ADIC fuses disk and tape

One of the downsides of using storage devices that attach directly to a

network is that the data typically resides on one of the most expensive

types of storage media: magnetic disk. Advanced Digital Information Corp.

last week introduced a network-attached storage (NAS) appliance that tries

to mitigate that cost issue with a system that combines disk storage with

a low-cost tape library system.

There are three models in ADIC's new StorNext family of NAS appliances,

which range from 950G to nearly 11.8 terabytes of data storage capacity.

At about $35,000 for the entry-level model, StorNext can store data for

a few cents per megabyte or less, said Steve Whitner, ADIC's director of

marketing. Files that must be immediately accessible to users would be stored

on StorNext's disk drive. Less frequently used files would be stored on

one of the unit's tape cartridges. Files on tape are still available to

users automatically, but access can take up to a minute if the autoloader

has to retrieve the tape.

Unlike storage management products that move files automatically from

disk to tape based on rules related to a file's age or access history, system

managers using StorNext must move files manually from disk to tape, Whitner

said. The systems, which work with Unix, Microsoft Corp.'s Windows and World

Wide Web-based clients, will be available by month's end.