NetApp Unveils Two New VTLs

Sunnyvale, Calif.-based NetApp also is enjoying the first fruits of its acquisition of data storage security vendor Decru with the introduction of a new data encryption appliance.

Virtual tape libraries (VTLs) are disk-based arrays configured to look like tape libraries to host servers and to backup software. Data can be streamed to a VTL in exactly the same format as to tape, but at a higher speed.

NetApp&'s VTL600 has a single controller and can scale from 4.5 Tbytes to 84 Tbytes capacity. It has a maximum sustained write throughput of 1.8 Tbytes per hour and can be dynamically configured into up to 256 virtual libraries. The VTL1200 has two controllers, giving it double the performance and configuration possibilities of the VTL600.

The storage vendor said the VTL family also features self-tuning performance for auto rebalancing of backup streams as the load changes, as well as technology to scan the data to ensure that the actual capacity required for the backup is automatically allocated, thus eliminating underutilization of that capacity.

Jay Kidd, senior vice president and general manager of NetApp&'s Emerging Products Group, said the new VTL family is aimed at heterogeneous storage environments, an area in which the vendor now plays but would like to expand.

The ability to seamlessly fit into a customer&'s existing storage infrastructure is big, because it gives VARs a new product for companies that have invested heavily in their storage platforms, said Hayes Drumwright, president of Trace|3, a VAR in Irvine, Calif. “In the past, if someone just invested $1 million in EMC, they don&'t want to think about replacing it. NetApp&'s VTL doesn&'t threaten that investment.”

NetApp&'s new Decru DataFort E-Series Version 3.0 appliance combines the company&'s NAS and iSCSI versions into a single appliance that will encrypt all data that is stored over Ethernet protocols, Kidd said.

The company also is looking to bring its channel partners new services related to the installation/configuration of the two products, as well as for disaster recovery, said Leonard Iventosch, NetApp&'s vice president of Americas channel sales.