Quantum Corp is the latest major storage vendor to enter the network attached storage market, both under its own name and via its ATL Products tape library division. The Quantum Snap Server is the firm’s first NAS product, and according to Quantum can be connected directly to a network in less than 15 minutes. The product comes from Quantum’s acquisition of Meridian Data Inc for $85m, announced back in May and completed earlier this month. Simultaneously, ATL launched the LANvault Backup Appliance, claimed to be the first-ever network attached tape backup appliance.
The Quantum product line enters an increasingly crowded market. Pioneers such as Network Appliance Corp have recently been joined by mainstream server vendors such as Compaq Computer Corp, Hewlett-Packard Co, Intel Corp and EMC Corp. Aimed at the Workgroup market, the Snap Server is designed to require minimum ongoing management, and includes software tools for easy installation, IP address configuration and security integration. It supports groups of up to 100 users with shared storage that remains available when the primary network server is down. The appliance supports RAID 1, and includes support multi-protocol support for integration into NT, NetWare, Unix and Apple Macintosh networks.
The systems are built around a single-board, 32-bit computer and multitasking OS kernel, plus network protocol stacks and file system management tools. Software is stored in Flash memory and can be downloaded from the web. Earlier this month, Quantum said it would license Insignia Software Inc’s Jeode embedded Java technology, paying $3m for development use, engineering and maintenance and pre-paid royalties. It plans to integrate Jeode with Meridian’s Snap!OS operating system, in order to develop software to support embedded intelligence in storage devices and systems.
The Snap Server is optimized for I/O performance and data handling, using EIDE controller and high-performance Ultra ATA drives. There are three models, with prices starting from $1,000 for 8Gb, $1,800 for 16Gb and $2,500 for 32Gb. Ingram Micro and Tech Data will make the product available though the value added reseller channel and through catalogs.
Scotts Valley, California-based Meridian had two divisions: network attached storage, and DVD and CD ROM networking. It claimed to be the leader in CD storage management software. Formed in 1988, the company merged with fault-tolerant server and RAID storage company Parallan Inc in 1994. Meridian now becomes Quantum’s Snap division, reporting to Peter van Cuylenburg, president of the DLT and Storage Systems Group. Quantum says it will also continue to offer Meridian Data’s CD Net line of CD-ROM servers.
Meanwhile, ATL – which Quantum acquired in May 1998 – launched its LANvault Backup Appliance, combining a dedicated backup server and DLT tape library with Backup Exec software from Veritas Software Corp. It also includes a browser-based management tool.
