Features - Storage Innovations:

UniTrends INTRODUCES ITS DPU LINE OF STORAGE APPLIANCES

UniTrends Software Corporation, a developer of enterprise-wide cross-platform data protection products and services, has introduced its Data Protection Unit (DPU) line of storage appliances.

The DPU products represent a tangible step forward in data storage technology, enabling companies of all sizes to cost-efficiently reap the benefits of lightning-fast backup and restore of information, coupled with the ability to recover crucial information within minutes in case of a total computer crash.

DPU's first-of-its-kind design makes it possible for firms to ensure that the information that keeps them in business will be available when they need it most. The DPU products are priced at a level, beginning at less than $6,000, making it possible for virtually any company to take advantage of DPU's benefits. They are UniTrends' first entry into the storage hardware market, and leverage the company's 15 years of experience in developing and selling data protection products worldwide.

The DPUs are uniquely designed to not only backup and restore corporate-critical information, but to serve as a "bare-metal" crash recovery platform for computers attached to the network. This is accomplished through the bundling of UniTrends' BareMetal Plus software with every unit, at no additional charge. BareMetal Plus has been proven to rapidly restore a crashed computer's operating system in as little as ten minutes, and is compatible with all of today's leading storage management software, including those from Veritas, Computer Associates and others.

"DPU has the potential to change the way companies handle data backup and restore," said James Doyle, IT manager at Toshiba Machine Company of America, in suburban Chicago. Doyle has ordered a DPU for his firm, saying, "We see real benefits from its ability to handle data transfers far faster and more reliably than tape, at a cost factor that easily rivals standalone tape drives. In addition, its removable hard drives gives it an advantage over many other disk-to-disk solutions. We believe that our DPU will easily pay for itself in a short time frame; for the future, its price point makes it possible for us to meet our anticipated data storage demands quickly without worrying about breaking the budget."

UniTrends' DPU line consists of:

• DPU Crash Recovery Appliance: a 1U, rack-mounted, network-attached appliance, offering crash recovery for critical servers in an enterprise environment. Powered by UniTrends' Backup Professional storage software, the DPU Crash Recovery Appliance provides bare-metal restore for critical servers across multiple operating systems.
• DPU Total Data Protection Appliance: a desktop cube, offering complete backup and restore and crash recovery of all servers and clients on the networks of small or medium business, critical departments or branch locations of larger enterprises, with remote administration via web browser.

Both DPU products feature the added benefit of being able to store data on removable hard disks, letting companies reinstate that data at a rate of up to 15 times faster than the restore rate of data backed up on tape cartridges. In addition, the hard disks are competitively priced with today's high-end tape products, making it possible for companies to take advantage of today's leading technologies.

"Despite repeated calls for true ease of operation and rock-solid performance, nobody has delivered a solution until now that meets those requirements," said Steve Schwartz, UniTrends' president. "DPU is specifically designed to install quickly across existing networks, and work in a 'lights-out' manner, requiring a minimum of maintenance. Too many companies have promised this kind of solution, and failed to deliver; DPU delivers on the promise at a price that doesn't break the bank," Schwartz commented.

UniTrends' DPU line of data protection appliances are designed to run across almost all of today's most popular business operating systems, including Windows, Novell and multiple flavors of UNIX. Pricing for the DPU appliances begins at $5,995, a significant discount over competitive products; they are available exclusively through UniTrends' network of channel partners and are available for immediate delivery.

About UniTrends Software

Founded in 1987, UniTrends is committed to the protection of corporate-critical data. UniTrends provides powerful backup, recovery and complete data protection products that are cross-platform, scalable and simple to use as well as a full suite of data disaster recovery services. More information on UniTrends is available www.unitrends.com, or by calling 800-648-2827.

Contact: UniTrends Software, Joelle McCullough, 843-497-2991, joelle@unitrends.com.