HP Announces New DDS-3 Autoloader Solution; HP SureStore DAT24x6 Enables Effective, Hands-free Backup.

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 11, 1997--Setting new standards in automated backup, Hewlett-Packard Company today launched the HP SureStore DAT24x6 autoloader.

The new autoloader, which contains six 24GB DDS-3 tapes and offers a transfer rate of 2MB/s, allows backup to be effected with minimum intervention from the backup administrator. The DAT24x6 reduces the possibility of human error during the backup procedure and relieves IT staff of many of the time-consuming administrative tasks commonly associated with backup.

The benefits of automation extend beyond convenience; a substantial savings in IT costs may be sustained if the network administrator is not diverted from mission-critical applications to perform backups manually. In addition, the drive is entirely compatible with previous DDS formats, allowing previous backup archives to be sustained and old DDS and DDS-2 tapes to be re-used. This enables the seamless and cost-efficient integration of the HP SureStore DAT24x6 into the business environment.

HP has maximized the level of reliability of the HP SureStore DAT24x6 through the incorporation of features such as TapeAlert and an automatic internal head cleaner. TapeAlert, developed by HP and openly available under license royalty-free, is a self-diagnostic tool that enables network administrators at both local and remote sites to recognize and react to storage problems as they occur. The technology has already been adopted by the Cheyenne Division of Computer Associates and Seagate Software in their backup software. The head cleaner sweeps away any dust entering the mechanism that might interfere with the integrity of the data flow.

The high capacity and fast transfer rate of the DDS-3 standard adopted by the HP SureStore DAT24x6 allow the autoloader to meet the new challenges set by the increasing workload of the network administrator, who typically will have a greater amount of data to back up in a shorter backup window.

"IT skills are at a premium these days, and the job of the IT administrator is becoming more and more complex in terms of the variety and complexity of network applications," said Tom White, general manager at HP's Computer Peripherals Bristol. "An autoloader solution enables the IT administrator to circumvent the administrative aspects of backup, while ensuring that the backup takes place correctly every night. The HP SureStore DAT24x6, with its compelling range of reliability features, goes far to make backup as error- and stress-free a process as possible."

The HP SureStore DAT24x6 is compatible with all major network operating systems, including NetWare and Microsoft(R) Windows(R) NT, and with leading software backup applications, such as Cheyenne's ARCserve and Seagate's Backup Exec.

"A key consideration of any backup solution is to make the administrator's life a little easier by automating as many of the backup processes as possible," said Mark Reeves, European sales and marketing director at Seagate Software Maidenhead. "Automation will be raised to new heights by the combination of the extensive backup capabilities of Seagate's Backup Exec for NetWare and Windows NT. Backup Exec's low-administration backup mode functionality, jointly developed between HP and Seagate Software, is designed to support this powerful new autoloader solution from HP. The combination can be relied upon to perform the backup for a large network with a negligible amount of human intervention."

"The low administration level required to perform backup using the HP SureStore DAT24x6 will have a revolutionary effect on the workload of the IT manager," said Robert Hill, marketing manager at HP Computer Peripherals Bristol. "The HP SureStore DAT24x6 autoloader can be left alone for days, even months at a time, in the certainty that backup will have been performed seamlessly. The network administrator's performance will be maximized because the autoloader takes care of the lower-level backup duties."

The HP SureStore DAT24x6 is a six-tape autoloader solution, with each tape having a capacity of 24GB with hardware compression. It offers a transfer speed of 2MB/s, and has an outstanding Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) of 55,000 hours and a Mean Swaps Between Failures (MSBF) of more than 100,000. The SureStore DAT24x6 takes 15 seconds to swap cartridges, and, using the Fastsearch mechanism, will restore any file from the tape in fewer than 40 seconds. It offers assured connectivity with leading servers, operating systems and backup software.

Seagate Software develops tools and applications in the areas of information management and infrastructure management, including network, systems and storage management.

HP's Information Storage Group, which focuses on the rapidly growing extended-storage market, manufactures and sells information-storage products based on tape, magneto-optical and CD technologies. HP storage solutions include digital-audio-tape (DAT) drives and digital-linear-tape (DLT) libraries, minicartridge (QIC) tape drives and software, CD-writable drives, and magneto-optical drives and jukeboxes. HP also provides media for all these formats. These products are sold through a variety of distribution channels under the HP SureStore and HP Colorado brand names, as well as to OEM customers.

Hewlett-Packard Company is a leading global manufacturer of computing, communications and measurement products and services recognized for excellence in quality and support. HP has 112,800 employees and had revenue of $38.4 billion in its 1996 fiscal year.

Information about HP and its products can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.hp.com . -0- Microsoft is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corp. Windows is a U.S. registered trademark of Microsoft Corp.

CONTACT: Hewlett-Packard Co.

Gillian Garrahy, [phone]

[e-mail]

or

The Hoffman Agency for HP

Margaret Pereira, 408/286-2611

[e-mail]