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Storage solutions and software specialist Dot Hill Systems announced the AssuredSAN 3400 Series, designed to deliver 10G bps iSCSI storage capabilities to address expanding bandwidth demands, which have been driving network convergence and I/O port consolidation. The company said inclusion of the 10GbE high speed interface in a storage array makes the 3400 Series well-suited for customer applications such as rich media post-production, video streaming, HPC (high performance computing) applications and applications running on virtual servers.
Dot Hill’s 3000 Series, introduced throughout 2010, now provides a line of high-speed host connection interfaces including 8Gb Fibre Channel, Hybrid Fibre Channel with iSCSI, 6Gb SAS and now 10Gb iSCSI. The Dot Hill AssuredSAN 3400 Series will be available next month through existing Dot Hill channel partners. List prices start at $18,970 for Dot Hill branded 2U storage systems with dual controllers. Disk drives are priced separately.
“A key criteria for many users when they’re making new storage purchases is the cost of future expansion,” said Mark Peters, a senior analyst with IT research firm Enterprise Strategy Group. “Much of the interest in 10Gb iSCSI SANs is for users that need to support immediate, increased server demands and higher bandwidth applications. Looking further ahead, we anticipate there will be demand for systems with virtual storage software capabilities–such as Dot Hill’s AssuredSAN 3400-because it can prepare and enable users for future bandwidth demand increases.”
All members of the extended 3000 line support AssuredSnap and AssuredCopy data protection software, and mixed-drive configurations including SAS, SATA and SSD. The 3000 Series features a list of green and energy-saving enhancements such as drive-spin-down capability and Dot Hill’s EcoStor battery-free alternative for cache memory, which leverages a combination of super capacitors and flash memory to outlasts traditional batteries.
“The AssuredSAN 3400 Series makes 10Gb iSCSI storage solutions a reality for our channel partners and their SMB customers for the first time,” said David Zimmer, vice president of worldwide channel sales and marketing, Dot Hill. “Our resellers and customers continue to look to Dot Hill to deliver the latest technology at affordable price points and the AssuredSAN 3400 line is ideal for solution providers interested in offering storage solutions that are on the leading edge of technical innovation.”
In addition to the AssuredSAN line for channel partners, OEM versions of the 3400 Series are also available. Dot Hill 3420 arrays with 2.5-inch drives and 3430 storage systems with 3.5-inch drives feature four 10Gb iSCSI ports. The company claimed it is first to deliver to OEM partners 10Gb iSCSI systems for the entry-level market. A company release stated Dot Hill’s primary marketspace was OEMs, open storage partners and system integrators.
“We have been shipping 10GbE infrastructure for enterprise applications for over three years. The 3400 Series is the key piece in the puzzle for us to deliver the full benefits of converged 10GbE infrastructure extending to the SMB segment,” said Alexander Jeffries, managing director of distributor Stordis. “The availability of trusted, high quality storage will dramatically increase the attractiveness of the whole 10GbE proposition and deliver a massive value add to existing 10GbE users.”