Windows 8 server editions will include a filter driver for NTFS for data deduplication The next version of Microsoft Windows Server includes integrated data deduplication technology. Microsoft is positioning this as a boon for server virtualization and claims it has very little performance … [Read more...]
Talking Cloud Storage Gateways With Nasuni and Cirtas
February 22, 2011 by Leave a Comment
I’ve got a new video podcast up and running: Raising the Floor is a series of discussions about the future of enterprise IT. I kicked the series off talking about one of my favorite topics: Cloud storage. I invited two excellent guests to join me for this conversation: Josh Goldstein, VP of … [Read more...]
See W. Curtis Preston’s Backup Central Live!
January 31, 2011 by Leave a Comment
W. Curtis Preston launched his own series of Backup Central Live! seminars for 2011 Last week, after the Exec Event in Palo Alto, I joined my friend W. Curtis Preston for his first Backup Central Live! event. Curtis has spent years educating IT pros about data protection, this was the first … [Read more...]
Why FalconStor, Overland, and Sepaton Ought To Be Acquired Before Isilon
October 26, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Although it's fun to speculate about blockbuster purchases, smaller acquisitions make much more sense The industry is buzzing with rumors that Isilon will be the next big storage acquisition now that 3PAR is safely in HP’s hands. The alleged buyer, EMC, is itself surrounded by rumors of … [Read more...]
Four Fundamental Best Practices for Enterprise IT
September 29, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Every technician develops a set of tools and practices that serve them well. In this post, I present my best practices for enterprise IT. Although many people are cynical about the whole idea of best practices, I’m a believer. I think that such beasts do exist, just that too many companies, … [Read more...]
Donate Your Swag to School Kids In Need
August 3, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Donate your conference backpacks to school kids in need! Trade shows are a veritable swag-fest, some with great loot and some with junk. I’ve been critical of the booth babe and chotchkie phenomenon, but my friend Kevin Houston has a better suggestion: Donate your (useful) swag like backpacks … [Read more...]
1000Base-What?
April 21, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Networking may be straightforward, but the world of networking terminology is not. I've been steeped in the strange lingo of Ethernet for many years, but I still get confused by some of the terms. What's the difference between 1000BASE-CX, 1000BASE-SX, and 1000BASE-T? In this post, I'm going to … [Read more...]
Extreme Tiered Storage: Flash, Disk, and Cloud
February 5, 2010 by Leave a Comment
My presence at Storage Expo NL may have been cursed, but my presentation went off without a hitch thanks to the creativity and flexibility of the VNU staff and Expo volunteers like Ilja Coolen. In my session, I talked about the shortcomings of traditional tiered storage as a way to advance the Noble … [Read more...]