By Calvin Zito, aka @HPStorageGuy

Today we announced a couple of updates to our StorageWorks array family.  Here's a quick summary:

• The HP StorageWorks P4000 G2 SAN Solution - as you'll hear in tomorrow's podcast, there are a ton of enhancements here.  A couple of the very timely ones are support for parity protected Network RAID, Unified (block and file-based) NAS Gateway, the new Best Practices Analyzer, and lower cost mid-line SAS drive support.  To get those details, check out tomorrow's podcast.

• The HP StorageWorks P2000 G3 MSA - this product was formerly called the MSA2000.  You may have noticed some slight tweaking of our product names - this is an effort to have a simpler, more consistent product naming across our portfolio.  But that's not the big news here.  In today's podcast, you'll hear about the new iSCSI and 8Gb Fibre Channel combo controller, local replication (up to 64 snapshots) that is included with the P2000, and new remote replication functionality.

So with that high level overview, today's podcast will focus on the P2000.  I'm talking to Charles Vallhonrat.  Charles has been on the MSA team for as long as I can remember and is managing the marketing team.  Today, we talk about the what's new with the MSA, including it's new name, the P2000.

If your browser doesn't support the embedded player, click here to listen to the podcast or right-click here and save the MP3 file.

By Dirk Kunselman, Product Manager

If I ask you to tell me the first thing that comes to mind when I mention NAS, you might reference high-end (and expensive) file serving appliances.  Or you might mention consumer-class devices that are becoming more prevalent at your local electronics retailer.  Or you might say that you know it's like a SAN, only different.  You might even reveal that he's your favorite rapper.  Oops, you lost me.

Fact is, NAS (Network Attached Storage) is often misunderstood and more frequently underappreciated.  Most folks associate it with files, but as NAS has evolved, it's taken on more than just file protocols and print services.  The term is now almost synonymous with (and sometimes even replaced by) unified-or combined file and block-storage.  It's a great story, especially for small environments: why just network and consolidate one type of data when you can serve files for your clients and blocks for your servers all from the same storage system?   

That's where the new HP StorageWorks X1000 and X3000 Network Storage Systems come in.  They're NAS devices, yes; but moreover, they're unified storage systems since they all include an iSCSI Target standard.  An X1000 model can be that single storage consolidation platform by itself, while an X3000 Gateway can turn an existing array or SAN into a unified consolidation solution (utilizing both SAN and Ethernet connections) by adding IP-based file and/or iSCSI protocols to it.

NAS isn't just about sharing files any more--it's about sharing information.

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By Calvin Zito

I wanted to follow-up on John Spiers previous blog post about our HP LeftHand announcement on Monday.  I'd like to point you to a few different things around our hp.com web pages to help you learn more about the problems our HP LeftHand solutions are solving, product details, and point you to some customers who are using HP LeftHand today.  So here we go:

• First is a feature article that talks about the customer problems HP LeftHand helps you to solve.  It's titled The secret to successful virtualization.
• Next is a video that provides a good introduction to HP LeftHand.  It features Bill and Dave (no, not Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard but Bill Chambers and Dave Roberson).  The video talks about how the HP StorageWorks LeftHand SAN delivers low-cost storage that is optimized for virtualized computing environments.
• I found another video that gives a quick tour of the LeftHand P4000 SAN solution.
• If you want to dig deeper into our LeftHand solutions, you can check out the product pages:

1. HP LeftHand P4000 SAN Solution page.  Be sure to check out the Flash-based product demo and click on the Resource Library link to get a look at all of the collateral available. 
2. HP LeftHand P4000 Virtual SAN Appliance (VSA) Software page and again, be sure to click on the Resource Library link (which for all of our products is always on the top right-hand side of the product page). 

Lastly, I'll point you to our customer case studies where you can read how others are using HP LeftHand solutions:

• BlueLock, a technology service provider running VMware ESX, Windows and Linux OS's
• Gaylor, a construction services company running VMware ESX Exchange, and SQL
• Litigation Management, a litigation support services business running VMware ESX and SQL.
• Mojave Water Agency, a public utility running SQL, Visual Studio, Exchange, and ESRI GIS
• Florida Municipal Power Agency, a public utility running VMware ESX, Dynamics SL, Lotus Notes, Maximo Asset Management
• Los Angeles Mission College, an educational institution running Exchange, SQL, and ImageNow document imaging
• University of Florida, an educational institution running VMware ESX, Exchange and SQL
• Jackson Energy Authority, a public utility running Windows Hyper-V, SQL, Exchange, SharePoint, System Center

I know I've given you a lot of links today but if you're looking for an iSCSI based storage solution, it will be worth your time. 

I also wanted to remind you that you can follow HP StorageWorks on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HPstorageGuy. 

Have a great weekend!

By Lee Johns 

Is the SAN Dead?

Well what do you know. A well respected analyst has had the courage to write a paper entitled "Do you really need a SAN anymore?". In his paper Andrew Reichman of Forrester postulates that the promise of the SAN has not been realised and that application centric storage based on industry standard platforms and alternate interconnects like iSCSI, SAS and infiniband may offer a better return.

So is the SAN dead. The simple answer is no. Fibre Channel SANs will continue to be the predominant platforms for storage over the next few years. However there is real merit in Andrew Reichman's hypothesis.

I am a Zoologist. Yes I admit it. I have an "ology". I don't apply the knowledge I gained from zoology everyday in my job in the computer industry but occasionally I do and one of the things that zoology taught me is that evolution comes in leaps. When the climate changes dramatically it does not suddenly result in mutations that lead the next generations. Those mutations already exist, and the change in climate just means their adaptions (which may previously have been a weakness) make them more competitive than they were.

We are currently going through one of these "Climate Changes" with the turmoil in the financial markets. IT managers are looking for alternatives and they are out there. The HP Oracle Exadata Database Machine (Leverages infiniband), The HP Extreme Data Storage System (SAS), alternate SAN technologies like LeftHand Networks an HP company (iSCSI) and new SAS connected solutions including HP's direct connect storage for HP BladeSystem.

Anyone want to make a guess as to who is most ready to capitalize on this new shift in storage power? Andrew Reichman makes some suggestions and HP is on his list of the best prepared and most likely to embrace. He does not say it quite like a Zoologist would however. As every zoolologist knows The Dinosaurs never saw that meteorite coming.

If you liked this article you might also like the read the following (these are all links):-

• HP BladeSystem and StorageWorks Synergy


• Details on new Oracle Exadata Storage Server by HP


• Top Ten Reasons Why DAS Will Grow!


• Storage Just got SASsy! VMware set free of the SAN

And for those of you who don't believe I'm a zoologist:-

http://h30431.www3.hp.com/?fr_story=48087e34d302151d43a00ab35c025f555c2d375c&rf=bm

By Lee Johns 

Our new colleagues at LeftHand Networks have big smiles on their faces today. And with good reason too. CDW has named LeftHand its "Partner of the Year" for 2008. The award recognizes LeftHand Networks for "its unique marketing programs and solid field engagement, as well as its strong sales growth at CDW." All of us in the HP StorageWorks business are excited about the merging of our two organizations and the innovations in industry-leading SAN solutions we'll be delivering to customers. You can read more about the award here: http://newsroom.cdw.com/news-releases/news-release-11-24-08.html.

I would like to highlight that when making acquisitions it is important to consider all aspects of a companies viability and strategic fit. LeftHand Networks brought to HP:

• Great technology and products for iSCSI SANs.


• A strong presence in midmarket customers in North America.


• Leadership virtualization technology


• A product architecture running on industry standard servers that provides unique possibilities for HP

However as we talked with them we realized one of their strongest assets was their shared passion with HP for the reseller community and the innovative apprach they have taken to be the best partner they can be. This award from CDW rightly recognizes them for their innovation outside of their product engineering.

You can learn more about our LeftHand Networks portfolio by going here: www.hp.com/go/LeftHandNetworks

OH, and don't ever let anyone tell you that an old dog can't learn new tricks.

Lee Johns, Director of Marketing for Entry Storage

By Lee Johns

I often get asked why HP BladeSystem and StorageWorks are such a compelling combination.  There are multiple reasons and it starts with the cost of connecting to existing fibre channel storage which can be reduced by up to 50% with the reductions in cables, single failure points and administration when you use a technology like HP Virtual Connect.  You of course also benefit from the infrastructure savings you get from implementing blade servers in terms of time, energy, change and cost.  

Today there is a new reason.  Direct connect storage!  Think the simplicity of DAS with the resource sharing of a SAN.  With HP BladeSystem you can now implement up to 192TB of shared storage across 16 blade servers using a simple, but high-performance 3Gb SAS interconnect.  What's more the Storage offers all the management features and capabilities of the HP MSA 2000 but without the requirement to manage a fabric (Fibre Channel or iSCSI).   

Now don't get me wrong.  Fibre Channel and iSCSI storage are every bit as important as they were yesterday with BladeSystem.  In fact HP also announced a technology called Virtual Connect Flex-10 for BladeSystems today that will offer great benefits for future iSCSI storage solutions for our EVA and MSA as well as future products from our acquisition of LeftHand Networks.  The difference today is that if implementing Fibre Channel or iSCSI was not the right choice for me as a customer, I now have an alternative that offers breakthrough simplicity.   Direct connect storage is perfect for Server Administrators who want to implement a simple shared storage environment for boot infrastructure or other server administrator controlled data.  It is ideal for small and medium businesses or remote sites who are looking to implement there first SAN but want a simpler solution.  It is great for VMware infrastructure and supports VMotion. It is great second tier storage for Enterprises.  

Customer excitement in HP early previews has been very strong.  In fact it has so much utility for new implementations or existing SAN environments it make me wonder why the traditional storage only vendors are not offering it.  After all it simply offers customers more choice. 

Lee Johns, Director of Marketing for Entry Storage