InfoStor articles from October 2006

InfoStor archives from October 2006

Putting a FAIS on intelligent switches.(Fabric Application Interface Specification)
October 1, 2006... It has been several years since storage networking vendors began their push for putting advanced data services and storage management functions on fabric switches. So-called "intelligent switches" have since emerged with the ability to...

Brocade ups the ante for iSCSI.(Tapestry data management software and new services in the area of SANs and file area networks)(storage area networks, Brocade Communication Systems Inc.)
October 1, 2006... Brocade recently unleashed eight storage networking hardware products, including an iSCSI blade for its director-class switch, revamped versions of three of the company's Tapestry data management software products, and 10 new services in the...

Cisco targets branch offices.(Cisco Systems Inc., branch office product family)
October 1, 2006... Cisco recently introduced additions to its branch office product family, including an integrated hardware and software solution that promises to aid in the consolidation of branch office server, storage, and backup systems and to boost the...

Visit us online.
October 1, 2006... TO STAY ON TOP OF THE STORAGE INDUSTRY, you need a combination of print publications and storage-specific Websites. In our annual readership survey, we asked our readers what their two primary sources of storage information were. About 65% said...

The Eclipse Foundation, an open source community, recently approved the creation of the Aperi Storage Management Framework Project.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... The Eclipse Foundation, an open source community, recently approved the creation of the Aperi Storage Management Framework Project. The Aperi Project, which was proposed in June 2006, will give users more choices for deploying storage...

Onaro announced the availability of Service Connect, a Web services API that enables application providers and internal development teams to gain access to service-related data in Onaro's SANscreen.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Onaro announced the availability of Service Connect, a Web services API that enables application providers and internal development teams to gain access to service-related data in Onaro's SANscreen. Users of the API can provide SAN-screen's...

Bell Microproducts and TekTools have teamed to offer a storage assessment program designed to help IT managers plan and/or re-allocate storage.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Bell Microproducts and TekTools have teamed to offer a storage assessment program designed to help IT managers plan and/or re-allocate storage. The storage assessment program collects storage data and provides details on its usage patterns.

Hitachi Data Systems has added Brocade's 4Gbps SilkWorm 48000 director and SilkWorm 200E switch to its portfolio.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Hitachi Data Systems has added Brocade's 4Gbps SilkWorm 48000 director and SilkWorm 200E switch to its portfolio, which also includes the midrange SilkWorm 4100 switch.

Softek Storage Solutions' open systems data migration and replication software.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Softek Storage Solutions' open systems data migration and replication software has completed interoperability testing with IBM's System Storage products.

Dell and EMC recently announced a five-year extension of their global alliance.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Dell and EMC recently announced a five-year extension of their global alliance, through 2011.

Topio has established a reseller partnership with Sirius Computer Solutions for the Topio Data Protection Suite (TDPS).(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Topio has established a reseller partnership with Sirius Computer Solutions for the Topio Data Protection Suite (TDPS). Topio's software provides Sirius customers with the ability to replicate data between any storage systems.

QLogic's SANbox Fibre Channel switches and SANblade HBAs have completed qualification testing in the Symantec Technology Enabled Program (STEP) for Veritas Storage Foundation 5.0.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... QLogic's SANbox Fibre Channel switches and SANblade HBAs have completed qualification testing in the Symantec Technology Enabled Program (STEP) for Veritas Storage Foundation 5.0, the next generation of Symantec's storage management and...

Emulex is in the process of acquiring Sierra Logic, a provider of embedded ASIC components and firmware.(BUSINESS BRIEFS)
October 1, 2006... Emulex is in the process of acquiring Sierra Logic, a provider of embedded ASIC components and firmware. The acquisition expands Emulex' position in the market for embedded multi-protocol storage products. Sierra Logic's current product...

When does online backup/recovery make sense?(CASE STUDIES)
October 1, 2006... Online backup and recovery--specifically, outsourcing storage operations to third-party services providers--may make more sense than ever. Whether for consumers, small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), or larger enterprises, outsourcing a...

Sun, IBM tackle tape encryption.(Sun Microsystems, International Business Machines Corp.)
October 1, 2006... Sun Microsystems and IBM each launched new technologies for data encryption on tape drives and key management last month as a direct response to the ongoing threat of data loss and identity theft plaguing big companies and consumers across the...

EqualLogic adds SAS to IP SANs.(Serial Attached SCSI, storage area networks)
October 1, 2006... Adoption of iSCSI-based IP SANs is picking up, as are iSCSI-related product announcements. For example, EqualLogic last month introduced a new series of disk arrays that feature high-performance Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) disk drives and tiered...

IBM refreshes storage lineup.(International Business Machines Corp. partnered with Network Appliance )(launched enterprise storage arrays server )
October 1, 2006... IBM recently began shipping a wide variety of new and upgraded systems in its storage product line, including two new models of its flagship DS8000 enterprise storage arrays, new connectivity and drive options, and products based on its...

The case for storage virtualization.
October 1, 2006... The concept of storage virtualization has been around for a number of years, but until recently it had not gained wide-spread acceptance. As with many innovative concepts, it takes time for companies to become comfortable with the idea of...

SGI, LSI support SAS.(Serial Attached SCSI disk drive interface)(Silicon Graphics Inc., LSI Logic Corp.)
October 1, 2006... In an indication that the Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) disk drive interface is ready for prime time, SGI recently became one of the first disk-systems vendors to ship SAS-based storage arrays. (Hewlett-Packard is also shipping SAS systems.) SGI...

Making the transition to consolidated NAS: consolidating file servers involves decisions regarding virtualization, operating systems, protocol compatibility, and NAS gateways.(SPECIAL REPORT)
October 1, 2006... Lower storage requirements, reduced legal liabilities, centralized management, and higher levels of data protection are all benefits that a consolidated and centralized NAS implementation delivers. Yet as IT organizations consolidate their...

Strategic governance issues for e-mail archiving: this article identifies some of the higher-level issues in governance and control that can impact the parameters and attributes used in selecting the appropriate e-mail archiving technology.
October 1, 2006... E-mail archiving is a relatively new area and as yet "best practice" appears to be simply a general recognition that e-mail should in fact be archived, and that formal policies on retention, retrieval, security, and immutability should be in...

Storage service providers rise from the ashes: the storage service provider (SSP) market faded into near oblivion a few years ago, but SSPs are making a comeback for a variety of reasons.
October 1, 2006... In the late 1990s, the storage service provider (SSP) market emerged with tremendous fanfare. Numerous SSP start-ups (with significant venture capital backing) appeared almost overnight, and traditional outsourcers were just as quick to add...

Data classification is the key to ILM: classification is complex, but the good news is that a variety of tools exist to help you get started.(ANALYST VIEW)(information lifecycle management)
October 1, 2006... INFORMATION LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT (ILM) is the policy-driven process of managing information as it changes value throughout the full range of its lifecycle, from conception to disposition. For ILM to become a reality, however, businesses must...

SAN management via virtual disk blocks: compellent alters the SAN value proposition by restructuring storage virtualization to start at the data block.(LAB REVIEW)
October 1, 2006... NEITHER MOORE'S LAW--processing price/performance doubles every 18 months--nor Shugart's Law--magnetic storage price/bit halves every 18 months--shows any sign of being repealed in the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, IT budgets for capital and...

3PAR targets midrange.(3PAR Data Inc. launched storage server "InServ E200")(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... 3PAR Data shrunk its disk systems to fit departmental, replication site, and remote data-center deployments with the introduction of the InServ E200 Storage Server, a midrange complement to the company's high-end InServ $400 and $800 arrays....

Infortrend adds multi-pathing.(EonPath network storage management software)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Infortrend's EonPath software provides multi-pathing functionality for the company's EonStor line of RAID subsystems. Multi-pathing is a fault-tolerant technique that helps avoid downtime and/or data loss that can result from a connection...

SGI expands NAS.(Silicon Graphics Inc., network attached storage device)(InfiniteStorage NAS 4550 )(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Based on the company's Altix 450 servers, SGI's InfiniteStorage NAS 4550 has up to 67TB of raw disk capacity, 64GB of main memory in addition to 2GB or 16GB of disk cache, 12 Gigabit Ethernet ports, and four 4Gbps Fibre Channel ports. The...

ExaGrid upgrades D2D backup.(ExaGrid Systems Inc., disk-to-disk backup software)(ExaGrid 2.3)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... The ExaGrid 2.3 is a disk-to-disk (D2D) backup system that features byte-level delta data reduction, compression, and Serial ATA (SATA) disk drives. The company claims that the data reduction and compression combo reduces the amount of disk...

PowerFile ships archiving appliance.(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... PowerFile's Active Archive Appliance ([A.sup.3]) stores permanent data on a virtualized array of DVD optical media. The system leaves a copy of frequently accessed data in primary cache for fast retrieval. Capacity scales to 30.6TB. ...

Nexsan teams with Reldata.(Nexsan Technologies)(developed a unified SAN/NAS system )(network attached storage system)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Nexsan and Reldata have developed a unified SAN/NAS system that allows users to run NAS, iSCSI SAN, or both at the same time. The system combines Nexsan's SATABoy disk array and Reldata's 9200 IP Storage Gateway. The system offers...

Paralan bridges iSCSl and SCSl.(Internet Protocol Storage Area Network)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Paralan's iS500 is a bridge that allows users to connect parallel SCSI devices to an iSCSI-based IP SAN to merge direct-attached storage (DAS) with SAN configurations. Available in board, box, or rack-mountable versions, the iS500 is based on a...

Asempra upgrades CDP.(NEW PRODUCTS)(continuous data protection)(Asempra)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Asempra officials claim that the 2.0 version of the company's Business Continuity Server (BCS) moves the product from "near" continuous data protection (CDP) to "true" CDP for Exchange environments. Granular recovery of any Exchange object...

Topic integrates with NetApp.(Topic Data Systems launched backup softwere "Topic Data Protection Suite")(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Topic has completed the integration of its Topic Data Protection Suite (TDPS), which provides replication and data-recovery functionality, with Network Appliance's Data ONTAP 7G and FlexClone software. The combo provides data management...

BitArmor combines DLM, encryption.(NEW PRODUCTS)
October 1, 2006... BitArmor's Systems Security Suite is designed to protect sensitive data at every stage of the data lifecycle, whether inflight or at rest. The integrated software package ensures only authorized personnel can access data stored on servers,...

Acronis ships SDK.(True Image Software Development Kit)(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Designed for software developers, OEMs, or IT administrators, Acronis' True Image Software Development Kit (SDK) enables development of imaging and backup/recovery software based on the company's True Image software. Developers can customize...

Xiotech adds CDP capabilities.(continuous data protection )(TimeScale 200 and TimeScale 300 data-protection systems )(Brief article)
October 1, 2006... Xiotech recently introduced CDP capabilities for its TimeScale line of data-protection systems with the addition of TimeScale 200 and TimeScale 300. The new systems allow users to recover single files, applications, or entire volumes at any...

Calendar.
October 1, 2006... November 13-17 Comprehensive Fibre Channel--Santa Clara, CA Sponsored by Solution Technolgy, this seminar includes In-Depth Fibre Channel (three days) and Topologies (Arbitrated Loop--one day and Switched Fabric--one day). The course...