Storage: Compaq Delivers Unique Integrated Storage Area Network Backup Solution for the Enterprise - Company Business and Marketing

Edge: Work-Group Computing Report, Nov 9, 1998

Compaq Computer Corporation, the largest provider of multi-user storage in the industry(1), Monday announced key solutions and products for enterprise-wide backup. These include the Compaq StorageWorks Enterprise Backup Solution, a unique combination of application software from partners and industry-standard hardware from Compaq, a new entry-level DLT library, and enhanced Storage Management Solutions.

The Enterprise Backup Solution is designed especially for large-scale Windows NT and NetWare customers running business-critical applications who have outgrown traditional backup/restore capabilities. Featuring Fibre Channel technology, this integrated storage area network (SAN) backup solution delivers high-performance, massively scalable backup for Windows NT and NetWare environments.

Monday's announcement is another in a series of integrated SAN solutions from Compaq for improved data sharing, higher performance, and simplified storage management.

"Vendors are talking about integrating Fibre Channel and SANs in a backup environment, but Compaq is the first to deliver a solution that allows applications and servers to automatically share tape libraries over fibre channel," said Howard Elias, Vice President and General Manager, Compaq Storage Products Division. "With our solution, customers can better control their systems, ensuring backup policies are followed automatically and reducing backup windows, without sacrificing the performance of their client/server networks. Monday's announcement is proof of our ability to provide fully integrated enterprise-wide SAN solutions based on leading technology and key partnerships."

Fara Yale, Storage Analyst at Dataquest, said, "Addressing the number one concern of storage management -- backup and recovery -- is essential for a system vendor to provide a complete solution for its customers. However, it is becoming increasingly important to also deliver a practical way to integrate the benefits of Fibre Channel technology into this solution. An approach such as this one will help customers take the important initial steps in developing a SAN."

Meeting Next-Generation Backup and Restore Requirements The Enterprise Backup Solution combines standards-based hardware from Compaq, including Fibre-Channel-based host adapters, hubs, and tape controllers, SCSI-based tape libraries, and best-of-breed software from Seagate Software and Computer Associates. A tuned and tested backup solution, it enables servers within the Windows NT and NetWare environments to share tape devices attached to a Fibre Channel Arbitrated Loop and offers the high performance of direct-attached devices.

The Enterprise Backup Solution was designed to meet customers' requirements for next-generation backup and restore in Windows NT and NetWare environments with high performance and centralized management. It comes equipped with 100MB/s Fibre Channel bandwidth, for decreased backup windows. Its architecture enables concurrent backups from multiple servers to single or multiple DLT libraries so customers can manage backups and restores from a central location.

The solution is highly reliable, easy to purchase and install, and includes the ability to scale in performance and capacity as needed by using a building block approach. Prices vary depending on customers' configurations. The solution will be available early next month. For more specific configuration and shipping information, visit www.compaq.com/storageworks on the World Wide Web.

User/Reseller Commentary Universal Studios uses an Enterprise Backup Solution to facilitate centralized storage and backup of data storage at its campus of more than 4,000 users. John Libby, Associate Director of Architecture and Planning at Universal Studios, said, "The Compaq StorageWorks Enterprise Backup Solution allows us to take advantage of state-of-the-art Fibre Channel technology by using our existing base of knowledge. It was surprisingly easy to install and the performance and ease-of-use exceeded our expectations."

Carl Wolfston, Managing Director, Headlands Associates, Inc., a Storage Enterpise VAR in Pleasanton, Calif., said, "With the Compaq StorageWorks Enterprise Backup Solution, my customers can back up a number of systems in a networked environment without impacting Ethernet traffic so backups won't interfere with every day access to data and applications. It also allows my customers to become more familiar with Fibre Channel technology."

Leading Partnerships Compaq works closely with leading partners to integrate leading storage management software as part of its solutions to ensure fast, confident deployments.

"CA and Compaq are pioneers in developing the industry's first Fibre Channel SAN-based Enterprise Backup Solution," said Yogesh Gupta, CA senior vice president of product strategy. "Combining ARCserveIT technology, which has shipped since October 6, with Compaq's StorageWorks Enterprise Backup Solution provides customers with a high-performance, massively scalable, integrated backup solution that exploits the benefits of leading-edge Fibre Channel technology."