This is a very good day to be in storage and a Windows network administrator – because HP just announced that they are shipping storage appliances that are powered by Windows Storage Server 2008. For more on the WSS08 release last month, check out these blogs:
May 5 – Announcing Windows Storage Server 2008 – Waa Hoo !
May 7 – Why a Windows Storage Server is like a Saleen Ford Mustang
And while everyone here at Microsoft is really excited about the release and what it means for our customers, the other side of the coin is that the WSS releases are only available through our OEM partners. So our release party doesn’t really start until they announce their releases. Kind of like two people sharing a birthday party doesn’t really start until both guests of honor get there. Guess what, the party has started !!!
Congratulations to HP and their customers on this release of WSS08 devices:
X1000 series – Delivers Windows-powered unified network storage that is easy to install, easy to manage, and easy to expand to your small, medium, or workgroup IT environment.
X3000 series – Adds cluster-able and easy-to-manage file, iSCSI, and management services to mid-range and Enterprise array/SAN environments to create unified network storage solutions.
descriptions clipped from hp.com – links above
For more details on the HP family of WSS08 platforms, check out the Windows Storage Server blog.
I must also confess a little guilty pleasure in this particular announcement. WSS08 is the first Microsoft product release that I have had a contribution in, other than Data Protection Manager. And having lived in Texas my whole professional career with my first hands-on servers being Compaq SystemPro’s (386-based), before ProLiant’s and well before the HP acquisition … it is very cool to be an infinitesimally small contributor to its launch.
Congrats HP !!
And to the rest of you … if you have been looking for a storage appliance but did not want to sacrifice the benefits you get from running Windows, including features, price/performance, flexible choice in security/backup/management tools, manageability with the same tools you use for the rest of your environment, etc. … The Wait Is Over !!
As always, thanks for reading …