ADIC boosts performance for tape library family with integration of SDLT 600 drive.

Advanced Digital Information Corporation (Nasdaq:ADIC), provider of Intelligent Storage solutions for the open system market, has announced that its Scalar family of tape libraries will offer enhanced capacity, performance, and data protection services next month when it integrates the next generation of DLTtape drives: the SDLT 600.

As the expanded product offering is introduced, ADIC's Scalar i2000 will enhance its automated diagnostic and alerting capabilities, offering customers proactive warnings as their SDLT media approaches the end of its life. Early warnings about media status let users move data to new media to avoid data loss, and it allows them to manage the process with the least impact on normal backup operations.

"This rollout represents an important data protection advance for the IT community that has come to rely on DLTtape technology to safeguard their corporate assets," explained Bill Britts, ADIC executive vice president of sales and marketing. "Now we have a generation of drives that provides more detailed information about their own operation and the state of media. And we have a library that monitors the entire backup environment--including drives and media--and proactively alerts users when they need to take action. This combination from ADIC and Quantum is going to mean safer data and easier management for the IT teams responsible for backup and long-term data retention."

The libraries will also offer dramatic capacity and performance increases as they integrate the new-generation drives. With the SDLT 600, capacity is improved by 88% over existing Super DLTtape formats to 600 GB per tape cartridge, while throughput sees a 125% increase to 72 MB/sec(A). The density of the new systems will help users store more data with smaller library systems. The Scalar 24, ADIC's entry-level tape library, will now offer up to 12.6 TB capacity and 518 GB/hour throughput in only 4 standard rack units. The Scalar i2000, designed for consolidating large-scale backup processes, can hold up to 837 TB in its maximum capacity SDLT 600 configuration.

"Data protection requirements, disaster recovery needs and data retention regulations are colliding with continued data growth, making high performance backup and restore more important than ever," said Charlene Murphy, vice president of marketing, Quantum's Storage Devices Business Unit. "The combination of SDLT 600 with the Scalar family of tape libraries provides customers with bolstered confidence that their data will be protected now and in the future."

The ADIC Scalar 24 and Scalar i2000 will be the first ADIC libraries available with the new drives.

The Scalar 24 is the entry-level library that offers an easy upgrade path to full enterprise functionality, including advanced Storage Area Network (SAN) support. The Scalar 24 offer's one or two SLDT 600 drives and 21 tape cartridges.

The Scalar i2000 is the next-generation data center library, built around ADIC's iPlatform architecture. The Scalar i2000 integrates advanced management and serviceability functions inside the library to increase overall data protection, simplify management, reduce the need for external servers and software, and save companies time and money over the life of their backup system. The Scalar i2000 will offer up to 48 SDLT 600 drives and 1,395 tape cartridges, advanced SAN support, capacity-on-demand scalability, and automated remote diagnostic capabilities, including proactive media status alerts.

Scalar libraries with SDLT 600 tape drives are available now through ADIC and ADIC channel partners.