonomy, OpenStack Cinder fits into the block storage and storage orchestration category within cloud infrastructure platforms, providing a programmable interface and abstraction layer over heterogeneous storage systems for OpenStack-based private and public clouds.