One week after VERITAS Software Corp. refreshed its data recovery software line, rival storage software maker
Network Appliance said it has written its own business continuity software.
Slated to be announced Tuesday, Sunnyvale, Calif.’s Network Appliance will roll out NearStore, a data backup appliance, SnapMirror
software, which as one might discern handles data replication tasks, SnapVault, which similarly archives vital information, and
SnapRestore, which recovers files made from SnapVault.
The NearStore R100 appliance consolidates “near-line” data into one central platform to save management costs and floor space.
Configurations range from 12 terabytes (TB) to 100 TBs at a cost of 2 cents per megabyte. SnapMirror allows enterprises to “mirror”
data sets within one volume for disaster recovery or testing. SnapVault takes multiple data SnapShots and places them in a central
location, such as the NearStore R100. SnapRestore allows for faster recovery of individual files as opposed to a whole system, for
speedier information recovery.
Business contingency plans have long been a standard in the industry, but have come to the fore even more since events of Sept. 11
saw numerous firms lose key data centers. VERITAS last week unveiled the next generation of its NetBackup software,
version 4.5.
But Network Appliance didn’t stop there. It has also been busy revamping an enterprise storage management and virtualization
portfolio, also to be unveiled Tuesday. DataFabric Manager 2.0 is software that allows enterprises to maintain storage from a
singular, remote location. Also on tap is ApplianceWatch, an application that facilitates the administration of NetAPP appliances in
IBM’s Tivoli Enterprise systems and Hewlett-Packard Co.’s network management frameworks. It also features inventory tracking and
event console messaging to help IT managers manage storage devices.
As for the all-important storage virtualization tools, NetApp will showcase MultiStore, which allows sys ads to bundle multiple UNIX
and Windows servers onto one machine. How is this “virtualization?” Basically, MultiStore partitions a filer’s network and storage
capabilities, allowing one filer to serve as many. This presents users with security, as other filer’s cannot access info separated
by virtual partitions, thus creating a secure environment.
Just how big is the market for storage management? Aberdeen group said last week that it expects storage spending will reach $21.2
billion by 2005 for these reasons, according to David Hill, Aberdeen Research Director, Storage and Storage Management: “reining in
the costs of managing storage, fulfilling IS’ fiduciary responsibility for protecting the information assets of the enterprise, and
squeezing out more productivity with fewer budget dollars.”
Storage software fared better than some other sectors in 2001, according to Gartner Dataquest . The market research
firm said Monday that Hopkinton, Mass.’s EMC Corp. sustained its lead in the sector, with a worldwide market
share grew to 30.4 percent, while its chief rival Veritas totaled 19.8 percent. However, if the $1.6 billion in array-based software
were excluded from the analysis, Veritas would be in the lead, and EMC would move to the No. 3 slot behind IBM.
Dataquest said worldwide storage software revenue reached $4.9 billion in 2001, a 3 percent increase over 2000.
“Six of the top 10 vendors were able to grow software revenue in a very challenging year,” said Carolyn DiCenzo, chief analyst for
Gartner Dataquest’s storage group. “Hitachi Data Systems, which sells its storage array software directly and through
Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems, saw 59.4 percent growth and made the top 10 chart for the first time.”
Where does Network Appliance fall in this market? Dataquest said the firm was ninth behind StorageTek in 2001, with revenues of
$108.6 million and a market share of 2.2 percent.
Network Appliance Chimes in with Backup Software
