Maxxan Unveils Storage Networking Switch, Appliance

The MXV320 switch, generally available starting Monday, incorporates a director-class switch with up to 320 ports. It can be configured with up to 16 programmable multiprotocol line cards for use with such protocols ad Fibre Channel and Gigabit Ethernet, said Ravi Chalaka, director of marketing.

Up to eight application cards with preinstalled software such as Veritas Software's NetBackup or FalconStor's IPStor can be installed into the MXV320, Chalaka said.

The MXV320's scalability allows consolidation not only of disk arrays, but of applications as well, said Chalaka. "It scales from entry-level JBOD arrays to high-end Symmetrix arrays, and allows central management of all devices for increasing security and reliability," he said. "It also brings SAN and NAS capabilities to the same hard disks."

The MXV320 starts at $33,278.

Maxxan also unveiled the SA100f, a 2U appliance that runs the same blades and software as the MVX320. With dual Xeon 2.4GHz processors and up to 10 2-Gbit Fibre Channel ports and two Gigabit Ethernet ports, it can cluster up to eight NAS heads per unit, Chalaka said. It uses IPStor and NetBackup software for use in storage consolidation and disaster-recovery infrastructures, he said.

The SA100f will be available next month, Chalaka said.

Maxxan sells direct to Fortune 200 customers but via the channel to other customers, said Vic Mahadevan, president and CEO of the company.

Maxxan currently works with 23 solution provider partners in the United States and is actively recruiting partners with disaster-recovery experience, Mahadevan said. "Our technology allows solution providers to offer simple, heterogeneous solutions," he said. "It lets them compete with much bigger vendors."