Hitachi, IBM consolidate disk drive operations
Hitachi Ltd. and IBM announced the intent to combine their hard disk drive operations into a stand-alone, joint venture company that may become the third largest drive manufacturer in the world, according to analysts.
Veritas beefs up Windows software
Veritas' recent introduction of Windows 2000 storage software products may help Microsoft make inroads into enterprise data centers, a market space that the software giant has traditionally been unable to penetrate.
1Vision eases Windows-based NAS management
1Vision believes the answer to the management crisis facing Windows-based file-server and network-attached-storage (NAS) users lies with its distributed networked file-aggregation software: vNAS Pro/Enterprise. The software is one of several virtualization products being developed by a handful of vendors that specifically address the NAS market.
First DAFS product debuts
Two years after launching the Direct Access File System (DAFS) initiative, Network Appliance is rolling out the first DAFS product this month that will accelerate performance for IBM DB2, Oracle 8i and 9i, and Sybase database environments running on its filers.
Managing the backup of several SAN islands
We have a number of small, independent, departmental storage area networks (SANs), which we back up to a centralized LAN backup system. We want to leverage the SAN for backup but cannot afford to—nor do we really want to—consolidate our individual SANs into a single, larger one. Do we have any options?
Windows grabs NAS market share
In the first year that OEMs shipped network-attached storage (NAS) devices based on the Microsoft Windows platform, they grabbed a 25% market share based on units shipped (through the third quarter of 2001), according to International Data Corp.
Quantum gives backup a boost
Quantum last month added its name to the growing list of vendors that offer disk-based systems specifically for backup. Quantum, which dominates the midrange tape drive market, says it will ship its first disk-based system—the DX30—in the second half of the year.
Legato shores up portfolio with OTG acquisition
Legato Systems says its planned acquisition of OTG Software, a developer of data storage, data access, and e-mail management software, will result in tangible benefits for end users as early as this quarter.
Low-cost switches enable entry-level SANs
Fibre Channel switch vendors now offer a variety of lower-priced, lower-port-count devices for small to mid-sized companies. For example, end users can now buy 8-port, 2Gbps Fibre Channel switches for as little as $5,000, or $625 per port.
iQstor integrates arrays, software
At Storage Networking World earlier this month, Integrix spin-off iQstor Networks debuted a family of integrated storage systems that scale from 8TB to 35TB. Initial hardware offerings include two disk systems (R1900 and J1800) and a "SAN-in-a-box" (iQSAN).
HP formalizes virtualization strategy
Just six months after acquiring StorageApps, a provider of storage virtualization software, for $350 million, Hewlett-Packard earlier this month formally announced its virtualization strategy and a new midrange virtualization appliance: the StorageApps sv3000.
Good news for end users: Low-cost SANs (finally)
It should come as no shock that, according to virtually every survey of end users, "high cost" is the number one reason why users have not implemented a storage area network (SAN). Fortunately, however, the Fibre Channel vendor community has recognized this and is doing something about it.
FC SAN performance and analysis
Using an analyzer for SAN troubleshooting can uncover hidden problems and unlock full performance potential.
EMC's Clariion borrows from Symmetrix
This month, EMC added software enhancements to its Clariion FC4700, pushing the midrange storage array's functionality closer to that of EMC's flagship Symmetrix array.
The software upgrades consolidate management and enable better disaster recovery.
Convergence tops the list of NAS trends
This year, vendors are expected to make significant strides in merging network-attached storage (NAS) and storage area network (SAN) environments, according to a recent report on network storage by the Yankee Group, a market research firm in Boston.
Techniques for scaling NAS environments
By implementing a switched architecture for NAS environments, IT organizations can build scalable, highly available NAS infrastructures.