HP Introduces New Family of Entry-level Disk Arrays

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HP has introduced a new family of entry-level disk arrays with enterprise-class features that can help customers more effectively centralize storage to lower costs, increase administrator efficiency and reduce business downtime. The HP StorageWorks 2000 Modular Smart Array (MSA2000) family is composed of low-cost Fibre Channel and iSCSI disk arrays for highly available, storage area networks (SAN) that is designed for virtualized server environments. The easy-to-use, enterprise-class systems are designed for small and mid-size businesses, however, enterprises also will find the MSA2000 is an ideal solution for their remote office, departmental, secondary and tertiary storage needs.

The MSA2000 arrays are easily deployed in physical or virtual server environments to deliver an available and automated infrastructure. The modular arrays also support a wide range of application deployments, including VMware virtualization software. The MSA2000 enables customers to increase disk utilization by deploying any combination of SAS or SATA drives to achieve an ideal mix of price, reliability and performance to support their business.

New capabilities within the MSA2000 increase application uptime to better ensure that the systems are available for the business. For example, features such as dual power supplies, optional dual controllers and redundant hardware with automatic failover significantly reduce business downtime.

To further minimize the risk of business interruption, the MSA2000 includes optional management software for "snap and clone" capabilities. These new data duplication capabilities are critical in protecting data and streamlining IT processes with rapid backup and recovery operations. This more reliable data protection also features a persistent cache that does not require a battery backup, thus reducing the potential disposal of hazardous material.

Both the iSCSI and Fibre Channel MSA2000 arrays complement the HP BladeSystem and feature a built-in management console to set up and configure the storage without additional hardware and software. This enables HP BladeSystem customers to easily fit the MSA2000 into their current management environment and configure all their blades at once instead of one blade at a time.

The flexible and modular nature of the HP StorageWorks portfolio eases the addition of file services to the MSA2000 family using HP ProLiant Storage Servers or an HP StorageWorks EFS Clustered Gateway. By leveraging familiar ProLiant server configuration and system management tools, minimal training is required for IT managers and administration is simplified.

The MSA2000 disk arrays can scale up to 36 terabytes of capacity and support either 4-Gb Fibre Channel (MSA2000fc) or 1-Gb iSCSI (MSA2000i) host connectivity. The arrays can be configured with up to 48 SAS or SATA disk drives for an optimal mix of performance, cost and energy efficiency.

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