Enterprise storage market leader EMC said last week it will buy Data General in a stock swap valued at $1.1 billion, based on a per-share price of $19.58. The purchase would give EMC Data General's Clariion open systems storage business, an area in which EMC is already a market leader. Data General's Clariion business unit was the first to provide complete Fibre Channel systems.

EMC would also get server products, including Data General's Non-Uniform Memory Access line. EMC will operate Data General's Aviion server business separately, says Michael Ruettgers, EMC's president and CEO. EMC will integrate Data General's Intel technology across EMC products, including the Symmetrix storage systems that now run on Mips chips, Ruettgers says.

EMC is filling a hole in its product line with the smaller Data General systems, says David Hill, a senior analyst with the Aberdeen Group. "Not everyone needs such a big system as Symmetrix," Hill says. "Fortunately for customers, Clariion is very well-regarded in the midrange space."

The acquisition was the result of customers' requests, Ruettgers says. "Global 2000 customers use our enterprise storage," he says, "but they also have branches and departments where they are looking for a simpler solution." In addition, the Clariion systems will expose EMC to the emerging-enterprise market, where it has little presence.

Exponential Scaling
StorageTek's enhanced StorageNet Access Hub is a multiple-loop Fibre Channel hub that scales exponentially better than single-loop hubs. The hub is available now and uses advanced long-wave laser technology to extend the distance between connected devices to 30 miles--well beyond the standard of 6.2 miles.

Earl McAllen, IS manager for Enron Energy Services in Houston, will use the longer-distance hub to connect a data center with Enron's headquarters, 17 miles away. Enron maintains pools of storage that can be made available to users as they need increased volumes of data. "The users tell me what they need," McAllen says. "I can keep a pool of storage on demand, which keeps all the kids from fighting over the disk."

Compaq is unveiling SAN services that combine an understanding of infrastructure management--including operating systems, databases, and applications--high-end SAN products, global services, and Windows NT expertise. The vendor will work with channel partners to build SANs for customers. Large customers will receive on-site SAN services, including assessment, design, and implementation. Pricing will be based on customer requirements, with a typical two-day SAN workshop priced about $30,000.

Wintel customers will receive three packaged services through Compaq's channel partners. RAID Storage And Configuration will be available on-site or over the Web, with on-site engagement priced at $1,500 and remote access at $1,000. NT SAN Migration, with installation and configuration for eight servers, will be priced from $7,000 to $11,000. Storage Configuration Healthcheck will be priced at $1,500 for the first storage system and $600 for each additional system. All the Compaq services are available now, except the NT SAN Migration, which will be available in September.

"Everyone has saved information on the system for a long time now," says Ted McKie, Compaq's director of business development for storage, in explaining why storage customers require such services: "There's a proliferation of storage, but the management of it all was never put in place."