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Networking solutions specialist Netgear announced the release of two high-performance network storage platforms optimized for storage virtualization applications, aimed at small to medium-size businesses.
The 1U rack-mount ReadyNAS 3100 comes equipped with 4TB or 8TB of storage capacity at an estimated street price starting at $3,800, while the 2U ReadyNAS 4200 comes equipped with 12TB or 24TB of storage capacity at an estimated street price starting at $10,000.
Both solutions offer hot-swappable enterprise SATA drives, redundant system cooling, redundant network ports, Error-Correcting Code (ECC) memory and redundant power supplies, as well as unified architecture support for both NAS and iSCSI SAN applications, cross-platform file sharing, secure replication, easy remote access, cloud backup, disaster recovery and server virtualization.
“The introduction of the ReadyNAS 3100 and ReadyNAS 4200 further solidify Netgear as the leader of network storage in the SMB market segment,” said Paul Tien, vice president and general manager of the company’s network storage business unit. “From enterprise branch office to midrange data center, Netgear provides powerful but affordable storage solutions that support advanced applications and virtualized server environments. Combined with advanced switching, wireless and security product lines, Netgear provides more complete solutions for channel partners than any other vendor in the market.”
Additionally, the company claims that the ReadyNAS 4200, with 12 SATA channels, is the first ReadyNAS to support the 10 Gigabit Ethernet network infrastructure and that the ReadyNAS 3100, with four SATA channels, is the first sub-$5,000 1U rack-mount storage system with redundant power supply. Both are VMware-ready and are unified storage systems powered by the Linux-based ReadyNAS RAIDiator operating system.
Benjamin Woo, vice president of IDC’s Enterprise Storage Systems research group, said IT departments are looking for cost-effective yet reliable and high-performance storage systems to support the foundation of the IT infrastructure.
“As such, organizations have begun adopting virtualization solutions as they cut costs and increase operational flexibility and environmental friendliness,” he said. “Netgear’s new storage systems exemplify the kind of affordable yet powerful platforms that IT needs in their virtualized environments.”
Netgear also announced two next-generation HomePlug AV-certified powerline kits: the compact Powerline AV 500 Adapter Kit and the Powerline AV+ 500 Adapter Kit with a filtered “pass-through” power socket. Designed to be compatible with the draft international IEEE P1901 powerline standard, powerline technologies enable consumers to create a Gigabit Ethernet connection from any ordinary electrical outlet.
Stephen Baker, vice president of industry analysis at market research firm The NPD Group, said today’s consumers are looking for networking technologies that offer speeds to support their abundance of Internet-connected home theater devices and ensure uninterrupted connectivity in wireless problem areas.
“Powerline technology operating effectively at 500M bps is not only an ideal solution to complement consumers’ existing wireless networks, but it’s also a terrific solution for small business owners who are looking for an easy and cost-effective way to expand their network without having to run additional Cat-5 cabling or install additional network nodes,” he said.