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BUS-TECH'S MAINFRAME APPLIANCE FOR STORAGE AVAILABLE FROM EMC

Bus-Tech Inc announced its Mainframe Appliance for Storage (MAS) tape controller is now available through the EMC Select Program. Through this program, customers can purchase complete mainframe tape-on-disk solutions for EMC Centera content addressed storage (CAS) or EMC Celerra network attached storage (NAS) directly from EMC.

The EMC Select Program helps customers easily acquire all the required components to deploy an end-to-end Information Lifecycle Management (ILM) solution. In the case of the Bus-Tech MAS, customers can work with EMC for tape-on-disk with Celerra, and for fixed content applications with Centera.

EMC will offer two versions of Bus-Tech's MAS as part of the EMC Select Program. The MAS-FX (FICON-based) and MAS-EX (ESCON-based) are bundled solutions which have EMC specific enhancements for optimal use with Centera and Celerra. These recently released models more than double performance of previous MAS models. Higher performance means greater value for customers looking to perform backups, store fixed content tape data, or replace aging 3995 optical media storage using MAS with Centera or Celerra.

EMC Centera CAS provides an online enterprise archive for mainframe applications requiring long-term archival capabilities. Customers with applications that write to 3480/3490 tapes are able to take full advantage of the Bus-Tech/Centera integration.

EMC Celerra NAS can help customers reduce their dependence on large-scale tape subsystems by providing low-cost disk-based backup solutions utilizing ATA storage to replace aging mainframe tape or optical storage.

"Mainframe customers can now build tape-on-disk backup and archiving environments utilizing MAS with EMC Centera and EMC Celerra systems that reduce batch processing times, improve business continuance and disaster recovery, satisfy new regulatory requirements, and enhance operational efficiencies", said Tom Joyce, senior director of Storage Connectivity Marketing at EMC.

The MAS is a tape-on-disk controller that attaches directly to the mainframe FICON or ESCON input/output channels. MAS uses standard Gb Ethernet IP to attach to EMC Centera and Celerra storage systems. To the mainframe, MAS emulates 3480/3490 tape drives, allowing mainframe-based applications to transparently store data on Centera or Celerra by writing files to an emulated tape device.

"We have been cooperatively selling these solutions with EMC for some time now," stated Al Brandt Bus-Tech's vice president of Operations. "Now that customers can purchase these solutions from EMC under the Select Program, the acquisition process for the entire solution will be greatly simplified."

With Centera and Celerra, customers are able to complete batch processing in less time because physical tape handling is eliminated. Deploying backup and archive data locally or remotely on high availability storage arrays enhances business continuance and disaster recovery. Regulatory compliance requirements are satisfied with Centera enabling the replacement of aging optical and WORM tape technologies. Dramatically smaller footprints, eliminated cartridge consumption, lower maintenance costs, reduced electrical expenses, and significantly reduced operator intervention combine to deliver unparalleled operational efficiencies.