HP Introduces Powerful Combination of Fibre Channel Switch and
SAN-Management Software for the Enterprise
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 5, 1999--
Company Extends SAN Leadership with Scalable Solutions for new HP Equation Storage Architecture
Here at a press conference, Hewlett-Packard Company today introduced storage area network (SAN)
hardware and software that support multivendor application server and storage platforms -- a
demonstrable first step toward HP's commitment to meet growing customer demand for open SAN
solutions.
The new products are part of the new HP SureStore E product family and they provide the foundation for
the HP Equation intelligent-storage architecture (see today's related announcements). These new
products include SAN-management software and a Fibre Channel switch. Open SANs promise
customers the opportunity to solve key business problems while reducing storage-related costs
through the increased competition and best-in-class pricing encouraged by storage-vendor choice.
"These new products underscore HP's drive to ensure customers have access to the strongest set of
storage solutions for their organizations," said Bill Russell, chief operating officer and executive vice
president of HP's Enterprise Computing Solutions. "SANs hold tremendous possibilities for enterprise
customers, and we intend to deliver the full benefit of SANs with a product family that is open, scalable
and reliable to support the new e-services(1) economy."
The HP SureStore E products announced today include the following:
-- HP SureStore E Storage Node Manager -- the industry's first
management software to discover, map and monitor storage devices,
fabric devices and server host-bus adapters across a SAN. This
software, based on HP OpenView's core management technology,
delivers the highest-possible levels of reliability, scalability
and manageability for enterprise-class SAN implementations.
-- HP SureStore E Switch F16 -- a high-bandwidth, 16-port,
multiplatform Fibre Channel switch that interconnects all
components of a SAN, including the HP SureStore E portfolio and
EMC Symmetrix. The switch supports MC/ServiceGuard and
Microsoft(R) Cluster Server for use in mission-critical
environments. It can be cascaded with other switches or hubs at
distances up to 10km for superior disaster recovery and supports
HP's Fibre Channel-SCSI bridge to bring legacy SCSI devices, such
as HP tape libraries and Storage Tek tape silos, into a SAN. The
switch also supports backward compatibility for Fibre
Channel-Arbitrated Loop hub-based SANs to protect existing
investments in host-bus adapters and hubs, while offering the
price/performance benefits of mixed hub and switch networks.
HP also announced plans to deliver a future HP SureStore E server-less SAN backup solution that will
be integrated with HP OpenView OmniBack II and Legato NetWorker. This is an important capability
that will enable customers to offload even more tasks from business-critical application servers and
local area networks (LANs) by allowing tape devices to back up disk subsystems directly across the
SAN, requiring no LAN bandwidth and consuming far fewer application server cycles.
"HP is committed to delivering intelligent enterprise-storage management, and we are working
diligently to ensure a smooth stress-free transition for customers who are ready to migrate from
conventional, direct-connect or centralized storage environments to high-performance SANs," said
Marilyn Edling, general manager of HP's Enterprise Storage Business Unit. "The HP SureStore E
product line and HP Equation storage architecture will provide customers with the foundation for an
enterprise-computing utility with the high availability and extreme capacity necessary to support the
emerging world of e-services."
Pricing and Availability
Product availability and pricing varies. Product-specific information is available from HP sales
representatives or authorized HP resellers.
Information about HP's enterprise-storage products and services can be found on the World Wide Web
at enterprisestorage.hp.com. |
