New Data Storage Companies poised to start business

A pair of upstart data-storage companies plan to launch products next week designed to let companies easily ramp up data capacity and manage files with a minimum of effort.

Isilon Systems is targeting its networked storage device at digital content companies, while Panasas is focusing on organizations using Linux clusters.

This is a great arena to jump into for storage solutions are on many peoples mind as of late. Especially with those home users that have several different computers. It is a challenge to have half way decent networking that allows for easy data sharing among the computers.

Seattle-based Isilon is unveiling a product dubbed Isilon IQ. The product is based on a file system that’s distributed among a number of storage device modules and essentially knits them together to create a single pool of storage, according to the company. Each of the modules holds 1.44 terabytes of disk capacity. A key feature of the product, Isilon said, is that extra modules can be added easily, in less than 30 seconds. What’s more, as capacity is added, an “AutoBalance” feature automatically redistributes content without manual intervention, according to Isilon.

The product is tailor-made for the large video, audio, image and graphics files common in fields such as entertainment, digital imaging and health care, according to Isilon. Some initial Isilon customers include Paramount Digital Entertainment, Technicolor and the University of Washington Medical Center.

There is no information on pricing but hopefully they won’t forget about the home PC users that want more storage.

Source: ZDNet