What is Filestore?
Filestore is Google’s managed NFS service for workloads that require a POSIX-compatible file system. The service is suitable for applications that cannot benefit from block or object storage, such as legacy applications, rendering pipelines, or shared workspaces. The current service tiers are Zonal, Regional, and Enterprise; the earlier Basic HDD and Basic SSD tiers continue to exist as legacy options.
Core Features
- Fully managed file system with NFSv3 and, depending on the tier, NFSv4.1 support
- Zonal, Regional, and Enterprise tiers for different performance and availability requirements
- Synchronous zone replication on Regional and Enterprise for higher availability
- Native integration with GKE via CSI driver, including multishares on the Enterprise tier
- Backup and snapshot functionality
Typical Use Cases
Lift-and-Shift Migration: Legacy applications that expect file system access can be migrated to Filestore without code changes.
Media Rendering: Render farms on GKE or Compute Engine use Filestore as shared storage for assets and output files, particularly on the high-performance Zonal tier.
EDA Workflows: Electronic Design Automation tools often require parallel access to large file volumes, making Filestore ideal.
Benefits
- No file system management required
- ReadWriteMany access from multiple clients
- Different tiers for different performance and availability requirements
- Integration with GKE and Compute Engine
Integration with innFactory
As a certified Google Cloud partner, innFactory supports you with Filestore: sizing and tier selection, migration of existing data, GKE integration, and performance optimization.
Available Tiers & Options
Zonal
- High throughput and low latency
- Granular capacity options
- Good for HPC, batch compute, and media rendering
- No automatic zone redundancy
Regional
- Synchronous replication across multiple zones
- High availability for mission-critical workloads
- Higher cost than Zonal
Enterprise
- Synchronous replication across three zones
- Highest availability
- Multishares support for GKE
- Premium pricing
Basic HDD/SSD (Legacy)
- Backward compatible for existing automation
- Classified as legacy tier, not recommended for new projects
- No NFSv4.1 support
Typical Use Cases
Technical Specifications
Frequently Asked Questions
Which protocol does Filestore use?
Filestore supports NFSv3 on all service tiers, and NFSv4.1 on the Zonal, Regional, and Enterprise tiers. NFSv4.1 additionally offers client/server authentication and in-transit data encryption via Kerberos.
What service tiers does Filestore offer today?
The current primary tiers are Zonal, Regional, and Enterprise (with multishares support for GKE). The earlier Basic HDD and Basic SSD tiers are considered legacy and are mainly kept for compatibility reasons.
How large can a Filestore instance be?
Capacity limits vary by tier. Regional instances typically range from 1 TiB to just under 10 TiB, while Zonal instances at higher capacities start around 10 TiB. Enterprise instances can be scaled in small increments. Check the official documentation for exact current limits.
Can Filestore be used with GKE?
Yes, Filestore integrates seamlessly with GKE via the CSI driver. Persistent Volumes can be mounted by multiple pods simultaneously in ReadWriteMany mode, and the Enterprise tier additionally supports multishares for many smaller volumes.
Does Filestore support snapshots and backups?
Yes, the higher tiers support snapshots for backup and disaster recovery. A separate backup service is also available for Filestore instances.
Note: All product information on this page has been compiled with care, but is provided without guarantee and may be outdated or incomplete. Cloud services evolve rapidly — features, pricing, SLAs, and availability change frequently. Authoritative and up-to-date information can only be found on the official product page of Google Cloud (official documentation). This page does not represent an offer by Google Cloud.
