New release of Metior HSM software enhances capabilities of SLA libraries.

BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 21, 1996--MediaLogic ADL Inc., developer of the industry's premier scalable library solutions, Wednesday announced certification for a new range of capabilities for its innovative Scalable Library Architecture (SLA) products that are enabled with the availability of Automated Network Technologies (ANT) latest release of its Metior Hierarchical Storage Management (HSM) software.

ANT's Metior Version 1.2 includes enhanced support for the ``hot-swap'' capability of the SLA libraries, the ability to create a fault-tolerant server architecture utilizing the multihost attachment feature, and support for the intelligent electronic identification capabilities of the SLA DataPak media carousels.

Lee Elizer, president and chief executive officer of MediaLogic ADL, said the new capabilities contained in Metior 1.2 are a major step forward in allowing network managers to tap into the intelligent power built into the SLA design.

``Automated Network Technologies clearly is in tune with the customer requirements for intelligent network storage,'' said Elizer. ``The initial version of Metior is a superior HSM solution for UNIX, but this latest release goes even further in delivering the reliability and flexibility demanded by network administrators.''

``Hierarchical Storage Management solutions for the UNIX environment are now required to meet the same 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week data availability standard established by mainframe computing environments,'' said Hal Abbott, president of ANT.

``The Metior-SLA package is the most cost-effective network storage solution that can meet this stringent standard by taking advantage of the intelligent hardware and software architecture to produce fault-tolerant operations at the server and storage library levels.''

Hot-Swap Capability

All SLA-based libraries include a hot-swap feature, allowing individual tape drives to be removed or added while all the other drives in the library continue to operate. This feature allows virtually 100 percent uptime, supporting continuous data availability even if one tape drive fails and needs to be replaced.

Many storage-management hardware libraries are not hot-swap- capable, however, and when a single drive is taken out of service will automatically take the entire library -- and in some cases the server as well -- off-line.

Metior software continuously polls the library and sends file save or retrieval requests to the first available tape drive. In the event that a drive becomes disabled, Metior automatically rolls over the request to the next available drive. Similarly, if a new drive is added to the SLA library, Metior will immediately recognize the new drive and add it to the resource list.

The multidrive capability of the SLA libraries eliminates any individual drive as a failure point that could disable the library and interrupt access to the hundreds of gigabytes or terabytes of critical business data that reside in the DataPak.

Fault Tolerance 

The SLA-Metior HSM solution goes even further and in essence supports a fault-tolerant server configuration as well. Metior is one of the first software applications that takes advantage of the multiple SCSI data paths into the SLA library to enable multiple host servers to attach to a single SLA device.

Connecting two servers to the library allows the common database to be accessed across multiple servers and attached clients. Further, if one server goes down, all library data is still accessible through the second server. This configuration produces enhanced data availability on the server side to match the near-100 percent data-availability design of the SLA libraries.

Electronic Identification of Data

Along with its other advanced functionality, Metior 1.2 is one of the first data-management software applications that supports the time-saving electronic identification feature built into every SLA DataPak. Each DataPak contains a chip with a unique 48-bit identification code.

When the DataPak is first installed and initialized, the host software -- in this case Metior -- catalogs the tape cartridges and individual files contained in the DataPak. The next time that DataPak is installed, Metior checks the identification code and matches it against the existing database, eliminating the need to load and initialize every tape cartridge each time a new DataPak is installed into the SLA Library.

Three-Dimensional Hierarchy

Automated Network Technologies' Metior HSM software is based on the IEEE mass storage reference model and is one of the first distributed HSM solutions for UNIX. Metior runs on the most popular UNIX platforms, including Sun OS, Solaris, Silicon Graphics, HP-UX and SCO UNIX.

Automated Network Technology's exclusive ``three-dimensional'' hierarchy capability gives it the most configuration flexibility of any UNIX HSM software. The three-dimensional feature allows network administrators to create up to seven levels of hierarchical storage, including multiple levels of hierarchy in the same physical medium of a single tape library unit.

Files can also be moved directly from one layer to any other layer in the hierarchy, or can be restored to any authorized workstation directly from the tape library with no intervention by the server disk. The three-dimensional design and distributed architecture of Metior significantly reduces disk thrashing, greatly improving network-storage performance.

ADL's SLA product family currently includes three series of automated data libraries: the SLA-4 Series of 4mm DAT systems with capacities of up to 576 gigabytes (with 20, 40 and 72 cartridges) in a six-drive configuration; the SLA-8 line of 8mm units, offering more than 728 gigabytes of capacity, also in a six-drive configuration (with 14, 28 and 52 cartridges); and the multiterabyte high-performance DLT-based SLA-D product family with up to four drives (with seven, 14 and 26 cartridges) with 1.04 terabytes.

All SLA products feature proprietary hot-swap and configuration- redirection features that allow drives to be replaced or additional drives to be installed while the other drives continue to operate unimpeded. The result is nearly 100 percent uptime and uninterrupted data availability that is unmatched by competitive products.

Data availability is further enhanced by the scalable design that increases the data-handling capability of the library as more drives are added.

Each drive includes an integrated media loader so that any of up to 72 tape cartridges in the 4mm SLA-4 libraries, up to 52 tape cartridges in the 8mm SLA-8 libraries, and up to 26 tape cartridges in the DLT SLA-D libraries can be accessed in two seconds or less.

Quick and easy data interchange is supported via the front panel-accessible MixedMedia Interchange Drawer. The drawer can be configured with up to four removable media SCSI devices to exchange information between the MixedMedia devices and the DataPaks.

MediaLogic ADL, with headquarters in Boulder, is a subsidiary of Massachusetts-based Media Logic Inc. (ASE:TST). ADL is chartered with creating breakthrough technology in the area of innovative automated data library (ADL) solutions.

The design and architecture of the new ADL scalable library products are expected to enhance current applications, enable expanded use of libraries and provide an excellent opportunity for VARs to participate in the profitable emerging market for automated storage solutions.

Founded in 1982, Media Logic is a leading worldwide supplier of evaluation equipment to both manufacturers and users of flexible computer disks and tape. The company also manufactures and sells AccuCopy industrial disk drives and heads for strenuous-environment and high-reliability applications.

For further information on Metior and/or other storage-management software from ANT, contact ANT President Hall Abbott at 303/789-2506; Internet [e-mail]. Or contact the company on the World Wide Web at http://anthill.com.

For further information, contact Lee Elizer at MediaLogic ADL Inc., 303/939-9780; Internet [e-mail]. Or contact the company on the World Wide Web at http://www.adlinc.com/adlinfo. -0-

NOTE TO EDITORS: Metior is a trademark or a trade name of an entity other than MediaLogic ADL.

CONTACT: MediaLogic ADL Inc., Boulder

Lee H. Elizer, 303/939-9780

[e-mail] (Internet)

http://www.adlinc.com/adlinfo (home page)

or

JPR Communications, Tarzana, Calif.

Judy Smith, 818/992-8867

[e-mail] (Internet)