EMC debuts expanded product lineup

EMC on Thursday introduced an expanded product lineup of storage and virtualization technologies, ranging from an enlarged Symmetrix DMX-3 storage array line to new file system software.

The storage giant, which debuted its new offerings earlier than anticipated, introduced entry-level and high-end versions of its flagship EMC Symmetrix DMX-3 storage array; new file system software, marketed as the EMC Multi-Path File System for ISCSI (MPFSi); and enhancements to its existing EMC Rainfinity Global File Virtualization platform and EMC Centera.

The announcement of EMC's expanded DMX-3 tiered storage lineup and Internet Protocol storage software comes at a time when rivals are bolstering their efforts in anticipation of a rising need for storage, in part due to increased regulatory requirements for data retention.

"The expansion of DMX-3 gives customers the greatest capacity and flexibility...it's like starting with a 19-inch-screen TV and having it grow uninterrupted to the largest size possible, but you're still able to watch the picture uninterrupted," said Ken Steinhardt, EMC's director of technology analysis.

The entry-level DMX-3 storage array features 96 disk drives; the high-end version can include as many as 2,400 drives. Under the revisions, EMC's high-end storage array's capacity can also be scaled up to more than a petabyte, or 1,024 terabytes. As a result, the new features are designed to pack more information onto a single array and enable multiple tiers of storage to be managed from the DMX platform.

EMC also debuted MPFSi software designed to speed the movement of large files over IP networks. The software is designed to use conventional network-attached storage with the iSCSI protocol to send large blocks of data via the IP network. EMC estimates that data-transfer performance is enhanced fourfold.

"We have solved the problems of IP storage so it can move into the enterprise," David Donatelli, EMC's executive vice president of storage, platforms and operations, said during an analyst presentation on Thursday.

The company also introduced enhancements to its existing EMC Rainfinity Global File virtualization platform, which is designed to offer a unified view of all files and file systems, whether or not they are housed on EMC's or its rivals' file servers on an IP network.

And the storage giant debuted improvements to its EMC Centera, which aims to give customers flexibility in targeting certain data for retention beyond what was previously planned, without disturbing the retention for other data stored on the network.