Sun Redefines Storage For The Network Age with the Intelligent Storage Network.PALO ALTO Palo Alto, city, California Palo Alto (păl`ō ăl`tō), city (1990 pop. 55,900), Santa Clara co., W Calif.; inc. 1894. Although primarily residential, Palo Alto has aerospace, electronics, and advanced research industries. , Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--January 28, 1998-- Highly Flexible And Infinitely Scalable New Architecture Enables Multiplatform Devices to Work Together Storage took a giant leap forward into the world of network computing Storing and/or running applications in servers in a network. See cloud computing and network computer. today as Sun Microsystems Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAVA[3]) is an American vendor of computers, computer components, computer software, and information-technology services, founded on 24 February 1982. , Inc. announced the revolutionary new Intelligent Storage Network(TM) architecture. Leveraging Sun's expertise in high-performance systems for network computing, the Intelligent Storage Network model delivers mainframe-class reliability, availability and serviceability Reliability, Availability and Serviceability is a computer hardware engineering term. It originated from IBM to advertise the robustness of their mainframe computers. The concept is often known by the acronym RAS. (RAS (1) See network access server. (2) (Remote Access Service) A Windows NT/2000 Server feature that allows remote users access to the network from their Windows laptops or desktops via modem. See RRAS and network access server. ), as well as headroom for unlimited growth and multiplatform information sharing See data conferencing. . The architecture is a long-term strategy that customers can begin implementing today with Sun's current line of Sun(TM) StorEdge(TM) products. With the Intelligent Storage Network model, customers will be able to build heterogeneous storage systems with interchangeable building-block components; offer end users anytime/anywhere access to muliplatform information; load data warehouses in a fraction of the time previously required; consolidate storage systems for cost savings; and manage the storage environment from anywhere with a Java(TM) technology web browser The program that serves as your front end to the Web on the Internet. In order to view a site, you type its address (URL) into the browser's Location field; for example, www.computerlanguage.com, and the home page of that site is downloaded to you. . "Today, Sun is doing for storage what it did for network computing-enabling multi-platform devices to work together," stated John Shoemaker John Shoemaker (born August 18 1956 in Chillicothe, OH USA) is a former minor league baseball player and current manager of the Double-A Jacksonville Suns. Shoemaker attended Waverly High School and Miami University before he was drafted in the 35th round of the 1977 MLB , vice president and general manager of Sun Microsystems Computer Company's Enterprise Server and Storage Group. "Storage has come into its own as industry and customer needs are propelling information to ever greater importance. With Sun's Intelligent Storage Network architecture, stored data becomes a strategic tool enabling customers to become more productive, reach new markets and discover untapped sources of revenue and cost savings." Traditional Storage Architectures Can't Keep Pace With Changing Customer Needs As customers continue to realize the strategic importance of data, more value and dependency is placed on information. IT managers no longer are content with traditional storage architectures, in which storage systems essentially are islands of information. This model limits access to enterprise information, is difficult to manage, and lacks flexibility. Storage resources cannot scale easily to meet new requirements or adapt to changing business conditions. Sun's visionary Intelligent Storage Network architecture combines the traditional attributes of high-quality storage systems-reliability, availability, performance, and manageability-with the connectivity and distributed access benefits of network computing. The result is a flexible architecture that integrates industry-leading technology from best-of-breed vendors, enabling customers to build exactly the solution they need, when they need it, without sacrificing previous investments. With Sun's Intelligent Storage Network architecture, customers will be able to enjoy the basic features of traditional storage systems plus a host of new features and benefits, such as: zero downtime expansion with unlimited growth potential; true multi-platform information sharing for zero-copy data warehousing See data warehouse. data warehousing - data warehouse ; scalable performance and capacity in cost-effective increments; consolidation of dispersed storage resources managed from a central location; and anytime, anywhere access to any authorized data with a Java technology web browser. "We're rolling out one of the largest SAP implementations in North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. , and we believe Sun is the one vendor that can meet all of our requirements for safe, flexible, scalable storage," said Sam Baty, Chief Information Officer for Browning-Ferris Industries Browning-Ferris Industries, or "BFI", is a licensed trademark of Allied Waste Industries, a North America waste collection company. Many local units of Allied Waste are still known as BFI in the markets they serve. , the world's second-largest waste management company. How Sun's Intelligent Storage Network Architecture Is Different Five key technologies and capabilities differentiate Sun's Intelligent Storage Network model from the industry's traditional approach to storage: 1) Intelligent Storage Server(TM) System: A UNIX UNIX Operating system for digital computers, developed by Ken Thompson of Bell Laboratories in 1969. It was initially designed for a single user (the name was a pun on the earlier operating system Multics). , symmetric multiprocessor symmetric multiprocessor - symmetric multiprocessing (SMP (Symmetric MultiProcessing) A multiprocessing architecture in which multiple CPUs, residing in one cabinet, share the same memory. SMP systems provide scalability. As business increases, additional CPUs can be added to absorb the increased transaction volume. ) server running a full operating system operating system (OS) Software that controls the operation of a computer, directs the input and output of data, keeps track of files, and controls the processing of computer programs. that controls storage functions. With an Intelligent Storage Server system, customers can specify exactly the functionality they need (e.g. RAID, information sharing, backup). As their needs grow and change, additional intelligence can be moved from the compute server (computer, parallel) compute server - A kind of parallel processor where the parallel processors have no I/O except via a bus or other connection to a front-end processor which handles all I/O to disks, terminals and network. to the storage server, extending the life and power of the entire system. 2) True Information Sharing: The ability to directly and seamlessly access information among mainframes, UNIX and NT systems. This capability is essential to ensure that enterprise information is always current and immediately accessible. 3) Fibre Channel Networking: A high performance, scalable network backbone optimized for storage. Fibre Channel is a standards-based, network-centric medium that is uniquely capable of providing heterogeneous connectivity, availability, and scalable high-performance. 4) Java Technology Storage Network Management Software: Storage management software is required to protect critical assets, distribute information, and manage the performance, availability and durability of stored information. Due to the nature and demands of heterogeneous environments, it is becoming increasingly important for all facets of a storage management solution to work together, regardless of platform. Sun's Java technology is becoming the best solution for deployment across heterogeneous networks. 5) Building Block Components: The ability to create customized storage solutions in cost-effective increments. This modular architectural approach to storage enables customers to upgrade to the latest technologies quickly and cost-effectively, while still protecting current investments. "Sun's announcement of the Intelligent Storage Network is further proof of Sun's commitment to network-based solutions," said Lynn Ferrante, engineering manager, application solutions division, Sybase. "Sybase customers implementing data warehousing can look toward Sun's new storage architecture to access their data, whether it's on a mainframe or an open system." The Sun StorEdge Family: Building the Intelligent Storage Network Customers can begin transforming the Intelligent Storage Network vision into reality today with Sun's new StorEdge family of heterogeneous storage products. Sun StorEdge products form a complete, scalable, desktop-to-data center line of storage solutions, encompassing hardware, software, switches, hubs and networking infrastructure. Together, the Sun StorEdge products deliver on the five key differentiators of the Intelligent Storage Network vision: -- Sun StorEdge A7000 Intelligent Storage Server(TM) System with Sun StorEdge DataShare Software: The Sun StorEdge A7000 product, announced today, is the industry's first Intelligent Storage Server system. The A7000 concurrently supports mainframes, UNIX and NT servers (including Solaris(TM) systems), offers mainframe-class RAS features, and provides true intelligent information-sharing capabilities through Sun StorEdge DataShare software, also announced today. DataShare provides completely seamless zero-copy information sharing among heterogeneous systems. -- Sun StorEdge A5000 Array with Fibre Channel Hubs: Sun is an industry leader in the development of Fibre Channel, with more than 3,000 terabytes currently installed. Sun's second-generation Fibre Channel subsystem, the Sun StorEdge A5000 product, is the industry's highest-performance Fibre Channel storage array. The A5000 offers increased availability and connectivity through hot-pluggable Fibre Channel hubs, with Fibre Channel switches Major manufacturers of Fibre Channel switches are: Brocade, Cisco, McData and Qlogic.
-- Java Technology Storage Network Management Software: Sun offers a complete line of software tools from industry-leading vendors such as Veritas Software Veritas Software Corp. was an international software company that was founded in 1983 as Tolerant Systems, renamed Veritas Software Corp. in 1989, and merged with Symantec in 2005. It was headquartered in Mountain View, California. and Legato Systems that address the full range of network storage management needs, including backup, hierarchical storage management See HSM. (HSM (1) (Hierarchical Storage Management) The automatic movement of files from hard disk to slower, less-expensive storage media. The typical hierarchy is from magnetic disk to optical disc to tape. ), disk volume management, tape library management and more. It is working to integrate these tools through Java technology, so that storage management applications from multiple vendors will seamlessly interoperate and be controlled from a single browser-based GUI (Graphical User Interface) A graphics-based user interface that incorporates movable windows, icons and a mouse. The ability to resize application windows and change style and size of fonts are the significant advantages of a GUI vs. a character-based interface. from anywhere on the network. -- Building Block Components: Sun currently offers a wide range of storage hardware and software components that serve as building blocks for creating total network-based solutions. All of Sun's building block components can be added incrementally, maximizing efficiency and flexibility and providing superior investment protection. Mission-Critical Service and Support for the Intelligent Storage Network Architecture Sun has developed a comprehensive array of service solutions through the entire lifecycle of an Intelligent Storage Network implementation, including development, deployment and ongoing management. Services can be tailored to meet the needs of individual products, or for the entire storage environment. Services available from Sun include: -- Professional Services (job) professional services - A department of a supplier providing consultancy and programming manpower for the supplier's products. : Consulting and integration services help customers properly plan and implement an effective data and storage management solution for maximum data protection. Sun developed specific services around Backup and Recovery, Disk and Volume Management, and High Availability Also called "RAS" (reliability, availability, serviceability) or "fault resilient," it refers to a multiprocessing system that can quickly recover from a failure. There may be a minute or two of downtime while one system switches over to another, but processing will continue. and Parallel Database Management. -- Proactive Systems Support and Account Management: Sun StorEdge A7000 Intelligent Storage Server system remote diagnostics Vehicle Diagnostics Vehicle diagnostics enables a mechanic to diagnose the exact mechanical condition of the vehicle and its systems and components. Remote Diagnostics enables to perform such diagnosis without requiring the vehicle to physically be present for checkup. and phone home capabilities with a 15-minute response time for urgent issues, can resolve problems before customers are aware of them. Support is available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day with 4 hour on-site response. -- Enterprise Education Services: Customers build competence using Sun StorEdge products and technologies and work to maximize the skill levels in a network computing environment through hands-on training. Pricing and Availability The Intelligent Storage Network architecture is a long-term strategy that customers can begin implementing today with Sun's current line of Sun StorEdge products. For complete pricing and availability, please contact a Sun sales representative or authorized reseller. About Sun Microsystems, Inc. Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision, "The Network Is The Computer(TM)," has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc. (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :SUNW SUNW Sun Microsystems, Inc (former stock symbol; now JAVA) SUNW Stanford University Network Workstation (Sun Microsystems, Inc) ), to its position as a leading provider of hardware, software and services for establishing enterprise-wide intranets and expanding the power of the Internet. With more than $9 billion in annual revenues, Sun can be found in more than 150 countries and on the WorldWide Web at http://sun.com. -0- Note to Editors: Sun, Sun Microsystems, the Sun logo, Intelligent Storage Network, Sun StorEdge, Intelligent Storage Server, Java, Solaris and The Network Is The Computer are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the United States and other countries. UNIX is a registered trademark in the United States and other countries, exclusively licensed through X/Open Company, Ltd. Press announcements and other information about Sun Microsystems are available on the Internet via the World Wide Web using a tool such as Netscape Navigator or Sun's HotJava. Type http://www.sun.com at the URL URL in full Uniform Resource Locator Address of a resource on the Internet. The resource can be any type of file stored on a server, such as a Web page, a text file, a graphics file, or an application program. prompt. CONTACT: Sun Microsystems, Inc. Maria Villarino, 650/786-3205 maria.villarino@sun.com or Burson-Marsteller Angela Hesse/Layla Gafari, 650/287-4000 angela_hesse@bm.com layla_gafari@bm.com |
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