Compaq dominates switching ports for SAN market, says SDD

A recent report on 2000 Fibre Channel SAN components conducted by global research company Gartner Dataquest, positioned Compaq as the market leader in deploying Fibre Channel switching product ports for storage area networks (SAN). Out of the 633 000 switching ports deployed last year, Compaq accounted for 26%. The research also indicates that Fibre Channel SAN component revenue grew 157% in 2000.

A SAN is a configuration of two or more servers connected through a hub or switch to one or more storage arrays. The connections are usually via Fibre Channels (FCs), which can simultaneously support several parallel protocols, as well as IP traffic, audio, video, and other types of data. Compaq product manager at SDD, Amanda Saurma-Jeultsch, says that according to Gartner, last year saw the completion of the transition from hub to switch dominance.

A report generated by the IDC listed the following reasons for purchasing SANs:

Business reasons include: Increased, less expensive storage capacity strains data management capabilities. Users and customers are demanding 24 x 7 availability of in-house data resources. Alliances and consolidations in storage and networking enable more cost-effective solutions.

Technical reasons for adopting SANs include: File management, mirroring, backup, and archiving needs loom larger as data volumes grow. LANs may become congested when large files are transferred through them. Servers can access files faster on back-end buses than on front-end LANs.

"We are not surprised with this result. As a distributor, we are accustomed to the popularity and functionality of Compaq's switches, particularly in the SAN market," she comments. Customers are looking for a SAN that adds value by protecting their investment and enabling them to build out and modify their storage infrastructure as their needs evolve. Compaq's strategy of delivering high quality solutions at reasonable prices has made them the SAN supplier of choice for companies.

According to the report, Compaq is the clear leader in delivering SANs for the following reason: Customers don't always know what their storage requirements will be in the years ahead and they're not interested in being locked into proprietary solutions based on their assumptions. Ultimately, customers want and need a SAN that saves money, delivers immediate business impact, and provides the flexibility to grow and modify their storage system as their needs change. "Compaq offers customers a more valuable solution than its competitors," she asserts.

She says that today, nearly every SAN installed involves at least some customisation, and this represents opportunities for resellers. The IDC believes that indirect storage sales will rebound and that SAN solutions will contribute much of these revenues. She concludes: "To capitalise on the opportunity that SANs bring, vendors need to provide channel partners with the tools, training, and certification requirements to enable their channels to sell SANs successfully. Vendors like Compaq that make this investment are able to recruit and maintain a channel that will likely find success, because this type of channel investment can often bring loyalty, and with loyalty often comes market share."

SDD distributes the entire Compaq range to its network of more than 6 000 dealers throughout SA.