FSC's virtual tape appliance 'CentricStor' certified by VERITAS Software

This means that CentricStor is now on the compatibility list for NetBackup.

A CentricStor system was installed and operated in the VERITAS Software laboratory specifically for the purpose of certification. And because CentricStor was designed as an open storage solution, it was possible for the virtual tape appliance to be tested like conventional magnetic tape archive systems and qualified for compatibility with NetBackup. The close partnership between Fujitsu Siemens Computers and VERITAS Software dates back to 1992.

"The VERITAS Software certification considerably boosts the reputation of CentricStor as a solution that delivers high standards of interoperability, availability and functionality," said Ashraf El Arabaty, Product Marketing Manager, Enterprise Solutions, Fujitsu Siemens Computers. "This complements the testing of CentricStor in FSC's own quality assurance laboratories. This development shows that partners and providers of leading backup solutions for open system environments are carrying out independent certification for CentricStor, assuring further endorsement of our state-of-the-art solution, which, we are positive, will have a strong demand in the Middle East market."

The combination of NetBackup and CentricStor is ideal for consolidating magnetic tape processing while at the same time optimizing resource utilization. Certification of the CentricStor technology by VERITAS Software proves that the open architecture of this tape appliance can be seamlessly integrated into backup solutions from leading vendors.

"Our customers want to be guaranteed the maximum degree of investment protection for their data protection concepts," added Dr. Chris Boorman, Vice President of Marketing EMEA VERITAS Software. "Through strategic partnerships with all leading IT vendors, VERITAS Software ensures its products are as compatible and flexible as possible. The close cooperation between Fujitsu Siemens Computers and VERITAS Software has paved the way to achieving compatibility certification in the shortest possible time."

Few data protection products are capable of managing the huge quantities of data managed by modern data centers. Whereas in the past they would rely solely on mainframes, today's data centers employ large UNIX and Windows servers for business critical applications. Combined with CentricStor, NetBackup offers mainframe-class data protection for large corporate UNIX, Windows and Linux environments. This is particularly attractive for in-house data centers, where business critical applications have to be backed up online and without interrupting operations. Together with the virtualization technology of CentricStor, NetBackup's architecture provides maximum backup and recovery performance in storage area network environments, thus fulfilling the requirements of even the largest data centers.

CentricStor can be integrated into existing IT landscapes with total transparency and without interruption to existing applications and backup scenarios. Since the system is entirely independent of the actual storage peripherals, it is possible to implement the latest drive technology when upgrading to a new generation - without impacting the host systems and applications.