Ease Software's SATA-on-AIX Replaces SCSI, SAS Drives

AUSTIN, Texas, Oct. 30, 2007 -- What if there were SATA
hardware and software that worked seamlessly with IBM's
Virtual I/O system on System p(TM) and RS/6000 systems
running AIX(R)? As it turns out, there is: Ease Software,
Inc.'s SATA-on-AIX drives.
What's more, SATA-on-AIX eliminates the need for SCSI or SAS
drives - at a cost five to ten times lower than either one.

Most IBM users would agree a SCSI or SAS drive is the
logical way to manage LPARs and their myriad disks. And
IBM's Virtual I/O server allows those partitions to operate
smoothly with limited hardware. But when a naked
300-gigabyte SAS drive costs nearly $2,000, and a
300-gigabyte SCSI drive costs roughly half that, neither
option is affordable for small and mid-sized enterprises.

A 300-gigabyte SATA-on-AIX drive, in contrast, is just $200.

But what about performance? SATA-on-AIX shines there, too,
with 250 megabytes-per-second actual transfer rates per
four-channel SATA port. The drives are hot swappable and
provide up to 15 terabytes per host bus adapter.

SATA-on-AIX is also an attractive option to Internet service
providers (ISPs) whose customers want machines of their own.
More stable - and more easily serviced - than Linux, a
single AIX P5 platform can hold several customer "machines,"
and the LPAR/SATA-on-AIX combination makes it affordable.

"Because a SATA drive costs 80 to 90 percent less than a
SCSI or SAS drive, other options become possible to small
and mid-sized organizations," explained Perry Smith, Ease
Software president. "For instance, backups. Backups often
get neglected, but everyone knows they're absolutely
necessary. With disks as inexpensive as ours, customers can
afford to have their disk systems 'mirrored.' In that case,
they get the functionality and performance of RAID 5 without
the read, with double the bandwidth, but at just $2 per gig.
Things like that become viable options when clients are able
to save such a significant amount of money on their LPAR
solutions." (ERN)

About Ease Software, Inc.

Based in Austin, Texas and founded by IBM veterans who
worked on RS/6000 from its inception in 1988, Ease Software
has been a leader in AIX consulting for over ten years. The
company has been a direct IBM vendor, providing consulting
services to IBM, as well as to private businesses and
government entities, since 1995. To learn more, visit http://www.easesoftware.com.