Abracadabra: StorMagic Brings Shared Storage to VMware Environments

Company:

Headquarters: Eden Prairie, Minn.

Technology Sector: Storage

Key Product: SvSAN

Year Founded: 2006

Number of Channel Partners: 40 in U.S.

Ideal Channel Partner: Midmarket-focused solution provider

Why You Should Care: Server virtualization requires some sort of storage networking in order to migrate virtual servers. StorMagic's SvSAN allows the easy deployment of a highly-available shared storage solution using storage capacity in the host servers.

The Lowdown: StorMagic started as a developer of shared storage appliances, but then found that its software can also be implemented on virtual appliances.

That software, SvSAN, allows the deployment of a high-availability shared storage in VMware ESX virtual server infrastructures, said Mike Stolz, vice president of marketing at StorMagic.

SvSAN is a virtual appliance that allows shared storage in a VMware ESX environment. Aimed at small and midsize businesses, it enables a virtual SAN to be created in the host server's internal disk storage and one or more attached external arrays.

When customers purchase two SvSAN virtual appliances

and configure them on two separate physical host servers, they get a high-availability offering that allows active-active mirroring between the two, Stolz said.

SvSAN also provides the ability to migrate virtual servers from one physical host to another via VMware's VMotion functionality without a separate shared storage device.

That is an important feature for customers such as the school districts that work with Data Impressions, a Cerritos, Calif.-based solution provider.

Rick Venuto, service manager at Data Impressions, said the SvSAN allows smaller companies to capitalize on VMotion without the need for shared storage.

"With SvSAN, customers still have to use VMware's Storage VMotion if they want to take a [physical] server down," Venuto said. "But at least they'll be able to move the virtual machines freely. Right now, they need to move the VMs to a shared NAS or iSCSI array."

To help VARs learn about the new SvSAN, the company for a limited time is offering solution providers a promotion key which allows customers to immediately download a copy of SvSAN at no charge.

"It's free software for life, the full version, with all the features and the ability to manage up to 2 Tbytes of data," he said. "Resellers can then go sell additional licenses, higher capacity levels, and other virtualization services."

A single license for SvSAN carries a list price of $995 for up to 2 Tbytes of storage, with additional licenses available for up to 4 Tbytes, 8 Tbytes or unlimited capacity.