Close
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Apple
    • Apple
    • Storage

    Apple Furthers Enterprise Plans with SAN

    By
    Ian Betteridge
    -
    April 19, 2004
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      As part of its renewed efforts to focus on high-end content production, Apple Computer Inc. Sunday used the National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas to announce its first foray into the storage area networking market.

      At the show, the company announced Xsan, a 64-bit cluster file system that Apple claims allows enterprises to consolidate storage resources across a network at less than half the cost of equivalent systems from Avid Technology Inc., IBM and Silicon Graphics Inc.

      Xsan runs on Mac OS X 10.3, code-named Panther, allowing multiple machines to access shared volumes concurrently over Fibre Channel networks at high speeds. Volumes of up to 16 terabytes can be shared between 64 systems at the same time, at a theoretical maximum throughput of 400M bps. The product comes with Xsan Admin, an OS X-based application for managing a SAN, including the ability to control which users on a network can access volumes. User management integrates with an LDAP directory for managing user and group access, and Xsan Admin also allows administrators to be notified of faults or poor performance levels via e-mail or pager.

      Although Xsan only runs on Power Mac G4, G5 and Xserve hardware, it is interoperable with ADIC Inc.s StorNext File System, enabling it to be used with Windows and Linux clients. Xsan can also be administered by StorNext Management Suite.

      Xsan marks Apples first foray into the SAN market and comes in the wake of the companys aggressive rollout of enterprise-level products, including Xserve G5 and Xserve RAID.

      /zimages/3/28571.gifClick here for eWEEK Labs review of Xserve RAID.

      However, it appears the companys main aim with Xsan is to add features for its high-end content creation customers, primarily in the video market, rather than attempting a further push into corporations.

      According to Graham Titterington, principal analyst at Ovum, “The driver for Xsan is making large amounts of storage available to individual users for very large files, rather than consolidating storage for large numbers of users across an enterprise.” However, he added, the release of Xsan may have some impact on the overall SAN market. “It may spread a price reduction across the market because of its highly competitive pricing. But theres unlikely to be a big uptake among non-Apple users,” he said.

      Xsan is currently in beta and will be released in the fall priced at $999 per installation.

      Apple also used NAB to announce an update to its PowerBook G4 portables. In the update, the G4 processor is bumped up to a top speed of 1.5GHz on the 15- and 17-inch models, with the 12-inch PowerBook G4 boosted to 1.33GHz. The 15- and 17-inch models also feature ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 graphics chips, with up to 128MB of VRAM installed.

      /zimages/3/28571.gifCheck out eWEEK.coms Macintosh Center at http://macintosh.eweek.com for the latest in news, reviews and analysis about Apple in the enterprise.
      Be sure to add our eWEEK.com Macintosh news feed to your RSS newsreader or My Yahoo page: /zimages/3/19420.gif http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/us/my/addtomyyahoo2.gif

      Ian Betteridge

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Cybersecurity

      Visa’s Michael Jabbara on Cybersecurity and Digital...

      James Maguire - May 17, 2022 0
      I spoke with Michael Jabbara, VP and Global Head of Fraud Services at Visa, about the cybersecurity technology used to ensure the safe transfer...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      Alteryx’s Suresh Vittal on the Democratization of...

      James Maguire - May 31, 2022 0
      I spoke with Suresh Vittal, Chief Product Officer at Alteryx, about the industry mega-shift toward making data analytics tools accessible to a company’s complete...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      GoodData CEO Roman Stanek on Business Intelligence...

      James Maguire - May 4, 2022 0
      I spoke with Roman Stanek, CEO of GoodData, about business intelligence, data as a service, and the frustration that many executives have with data...
      Read more
      Applications

      Cisco’s Thimaya Subaiya on Customer Experience in...

      James Maguire - May 10, 2022 0
      I spoke with Thimaya Subaiya, SVP and GM of Global Customer Experience at Cisco, about the factors that create good customer experience – and...
      Read more
      Cloud

      Yotascale CEO Asim Razzaq on Controlling Multicloud...

      James Maguire - May 5, 2022 0
      Asim Razzaq, CEO of Yotascale, provides guidance on understanding—and containing—the complex cost structure of multicloud computing. Among the topics we covered:  As you survey the...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2021 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×