Storage Storage consolidation buying guide:

Storage consolidation buying guide

This guide can help storage managers purchase software, tools and appliances related to storage consolidation initiatives. It contains best purchasing practices as well as product specs to help readers compare prospective consolidation products related to NAS, disk arrays, data migration software and virtualization software.

  • Best practices

    When done right, storage consolidation will reduce machine count and increase storage utilization. Just be sure to invest in vendor support, since problems stemming from consolidating a storage infrastructure will have a deep impact.

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  • Data migration software

    In the storage consolidation realm, data migration -- the process of moving data from one storage location to another -- is crucial to storage preparation and ongoing management.

    Learn more: Data migration software

  • Enterprise disk arrays

    Knowing the purchasing criteria for enterprise-class disk arrays, as well as product specs for the leading arrays, can help storage managers make savvy buying decisions.

    Learn more: Enterprise disk arrays

  • NAS and storage gateways

    NAS is so easy to install and manage that NAS sprawl is a common problem. This is why NAS is often a prime candidate for consolidation initiatives. Learn how to purchase NAS appliances with an eye toward NAS storage consolidation.

    Learn more: NAS and storage gateways

  • Storage consolidation tools

    Storage managers need to know how to purchase products for their storage consolidation initiatives. This guide covers purchasing criteria and product specs for consolidation technologies such as NAS, disk arrays, data migration tools and virtualization software.

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  • Virtualization software

    Virtualization can pool storage from across the data center, allowing disks from diverse storage platforms to appear as a single storage resource. This storage resource can then be allocated, provisioned, migrated, replicated and backed up without regard to where it is physically located. Not only does virtualization make storage easier to track and manage, it also makes better use of available storage, forestalling the expense of unnecessary disk or storage platform purchases.

    Learn more: Virtualization software