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Press Release

Hitachi Data Systems Unveils New Approach for Unified Data Protection and Instance Management

April 16, 2013


Hitachi Data Instance Manager Provides a Holistic View and Management of Data Copies, Lowers Costs and Enhances Effectiveness of Data Protection

SANTA CLARA, Calif.— April 16, 2013 — Hitachi Data Systems Corporation (HDS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), today introduced a new integrated approach to data instance management that transforms the way organizations protect and manage their information. At the center of this strategy is the new Hitachi Data Instance Manager (HDIM), an intelligent, policy-based software platform that maps and optimizes specific instances (or copies) of data throughout the data lifecycle. In doing so it allows organizations to build a comprehensive information protection strategy aligned to the specific applications and use cases of their business. Hitachi Data Instance Manager is a major milestone following the acquisition of Cofio by Hitachi Data Systems in September 2012. The new software platform helps to fulfill the HDS vision to create a comprehensive portfolio that unifies backup, archive, and storage platform-based replication technologies in today’s age of big data.

Hitachi Data Instance Manager delivers the first step of the company’s data instance management vision by providing a holistic approach to solving customers’ instance management challenges – from laptops to protection, and from remote offices to cloud. With HDIM, organizations can apply the optimum information protection and recovery technologies, resulting in much more efficient and effective backup, versioning, replication, archiving, dedupe, and continuous data protection (CDP). Throughout 2013, HDS will continue to build on this vision through a series of enhancements that will deliver new integrated data protection capabilities across the entire Hitachi Data Systems portfolio. This will include new integration capabilities of Hitachi Data Instance Manager with Hitachi Content Platform (HCP) for better archive, search and recovery, and improved data analysis.

The Management Challenge of Data Copies

Organizations continuously make copies of their data, with little to no insight into who made those copies, which tools were used, where those copies reside, how long each needs to be retained, or how they are being used. Compounding this complexity is the influx of data volume, variety, and virtualization, combined with the regulatory and compliance standards organizations need to adhere to. Taken together, these challenges create an array of different scenarios for information protection and management. Now with HDIM, IT managers no longer have to rely on disparate legacy tools for disaster recovery, versioning, and archiving that are not integrated and that result in redundancies and add complexity, costs and resource demands.

“There are many great data protection technologies available today, but what’s been lacking is a way to map those technologies to specific business use cases,” said Sean Moser, vice president, Software Platforms Product Management, Hitachi Data Systems. “Organizations need a holistic view of all copies of data so the right technology can be applied at the right time – that’s where Hitachi Data Instance Manager comes in. By implementing one solution for centralized data management, organizations can intelligently select and protect individual instances of data to help reduce backup windows, meet service levels, and restore data efficiently across a variety of cloud and virtual environments. Hitachi Data Instance Manager delivers significant cost savings by consolidating, reducing and better managing and tracking data copies.”


Hitachi Data Instance Manager Redefines Data Protection

Hitachi Data Instance Manager is a unified software solution that minimizes unnecessary data copies by capturing and copying data once in real time and then making it available for recovery across various recovery points. As a result, the software platform centralizes multiple data protection capabilities with top-down policy and workflow management. The new solution protects data and reduces, controls and manages all data instances for file, SQL and Exchange in Microsoft® and Linux environments, delivering end-to-end protection for midmarket customers and departments in larger enterprises. Additional platform support and deeper integration with Hitachi enterprise replication solutions will be delivered in the future. HDIM builds on the extensive data protection portfolio that is built on technology from Hitachi Data Systems and its partners, including:

Hitachi Application Protector (HAPRO)

  • Offers data protection software that is easy to use, snapshot-based and application-consistent, enabling application, backup or storage administrators to manage their protection.
  • Is optimized for Microsoft Exchange, SQL and SharePoint.
  • Allows rapid recovery from planned and unplanned downtime and manages the entire protection operation from a single management window.

Hitachi Replication Manager (HRpM)

  • Delivers management of the full range of Hitachi Data Systems array-based replication.
  • Provides local and remote protection with zero recovery point objectives (RPO) and low recovery time objectives (RTO).

Hitachi Data Protection Suite, powered by CommVault

  • Provides a tightly integrated blend of snapshot, replication and persistent copies that are application-aware, secure, deduplicated, managed and accessible through a single platform.
  • Results in an easy, automated and low cost data protection solution.

Supporting Quotes

  • IPC Logistics: “In aviation logistics, we must run 7 by 24 by 365 or our customers’ operations are at risk.We deployed Hitachi Data Instance Manager in a high demand, all virtual Hyper-V® production environment using real-time protection for hundreds of virtual machines and have achieved significant cost savings. Besides the great reduction in infrastructure investment for around the clock, real-time protection, we estimate that we have reduced administrative costs and time by over 300%. We are eager to take advantage of the new solution’s enhancements.” – Peter Musacchio, president, Operations
  • IDC: “The copy data problem exists in datacenters everywhere – filling as much as 60% of enterprise disk storage. As the amount of copy and stored data continues to grow unabated, businesses need to take concrete steps to get the problem under control. Suppliers of external disk storage systems have largely ignored this problem thus far. That is about to change with Hitachi Data Systems taking a leadership role in acknowledging and addressing the problem with Hitachi Data Instance Manager.” – Ashish Nadkarni, research director, Storage Systems

Web Resources

About Hitachi Data Systems

Hitachi Data Systems provides information technologies, services and solutions that help companies improve IT costs and agility, and innovate with information to make a difference in the world. Our customers gain compelling return on investment (ROI), unmatched return on assets (ROA), and demonstrable business impact. With approximately 5,900 employees worldwide, Hitachi Data Systems does business in more than 100 countries and regions. Our products, services and solutions are trusted by the world's leading enterprises, including more than 70% of the Fortune 100 and more than 80% of the Fortune Global 100. Visit us at www.HDS.com.

About Hitachi, Ltd.

Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a leading global electronics company with approximately 320,000 employees worldwide. Fiscal 2011 (ended March 31, 2012) consolidated revenues totaled 9,665 billion yen ($117.8 billion). Hitachi is focusing more than ever on the Social Innovation Business, which includes information and telecommunication systems, power systems, industrial, transportation and urban development systems, as well as the sophisticated materials and key devices that support them. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company's website at http://www.hitachi.com.

Press Contacts:

Hitachi Data Systems
Melissa Rossiter
(408) 970-4849
melissa.rossiter@hds.com


Lois Paul & Partners

Brandi Ellerbee
(512) 638-5327
brandi_ellerbee@lpp.com