Lucas Mearian

Using a piece of wire 100,000 times thinner than a hair and water, researchers at several leading universities are developing a new data storage medium that also has data transfer rates that are as fast as RAM.

Unitrends Software Corp. yesterday unveiled an upgrade to its near-line disk backup array aimed at the small-to-midsize business market that's designed to allow companies to restore servers from almost any point in time right down to the operating system.

Information technology managers want the benefits of new storage technologies, but several interviewed at the Storage Decisions conference here last week said a lack of time and management support for such projects are stifling those aspirations.

Despite advances in storage technology, IT managers are still concerned about their ability to secure data, ensure it's available to valid users, track who uses it and manage it effectively, said attendees at the Storage Networking World Conference

EMC Thursday announced its largest high-end array yet, offering hardware with a scalability range that allows it to be used in mid-sized shops as well as the largest enterprises. The DMX-3 array also sports three different types of Fibre Channel drives that allow users to move storage across tiers of disks inside the array.

Symantec Corp. this month announced that it had signed an agreement to purchase IMlogic Inc. for an undisclosed amount.

Andrew Monshaw, general manager of IBM's Storage Systems and Technology Group, discussed the company's storage plans, the state of virtualization technology, the future of tape storage, and Microsoft Corp.'s venture into the storage business in an interview with Computerworld last week.

Keeping data secure, tracking who uses it, and managing it in a way that maintains backup windows and keeps information available to customers, especially after an interruption in service or a disaster, were among the top issues for IT executives, according to those who took part in a panel discussion at the recent Storage Networking World conference in Orlando.