Tech Data’s Advanced Infrastructure Solutions division has partnered with
storage virtualization provider DataCore to give solution providers tools to
help customers manage growing data volumes more effectively and leverage
existing infrastructure more efficiently.
The partnership will bring DataCore’s SANMelody and SANSymphony storage
virtualization software to Tech Data solution providers whose customers are
struggling to balance the need for increased storage capacity with cutting
costs and better utilization of their legacy infrastructure.
The need for storage virtualization is driven by the explosion of server
virtualization, says Tech Data’s Pete Peterson, vice president and general
manager of the Advanced Infrastructure Solutions division.
While an increasing number of companies are deploying server virtualization
practices to make more efficient use of their data centers, they’re faced with
the same amount of storage capacity even as the amount of data generated
skyrockets. In the past, the solution would simply be to reallocate existing
storage or buy new hardware, but with current economic concerns, storage
virtualization is becoming a more prudent option, says Peterson.
“You can’t have a successful virtualization practice without storage as a
key component of that solution,” he says, and in the current economic
environment, customers aren’t looking to purchase new, expensive storage
appliances and hardware, but to better manage their existing storage
infrastructure.
DataCore’s storage virtualization software enables better utilization of an
organization’s existing storage devices by creating a virtual pool of storage
capacity that can be allocated in real time to meet user demands. The result is
a more efficient, higher performance storage solution that can ease management
and save money, Peterson says.
DataCore’s SANMelody and SANSymphony software are compatible with most
industry-standard storage platforms, including Hewlett-Packard and EMC,
which means customers don’t have to invest in expensive new hardware.
For Tech Data’s solution providers, the DataCore partnership offers great
opportunities for storage virtualization sales both to new and existing
customers, whether in conjunction with a server virtualization implementation or
as a complement to an existing server virtualization practice, says Peterson.
“We really see a huge growth potential here even as we move into some
challenging economic times,” says Peterson. “Storage is one thing that you’ll
always need more of.”
