December 24, 2009 -- Many of you are already following InfoStor on Twitter for up-to-the-minute breaking news and information about the data storage industry. What you may not know is that InfoStor now has a LinkedIn Group up and running where end users and experts can meet to discuss trends, technologies and the issues facing storage professionals.
Join the InfoStor Group on LinkedIn for daily news updates, lab reviews, guest blogs, and to add your two cents to the discussion threads.
Speaking of guest blogs, Editor-in-Chief Dave Simpson is now soliciting end user bloggers for InfoStor.com. More information on guest blogger opportunities can be found on LinkedIn. Feel free to drop Dave a line and make your voice heard!
Happy Holidays from the InfoStor team!
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Dell, KOM Networks are turning old storage into food
December 16, 2009 -- KOM Networks is teaming up with Dell and recycling partner the Technology Conservation Group (TCG) to turn optical jukeboxes and other storage gear into food for needy children.
The companies have announced the "Junk-A-Juke" program, which provides free archive and storage systems in exchange for donated end-of-life optical jukeboxes or legacy storage devices.
Under the program, the vendors will collect and recycle obsolete and legacy storage equipment and donate all the money generated from raw materials to Feed The Children.
In exchange for the older equipment, KOM offers a new Dell Powered KOMpliance Archive (based on the Dell PowerVault NX3000 NAS) with equal capacity, an enterprise class server and archive solution free-of-charge with a three year maintenance agreement.
The goal, according to KOM, is to collect and recycle enough hardware to feed one million children.
TCG will pick up and track each piece of equipment through destruction to ensure that nothing ends up in a landfill. TCG is an ISO registered recycler of electronic scrap and a member of NAID, the National Association for Information Destruction, a trade association providing the standards and ethics for the information destruction industry to ensure total compliant destruction of functional drives.
The companies have announced the "Junk-A-Juke" program, which provides free archive and storage systems in exchange for donated end-of-life optical jukeboxes or legacy storage devices.
Under the program, the vendors will collect and recycle obsolete and legacy storage equipment and donate all the money generated from raw materials to Feed The Children.
In exchange for the older equipment, KOM offers a new Dell Powered KOMpliance Archive (based on the Dell PowerVault NX3000 NAS) with equal capacity, an enterprise class server and archive solution free-of-charge with a three year maintenance agreement.
The goal, according to KOM, is to collect and recycle enough hardware to feed one million children.
TCG will pick up and track each piece of equipment through destruction to ensure that nothing ends up in a landfill. TCG is an ISO registered recycler of electronic scrap and a member of NAID, the National Association for Information Destruction, a trade association providing the standards and ethics for the information destruction industry to ensure total compliant destruction of functional drives.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Gartner: External disk storage market recovering
December 3, 2009 -- Storage vendors have something to be thankful for as yet another indicator that the storage market is rebounding from the economic downturn has emerged. Gartner's latest research shows there are signs of recovery in the external controller-based disk storage market.
According to Gartner, worldwide external controller-based (ECB) disk storage revenue totaled more than $3.9 billion in the third quarter of 2009, a 7.3% decline from the same period last year.
In a statement from principal research analyst for Gartner's global Storage Quarterly Statistics program, Donna Taylor, the economic downturn's impact on the disk array storage market is slowly subsiding.
She says, "The year-over-year decline of 7.3% indicates that the economic downturn's impact on the disk array storage market is loosening its grip. The prior two quarters in 2009 showed declines in the double digits. This is good news for storage vendors, because it's the first sign of a light at the end of the tunnel."
EMC still leads the pack with 26.7% revenue market share. IBM takes second place followed by HP, Hitachi and Dell.
For the full list of market leaders, check out Gartner's website.
IDC issued its 2Q numbers in September, which revealed similar signs of recovery in both the storage hardware and software markets.
IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Storage Software Tracker showed year-over-year growth in the second quarter of 2009 (2Q09) with revenues of $2.8 billion, representing –9.8% growth over the same quarter one year ago.
On the hardware front, worldwide external disk storage systems factory revenues posting a year-over-year decline of 18.3% in the 2Q09, totaling $4.1 billion, according to the IDC Worldwide Disk Storage Systems Quarterly Tracker.
In addition, a recent survey of 47 enterprise VARs conducted by Robert W. Baird & Co. showed that VARs are upbeat about fourth quarter prospects. See Dave Simpson's blog "VARs upbeat about Q4."
According to Gartner, worldwide external controller-based (ECB) disk storage revenue totaled more than $3.9 billion in the third quarter of 2009, a 7.3% decline from the same period last year.
In a statement from principal research analyst for Gartner's global Storage Quarterly Statistics program, Donna Taylor, the economic downturn's impact on the disk array storage market is slowly subsiding.
She says, "The year-over-year decline of 7.3% indicates that the economic downturn's impact on the disk array storage market is loosening its grip. The prior two quarters in 2009 showed declines in the double digits. This is good news for storage vendors, because it's the first sign of a light at the end of the tunnel."
EMC still leads the pack with 26.7% revenue market share. IBM takes second place followed by HP, Hitachi and Dell.
For the full list of market leaders, check out Gartner's website.
IDC issued its 2Q numbers in September, which revealed similar signs of recovery in both the storage hardware and software markets.
IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Storage Software Tracker showed year-over-year growth in the second quarter of 2009 (2Q09) with revenues of $2.8 billion, representing –9.8% growth over the same quarter one year ago.
On the hardware front, worldwide external disk storage systems factory revenues posting a year-over-year decline of 18.3% in the 2Q09, totaling $4.1 billion, according to the IDC Worldwide Disk Storage Systems Quarterly Tracker.
In addition, a recent survey of 47 enterprise VARs conducted by Robert W. Baird & Co. showed that VARs are upbeat about fourth quarter prospects. See Dave Simpson's blog "VARs upbeat about Q4."
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
What are the market drivers for virtualization and cloud computing?
November 18, 2009 -- Everyone is on board the virtualization train and it seems IT vendors are slapping the "cloud" tag on every storage platform and service they come up with, but what drives the end user towards virtualization and cloud storage?
Recent research from IT automation specialist Shavlik Technologies outlines the market drivers behind virtualization and cloud computing initiatives. Shavlik conducted a survey of more than 290 IT pros and the results reveal that data, server and licensing consolidation and disaster recovery functionality are the leading drivers behind new investments in virtualization technology.
According to Shavlik, an overwhelming 93% of IT organizations are using virtual machine technology. Seventy-five percent of those organizations have more than half of their production servers as virtual machines.
Fifty-three percent of survey respondents say server and licensing consolidation is the driving force behind their virtualization deployments, while backup ranked as the second major driver, reported by 52% of those polled.
The principal lure of cloud computing seems to be TCO. The survey revealed that the reduced IT costs associated with cloud computing is the principal reason IT managers are turning to the cloud for the delivery of IT services.
Cloud computing is being examined for adoption by 58 percent of survey respondents, according to the Shavlik research.
Recent research from IT automation specialist Shavlik Technologies outlines the market drivers behind virtualization and cloud computing initiatives. Shavlik conducted a survey of more than 290 IT pros and the results reveal that data, server and licensing consolidation and disaster recovery functionality are the leading drivers behind new investments in virtualization technology.
According to Shavlik, an overwhelming 93% of IT organizations are using virtual machine technology. Seventy-five percent of those organizations have more than half of their production servers as virtual machines.
Fifty-three percent of survey respondents say server and licensing consolidation is the driving force behind their virtualization deployments, while backup ranked as the second major driver, reported by 52% of those polled.
The principal lure of cloud computing seems to be TCO. The survey revealed that the reduced IT costs associated with cloud computing is the principal reason IT managers are turning to the cloud for the delivery of IT services.
Cloud computing is being examined for adoption by 58 percent of survey respondents, according to the Shavlik research.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
EMC, Cisco, Vmware cause waves with cloud coalition
November 3, 2009 -- Competitors are already calling the EMC – Cisco – VMware Virtual Computing Environment coalition and its Vblock compute systems a veiled approach to vendor lock-in, but the trio begs to differ.
EMC, Cisco and VMware caused a commotion when the companies announced the Virtual Computing Environment (VCE) coalition and a new set of systems that operate as building blocks for virtualized cloud computing infrastructures.
The companies have been collaborating to create a virtualized, cloud infrastructure platform based on their respective technologies. The result is a series of integrated "Vblock Infrastructure" packages comprised of storage and networking systems and server and storage virtualization software.
We've been fielding comments from across the industry and it didn't take long for the competition to react.
EMC rival NetApp fired a shot at the VCE by classifying Vblocks as nothing more than a reference architecture rather than a full stack of server, network, storage, and virtualization technologies.
Jay Kidd, vice president Storage Solutions group and chief marketing officer, NetApp:
"We view today's announcement as a clever attempt by Cisco to sell UCS servers into EMC's install base. We also feel that this announcement further validates the trend that we're seeing as more and more enterprises move to a virtualized dynamic data center infrastructure. NetApp has been at the forefront in helping enterprises realize this shift through our close partnerships with Cisco and VMware. With VMware we have virtualized large data centers for customers like T-Systems, BT, and Sprint, and have expanded on these architectures with several integration partners to include Cisco UCS servers. Open partnerships, not closed coalitions, are what customers need and want to make the transformation to a virtualized data center."
More of Jay's thoughts on the VCE and Vblocks can be found in his latest blog post.
Dell – a huge EMC partner – calls the VCE/Vblock news an attempt to lock users into proprietary technologies.
Dell's vice president of enterprise storage and networking, Praveen Asthana, says, "The VMware, Cisco and EMC joint venture assumes that customers are looking for closed technology architectures that lock them into a restricted vendor stack. This proprietary implementation of industry standard architectures is a throwback to the 1990's and creates complete vendor lock-in. As the leading provider of Cloud infrastructure, Dell knows from its customers' insights that cloud compute workloads are best served by open, standards-based solutions – not by repackaging high-cost infrastructure as a cloud solution."
The coalition members beg to differ. They are in lock step with a message of openness.
VMware's president and CEO, Paul Maritz, says Cisco, EMC and VMware all remain committed to working in an "open way."
"We maintain our commitment to working in an open way with existing partners by making our technologies available to other parties who want to put together solutions," says Maritz. "There is no need or reason for our relationships to change. At the same time, we are adding to the options for our customers and not removing them."
EMC's CEO Joe Tucci claims the VCE and the Vblock systems offer customers more "choice."
"On the choice side, we know this is an open world and we are committed to openness," he says. "We are still offering an a la carte menu. For example, you can take EMC storage and choose another server. We are not removing choice."
However, open does not mean the ability to use just any technology to create a Vblock.
"We are not substituting on the Vblock side. If you want to use somebody else's storage you have to buy from the [a la carte] side of the menu, but you're not buying a Vblock," says Tucci. "That's the distinction. You give up certain things if you don't order from the fixed menu."
EMC, Cisco and VMware caused a commotion when the companies announced the Virtual Computing Environment (VCE) coalition and a new set of systems that operate as building blocks for virtualized cloud computing infrastructures.
The companies have been collaborating to create a virtualized, cloud infrastructure platform based on their respective technologies. The result is a series of integrated "Vblock Infrastructure" packages comprised of storage and networking systems and server and storage virtualization software.
We've been fielding comments from across the industry and it didn't take long for the competition to react.
EMC rival NetApp fired a shot at the VCE by classifying Vblocks as nothing more than a reference architecture rather than a full stack of server, network, storage, and virtualization technologies.
Jay Kidd, vice president Storage Solutions group and chief marketing officer, NetApp:
"We view today's announcement as a clever attempt by Cisco to sell UCS servers into EMC's install base. We also feel that this announcement further validates the trend that we're seeing as more and more enterprises move to a virtualized dynamic data center infrastructure. NetApp has been at the forefront in helping enterprises realize this shift through our close partnerships with Cisco and VMware. With VMware we have virtualized large data centers for customers like T-Systems, BT, and Sprint, and have expanded on these architectures with several integration partners to include Cisco UCS servers. Open partnerships, not closed coalitions, are what customers need and want to make the transformation to a virtualized data center."
More of Jay's thoughts on the VCE and Vblocks can be found in his latest blog post.
Dell – a huge EMC partner – calls the VCE/Vblock news an attempt to lock users into proprietary technologies.
Dell's vice president of enterprise storage and networking, Praveen Asthana, says, "The VMware, Cisco and EMC joint venture assumes that customers are looking for closed technology architectures that lock them into a restricted vendor stack. This proprietary implementation of industry standard architectures is a throwback to the 1990's and creates complete vendor lock-in. As the leading provider of Cloud infrastructure, Dell knows from its customers' insights that cloud compute workloads are best served by open, standards-based solutions – not by repackaging high-cost infrastructure as a cloud solution."
The coalition members beg to differ. They are in lock step with a message of openness.
VMware's president and CEO, Paul Maritz, says Cisco, EMC and VMware all remain committed to working in an "open way."
"We maintain our commitment to working in an open way with existing partners by making our technologies available to other parties who want to put together solutions," says Maritz. "There is no need or reason for our relationships to change. At the same time, we are adding to the options for our customers and not removing them."
EMC's CEO Joe Tucci claims the VCE and the Vblock systems offer customers more "choice."
"On the choice side, we know this is an open world and we are committed to openness," he says. "We are still offering an a la carte menu. For example, you can take EMC storage and choose another server. We are not removing choice."
However, open does not mean the ability to use just any technology to create a Vblock.
"We are not substituting on the Vblock side. If you want to use somebody else's storage you have to buy from the [a la carte] side of the menu, but you're not buying a Vblock," says Tucci. "That's the distinction. You give up certain things if you don't order from the fixed menu."
Friday, October 30, 2009
Storage pro on the lam
October 30, 2009 -- There is an IT operations manager/storage professional on the run this Halloween and he has 30 hours to get as far away from Manchester University as possible.
Simon Painter, an IT engineer for storage vendor BlueArc, is participating in a "jailbreak" this weekend in an effort to raise funds for KidsCan, a pediatric cancer treatment research organization based in the UK.
Painter and his friend David Wood are competing with 100 others in a race to get as far away from the starting point as they can without spending any money. They may raise some eyebrows, as they will be donning orange prison-like jumpsuits and flip-flops for the trip.
Aside from travel documents and an emergency credit card, the duo will be toting a mobile phone with them as they beg, borrow and "blag" their way across Europe. The team will use the phone to update their location on Twitter and Facebook.
Painter hopes to make his way to Zimbabwe by the end of the contest. Participants have reportedly made it as far away as New Zealand and Australia in past races.
You can sponsor Painter's "escape," track his progress and see a live map of his location on the Jailbreak for KidsCan website.
Simon Painter, an IT engineer for storage vendor BlueArc, is participating in a "jailbreak" this weekend in an effort to raise funds for KidsCan, a pediatric cancer treatment research organization based in the UK.
Painter and his friend David Wood are competing with 100 others in a race to get as far away from the starting point as they can without spending any money. They may raise some eyebrows, as they will be donning orange prison-like jumpsuits and flip-flops for the trip.
Aside from travel documents and an emergency credit card, the duo will be toting a mobile phone with them as they beg, borrow and "blag" their way across Europe. The team will use the phone to update their location on Twitter and Facebook.
Painter hopes to make his way to Zimbabwe by the end of the contest. Participants have reportedly made it as far away as New Zealand and Australia in past races.
You can sponsor Painter's "escape," track his progress and see a live map of his location on the Jailbreak for KidsCan website.
Friday, October 23, 2009
One vendor too many?
October 23, 2009 -- The end users I speak with approach the buying process in different ways. Some opt for a single vendor – the so-called "one throat to choke" strategy. Others buy storage from multiple vendors to keep everyone honest. Most feel the multi-vendor approach is the way to go, but it's a slippery slope. How many vendors does it take before the pros outweigh the cons?
In a new report, "How Efficient Is Your Enterprise Storage Environment?," Forrester Research senior analyst Andrew Reichman outlines some best practices for "multisourcing" along with ways to measure key performance indicators (KPIs) for storage efficiency.
Reichman believes multisourcing storage can give customers the upper hand in negotiations and reduce vendor lock-in, but there is a risk to having too many vendors in the mix.
He says having too many vendors on hand can dramatically increase cost of management and reduce overall efficiency. For instance, managing different storage platforms can require different skill sets. More platforms in the data center require higher management and training costs.
He also says that negotiating a better price is a balancing act. Reichman writes, "Vendors often give deeper discounts to those who buy more of their gear. So, while negotiation power can be improved with competition, actually buying from many vendors can limit volumes and therefore discounts over time. Bids should be competitive, and exit strategies considered, but it makes sense from a pricing perspective to pool purchases with a smaller number of vendors once the negotiations are done."
No two environments are the same, but a good rule of thumb is to have no more than three different types of storage on the floor to keep costs under control and minimize complexity.
Multisourcing is one piece of the puzzle. Forrester's storage analysts also offer best practices for measuring capacity utilization and allocation, tier ratios, and staffing.
The full report can be found on Forrester's website.
In a new report, "How Efficient Is Your Enterprise Storage Environment?," Forrester Research senior analyst Andrew Reichman outlines some best practices for "multisourcing" along with ways to measure key performance indicators (KPIs) for storage efficiency.
Reichman believes multisourcing storage can give customers the upper hand in negotiations and reduce vendor lock-in, but there is a risk to having too many vendors in the mix.
He says having too many vendors on hand can dramatically increase cost of management and reduce overall efficiency. For instance, managing different storage platforms can require different skill sets. More platforms in the data center require higher management and training costs.
He also says that negotiating a better price is a balancing act. Reichman writes, "Vendors often give deeper discounts to those who buy more of their gear. So, while negotiation power can be improved with competition, actually buying from many vendors can limit volumes and therefore discounts over time. Bids should be competitive, and exit strategies considered, but it makes sense from a pricing perspective to pool purchases with a smaller number of vendors once the negotiations are done."
No two environments are the same, but a good rule of thumb is to have no more than three different types of storage on the floor to keep costs under control and minimize complexity.
Multisourcing is one piece of the puzzle. Forrester's storage analysts also offer best practices for measuring capacity utilization and allocation, tier ratios, and staffing.
The full report can be found on Forrester's website.
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