Storage Infrastructure Software

Storage infrastructure software includes virtualization and volume management and storage access and path management software.

Virtualization and Volume Management Software

Virtualization and volume management software enables device and network-independent management of storage or data. It isolates and abstracts the internal details of storage systems and services and simplifies storage management by masking physical complexities from servers, applications, and other network resources. Such software is frequently used for pooling or aggregating storage or to add new capabilities to available storage resources. Virtualization and volume management may be storage system, server, fabric, or appliance based and frequently can occur simultaneously in more than one of these locations. Only software sold as a separate software product or option is included in this market. Representative vendors and products include the following:

• DataCore (SANsymphony)
• IBM (SAN Volume Controller)

Access and Path Management Software

Access and path management software provides for storage path and access configuration, management, load balancing, and failover on path failure. Only software sold as a separate software product or option is included in the revenue for this market. Representative vendors and products include the following:

• EMC (PowerPath)
• Hitachi (Hitachi Dynamic Link Manager)