Server 2003 Adds Storage

Storage administrators this fall will get a fresh round of management software upgrades that are focused on compatibility with Microsoft Corp.s Windows Storage Server 2003.

Legato Systems Inc. will lead the trend at this weeks Storage Decisions show in Chicago when it announces Networker 7.1 and an expanded reseller deal with IBM, said Chief Technology Officer George Symons. Networker 7.1 is available now with a hardware snapshot portal called PowerSnaps, said Symons, in Mountain View, Calif. Networker works with many storage and database products, such as EMC Corp.s Clariion and IBMs FAStT; later this year, it will work with EMCs Symmetrix, Microsofts SQL Server and SAP AG software, he said.

IBM, of Armonk, N.Y., will resell Legatos DiskXtender, EmailXaminer and EmailXtender, in addition to its existing resale deal for Co-StandbyServer and RepliStor, Symons said. Legato will also announce certification of Co-StandbyServer for Oracle and of Co-StandbyServer, Networker and RepliStor for Microsofts network-attached storage platform, known as Windows Storage Server 2003, he said.

"Right now, we do snapshots through a homemade script. If we could automate that process, it certainly would be valuable," said Ted Zlatanov, system software engineer at Harvard Medical School, in Boston, which uses Networker 6.0.3. Legato should also improve its Network File System support; currently, the medical school uses a file-based workaround, Zlatanov said. But a recent laboratory flood emphasized the value of data backup, he said.

Officials at Microsoft, in Redmond, Wash., declined to give details but did confirm theyd announce performance testing results for Storage Server 2003 at the show. The server itself will ship this month, sources said.