MS Windows Home Server

HP X300 Data Vault Promotion in Germany

MediaMrkt a major retailer in Germany have a special limited time promotion on the HP X300 Data Vault.

The X312 configuration with 2x1TB HDDs is being offered at 399 Euro, whilst the X315 which has 2x1TB and 2×1.5TB HDDs is being offered at 599 Euro.

Both configurations have identical specifications (apart from the HDD capacity) to the HP X311 Data Vault.

SOHO Managed Services for HP X500 Data Vault

Servicing the IT needs of small and midsized business customers, LPI Level Platforms Inc. makers of the remote monitoring and management software for solutions providers and MSPs (Managed Service Provider’s) has announced that the company’s Managed Workplace software is now available for the HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault series.

Here’s part of the press release:

Ottawa, ON, Canada – June 29, 2010 – LPI Level Platforms Inc, today announced that its remote monitoring and management software, Managed Workplace, will now be available on the HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault Series. This solution is designed to radically improve the reliability and performance of IT for small businesses.  

There are more than 5 million small US businesses with the vast majority unable to afford their own IT staff.  The managed services business model is fast becoming the standard service and support model for solution providers supporting IT for businesses with 10-100 PCs.  With Managed Workplace and the HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault, solution providers can for the first time, economically address the needs of businesses with fewer than 10 PCs.  This announcement effectively extends the managed services model to an entirely new and very large customer segment that is ideally positioned to realize the greatest benefits of managed services.

Small businesses with less than 10 PCs often struggle with the management of their IT environments.  The introduction of new security threats as well as cloud applications, unified communications and device mobility increases the complexity of the IT environment.  At the same time IT has become increasingly important meaning that the value of performance, reliability, uptime and business continuity are now basic operational requirements.

At least one in six of small businesses experience unacceptable downtime each year and only one in four have implemented a backup and recovery plan.  For businesses with less than 10 PCs the cost of providing on-call technical support to address these concerns is often prohibitive. The HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault with Level Platforms Managed Workplace addresses all of these needs, offering customers an extremely cost-effective way to enhance their productivity and safeguard their businesses.

The HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault with Managed Workplace offers solution providers and managed service providers (MSPs) the necessary vantage point to remotely monitor and manage all small business IT including desktop PCs, laptops, printers, VoIP, routers, switches, hosted cloud applications, as well as the Data Vault system itself, ensuring everything a small business needs to run their business is operating at peak performance including full security and business continuity objectives. 

Many smaller businesses compete with larger firms with more advanced IT capabilities.  The HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault with Level Platforms’ Managed Workplace not only addresses core IT management requirements but also delivers a wide range of performance enhancing features including file and applications sharing that combine to effectively level the IT playing field so that they can go head-to-head with larger organizations on the basis of both performance and cost.

Solution providers and MSPs already utilizing Managed Workplace can immediately address the needs of this very large new market without disrupting their managed services business.  Not only can they proactively monitor and manage all systems and applications, but they can also patch systems, automate system tasks, perform security audits, report system performance, and much more.

“Before today’s announcement most solution providers addressing the broader SMB market have been unable to provide the same level of service to very small businesses,” said Peter Sandiford, CEO, Level Platforms.  “The HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault system with Managed Workplace let’s them leverage their managed services offerings and processes resulting in a huge win/win for everyone.”

“Small businesses also need performance, reliability and security in their storage solutions,” said Tom Joyce, vice president of marketing, StorageWorks Division, HP. “The HP StorageWorks X500 Data Vault and Level Platforms software provide them with simple, cost-efficient solutions to backup critical data ensuring their systems are there when they need them.”

Western Digital 2TB Caviar Green Reviewed

StorageReview.com have a review of the Western Digital 2TB Caviar Green hard drive.

Also known as the WD20EARS, the review looks at the advanced format of the hard drive, which divides the drive into 4,096-byte sectors instead of the smaller 512-byte sectors used in current drive technology. The review also has plenty of benchmarks where the drives performance is also tested, which you can find here.