Hello!
Following up on my previous post about V13 for Windows, I wanted to dive into something I mentioned there: the storage integration angle. Specifically, how Pure Storage's Fusion integration with Veeam changes the game for customers managing multiple FlashArrays.
If you're running Pure Storage, this is relevant now. If you're evaluating storage platforms, this is worth understanding as a differentiator.
The Problem: Single-Array Management at Scale
If you're already using the Pure Storage FlashArray plug-in for Veeam, you know the value: snapshot-based backup orchestration, instant recovery from metadata-driven snapshots, offloading backup burden from ESXi hosts. It works.
But the plug-in has always operated at the individual array level. You configure each FlashArray in Veeam, set up your jobs, manage your snapshots, all per array.
For two or three arrays? Fine. For a significant fleet (dozens of arrays across multiple sites)? Operational overhead compounds fast.
What Changes with Fusion Integration
Pure Fusion provides unified management across your entire FlashArray fleet. The new Veeam integration connects that fleet-level orchestration directly to the Veeam Data Platform.
What this means practically:
- Automatic array registration: When you add a FlashArray to your Fusion fleet, it can automatically register in Veeam. No manual configuration per array.
- Policy-based protection: Define protection policies once, enforce them across every datastore in the fleet. No more configuring backup jobs array by array.
- Fleet-wide recovery operations: Run recovery jobs across your entire environment without custom scripting or one-off configurations.
- Faster remediation: Integrated Pure1 Anomaly Detection with Veeam Incident API across your entire fleet. Kick off remediation workflows almost instantaneously.
This isn't incremental improvement. It's a fundamental shift in how the two platforms interact.
The V13 Connection
Here's why I mentioned this in my V13 post: the integration is built on Veeam's Universal Storage API, which enables storage vendors to develop and update their plug-ins independently.
The Universal Storage API v2.1 introduced in V13 enables storage vendors to make their plug-ins work with the Veeam Software Appliance. If you're planning a migration from Windows to VSA, the Fusion integration is being built with that path in mind.
Bonus: The Pure Storage Fusion plugin will be the first of its kind USAPI-enabled and planned to work with the Veeam v13.1 hardened Linux Appliance.
The sequencing matters:
- Get stable on V13 Windows
- Adopt storage integrations when ready
- Convert to VSA on your timeline
You're not stacking a major version upgrade AND a platform shift AND a new storage integration all at once.
Who Benefits Most
Let me be direct: if you have a single FlashArray, the existing plug-in probably serves you fine.
The Fusion integration really shines when you have:
- Multiple FlashArrays across sites
- Complex protection requirements that vary by workload
- A need to reduce manual configuration overhead
- Interest in integrated anomaly detection and incident response
The operational complexity reduction compounds as your fleet grows. What's manageable at three arrays becomes painful at fifteen and unsustainable at fifty.
Getting Started
If you're a Pure customer interested in this integration:
- Create a Pure Fusion fleet (if you haven't, what are you waiting for?)
- Download and install the Plugin to your Veeam Server
- Define your Fusion Fleet in the Veeam UI
I also put together a video walkthrough explaining why this integrated architecture matters if you want the visual breakdown.
The Bigger Picture
This integration represents where enterprise data protection is heading: tighter coupling between storage platforms and backup infrastructure, with orchestration layers that abstract away per-device management.
Consistent data protection policies and runbooks are foundational to cyber resilience, especially when navigating multiple threat vectors and failure domains. Fleet-level orchestration makes that consistency achievable at scale.
For those running both Pure and Veeam, this needs to be part of your roadmap planning. Especially if you're already looking at V13 upgrades or VSA migration.
My full thoughts on my blog: wcithipster.com
Anyone already running this integration? Curious to hear how fleet-wide policy management is working in practice. And for those evaluating, what questions do you have?
Zane Allyn | Veeam Vanguard | Principal Technologist @ Pure Storage
