Silicon Graphics/Cray Research has released a hierarchical storage management system for Silicon Graphics and Cray IRIX systems, which literally provides limitless, inexpensive file storage for users. The Cray Data Migration Facility (DMF) 2.6 does this by transparently migrating files to less expensive off-line storage, which then supplements on-line disk capacity. "Previously, this software helped support the extremely data-intensive supercomputing demands of the Cray UNICOS system," says James Chiweshe, Managing Director of Silicon Graphics sub-Saharan Africa. "Now customers using computer systems running the IRIX operating environment can also benefit from the data migration speed and capability DMF provides." Chiweshe continues, "DMF automatically and seamlessly manages large amounts of data for users without them having to be concerned about storage management issues. This enables technical computer customers to solve highly complex, compute-intensive problems with large data sets requiring sophisticated storage management systems to reduce overall time-to-solution." DMF can also be used as a basis for a dedicated enterprise file server. Interoperable with standard data export services such as Network File System (NFS) and File Transfer Protocol (FTP), DMF arranges on-line disk resources by automatically detecting file system free-space thresholds and moving data from on-line disk to off-line media. DMF 2.6 is a turning point in the development of the premier HPC operating environment which has been achieved by combining the best elements of IRIX and UNICOS with new software technologies presently being developed. Silicon Graphics/Cray Research also plans to extend the benefits of the high-end tape management facility initially developed for the UNICOS operating environment to the IRIX operating environment.
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