Features - Storage Innovations:

HP ENSAextended ENABLES CUSTOMER CONTROL OF STORAGE ENVIRONS

HP has announced ENSAextended, the next evolution of its widely accepted Enterprise Network Storage Architecture (ENSA).

ENSAextended is designed to put customers in control of their data center environments by allowing them to adapt their storage infrastructures, increasingly via automation, through active intelligent management within the context of a total business-based solution.

"For nearly four years, thousands of our customers have built modular, networked storage environments based on our ENSA strategy, making HP the industry leader in network storage solutions," said Howard Elias, senior vice president and general manager, HP Network Storage Solutions. "Our customers have told us that because of ENSA, they were able to better manage their storage and add value to their IT environments.

"With ENSAextended, we're allowing customers a way to manage their storage infrastructure through end-to-end application integration, based on business rules resulting in an adaptive storage infrastructure that is controllable, resilient and extensible."

"An application-aware, business aligned storage infrastructure is key to meeting business needs," said Jamie Gruener, senior analyst, Yankee Group. "HP delivered on the ENSA strategy and now takes the next logical step with ENSAextended."

ENSA delivered customers a way to build the infrastructure for the storage utility through a modular, highly available, scalable storage network. ENSA highlights included:

• 1998: Disk and tape on the same SAN and SAN-based backup and recovery system delivering the industry's first end-to-end solution.
• 1999: SAN-based data replication; next-generation modular arrays.
• 2000: SAN-based storage management and SAN storage allocation/reporting.
• 2001: Metro-wide SAN data movement, through StorageWorks Data Replication Manager (DRM) and OpenSAN Supported Solutions; led establishment of the Supported Solution Forum within the Storage Networking Industry Association SNIA.

HP ENSAextendedm

ENSAextended is designed to provide customers significant business benefits to their enterprise infrastructures by allowing tailored storage services based on a range of attributes depending on application environments and user requirements.

ENSAextended enables customers to adapt and optimize storage and services delivery capabilities through:

• Universal networked storage: expansive solution of all storage elements;
• Virtualization: adding greater simplicity and utilization of heterogeneous storage assets;
• Data services: including performance optimization, data archiving replication and migration augmented by offerings from HP network storage services;
• Application integration: delivering an application-aware storage approach that allows greater responsiveness to changing requirements.

"HP StorageWorks products continue to revolutionize our storage environment with an easy-to-use, modular, scalable architecture and a high-performance, high-availability design. HP's Enterprise Network Storage Architecture defines an evolutionary path that solves our business issues," said Dave Walsh, Information Technology Group, Microsoft Corp.

Active Intelligent Management

A key element of ENSAextended is active intelligent management. Active intelligent management empowers customers to control their environment by simplifying the way data and storage resources are managed through automated, policy-based management. Ensuring storage administrators are able to meet demanding quality of service levels.

These capabilities are delivered through three main initiatives:

• Integrated Storage Resource Management: Providing centralized, enterprise-wide management of heterogeneous storage resources and infrastructure;
• Life Cycle Data Management: Enabling the holistic management of data including provisioning, protection, distribution, and obsolescence; and
• Adaptive Data Access: Delivering uninterrupted access to information through core technologies such as virtualization, replication and data migration services

ENSAextended provides an ideal blueprint for how customers can implement new technologies that will enable an adaptive storage infrastructure based on business needs. Capabilities built on the ENSAextended framework will be delivered in stages over the next three years. Initial products include new versions of HP OpenView Storage Area Manager (v3.0), which was recently announced, and today's preview of HP OpenView Storage Provisioner, which is being previewed today at Storage Decisions 2002.

Additional information about ENSAextended is available at www.hp.com/products1/sto rage/index.html.

About HP

HP is a leading global provider of products, technologies, solutions and services to consumers and businesses. The company's offerings span IT infrastructure, personal computing and access devices, global services and imaging and printing. HP completed its merger transaction involving Compaq Computer Corp on May 3, 2002. More information about HP is available at www.hp.com.