Storage: StorageTek Announces Industry's First Multiple Loop Fibre Channel Hub, Enabling Open, Low-Cost Storage Area Networks

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, July 13, 1998

StorageTek (Storage Technology Corp.) Tuesday announced the StorageNet Access Hub, the world's first multiple loop Fibre Channel hub and a key device for building scalable, manageable dedicated storage area networks (SANs).

The Access Hub is part of StorageTek's StorageNet family of SAN solutions, and provides a cost-effective way to address specific performance and management challenges that UNIX and Windows NT customers are facing as data storage requirements continue to mount in the enterprise. In addition to selling the Access Hub through its direct sales organizations, StorageTek is actively seeking channels with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), systems integrators (SIs) and value-added resellers (VARs).

Businesses today are recognizing that storage-centric applications, such as backup and recovery, demand considerable bandwidth at the expense of other applications that must share the same front-end network. The resulting lowered application performance and the rising cost of storing information are two main drivers in the move to offload storage applications to a dedicated SAN. SANs today are enabled chiefly by Fibre Channel, a high-speed, high-capacity connectivity protocol that removes many of the data transfer rate and distance limitations associated with traditional SCSI server-to-storage communication.

StorageTek has analyzed the market for SAN products and identified a pronounced gap in both functionality and price-per-port directly entry-level hubs and high-end switches. The StorageNet Access Hub is designed to fill that gap by providing many switch-like capabilities at a price in-line with managed hubs. Furthermore, the Access Hub and all StorageNet products support StorageTek's ongoing pursuit as the preeminent provider of network storage by delivering cost-effective access to information, regardless of the storage device or server platform.

"StorageTek is taking a definitive leadership role in enabling cost-effective, manageable SANs with our new StorageNet Access Hub," said Joan Wrabetz, vice president and general manager, StorageTek's Network Systems Group. "Many of our customers with distributed computing environments tell us that they need to address burgeoning storage demands but cannot justify the cost of implementing a switch. Our Access Hub solution places users on a scalable path toward a more intelligent storage network and perfectly complements our family of StorageNet solutions to address the SAN needs of the enterprise."

Access Hub to Deliver High-End Functionality at Low Cost The StorageNet Access Hub is a multi-loop hub that provides an aggregate bandwidth of 16 gigabits, or 16 times that of traditional hubs, at a highly competitive price point. It supports up to 16 concurrent, full bandwidth 100 megabytes (MB) per second Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loops (FC-ALs). By contrast, in a single arbitrated loop provided by traditional hubs, all devices share the same 100 MB/sec bandwidth. When any two nodes are communicating over the arbitrated loop, all other communication is blocked until the data transfer is complete. With the StorageNet Access Hub, companies can utilize multiple, virtual FC-ALs each running with 100 MB/sec. bandwidth concurrently.

StorageTek further recognizes that customers will need to manage, adapt and grow their storage networks to meet the demands of their business. The Access Hub lets customers easily reconfigure the storage network under software control. Utilizing the Access Hub's Web-based, graphical user interface (GUI), users can point-and-click to implement on-the-fly SAN configuration changes. In addition, the system can store and implement multiple configurations to adapt the SAN to predictable shifts in storage demand. For instance, customers can dedicate specific loops to back-up their system in the evening and then reconfigure those loops the next morning to support other applications, all via the Web GUI. This eliminates the time and costs associated with unplugging and changing cables in reconfiguration.

Much like the zoning capabilities of StorageTek's high-end Fibre Channel Switch 4000 [see separate announcement issued today], the StorageNet Access Hub delivers access control through point-and-click segmentation of devices onto specific loops. This provides demonstrable security benefits by restricting server access to certain devices and protects those devices from operating systems and servers that are not designed for SAN awareness.

Pricing and Availability The StorageNet Access Hub will support 32 100 MB/sec. full-duplex FC-AL ports with both copper and fibre interfaces, and will ship with Ethernet management and a performance/monitoring port. Available in September 1998 for less than US$1,000 fully configures, the Access Hub will be offered directly through StorageTek and OEM partners.

StorageNet increases the value of data by enabling an industry-unique open storage utility. The StorageNet family is a complete set of storage area network (SAN) offerings, including: channel networking and extension products, SCSI and Fibre Channel interconnect products, and shared storage products. Aiding customers faced with the challenge of integrating legacy, UNIX and Windows NT environments, the StorageNet line leverages StorageTek's proven leadership and technological excellence to deliver comprehensive, best-of-breed storage networking solutions. All StorageNet products are fully tested for interoperability with StorageTek's tape libraries, SCSI and native Fibre Channel disk subsystems, and related SAN connectivity products, as well as all major open systems servers and storage devices.