Scentric Destiny Provides Universal Data Classification

The new intelligent archiving product, designed to simplify compliance and business processes, is able to provide context for hundreds of file types; future versions will approach ILM, Scentric says.

New company Scentric emerged from stealth mode on April 19 to make its official debut and launch its data classification technology, Scentric Destiny.

Scentric Destiny emphasizes universal data classification, or the ability to manage and appropriately classify all data types within large distributed enterprise environments.

Commercially available on April 24, the Scentric Destiny software is designed to help customers solve explosive data growth, proactively manage information for U.S. regulatory compliance, and augment business processes by implementing a central policy across three primary focus areas: e-discovery, intelligent archiving and improved infrastructure optimization.

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Scentric Destiny is able to discover and provide context for hundreds of file types kept on NAS (network-attached storage) devices and file servers, as well as structured, semistructured and unstructured data found in e-mail, databases, Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint, and even MP3 files, said Larry Cormier, senior vice president of marketing for Scentric, in Alpharetta, Ga.

Cormier said future releases of Scentric Destiny technology will delve deeper into the analysis of data, to gather not just the age and content of information, but to understand usage patterns and cull the value of data—a stepping stone, he says, to achieving ILM (information lifecycle management).

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Another area future versions of the software will address is real-time classification. Currently the product, and competitors data classification offerings, such as appliances from Kazeon Systems and StoredIQ, are constructed as an on-demand type of process customers run.

However, Cormier said customers have expressed a desire to classify data as it is created within a document—for instance, while an e-mail is being written or a spreadsheet is being organized.

Operating systems that support Scentric Destiny include Microsoft Windows 2003 servers and Windows file systems, in addition to NAS and other storage devices, Microsoft Exchange and Microsoft SQL Server database.

Additional support for archiving-specific devices such as EMCs Centerra and Hewlett-Packards RISS (Reference Information Storage System) will be available as part of an interim product release arriving later in the summer of 2006, Cormier said.

Funding for Scentric is being provided by H.I.G. Ventures, Valhalla Partners, Imlay Investments and ATDC (Advanced Technology Development Center). Funding for the company at the time of its inception in August 2004 was approximately $5.6 million. The data classification software company recently received an expansion of its Series A funding round to $10.4 million from its investors.

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