NETAPP And Vmware Provide Path To Virtualized Data

NETAPP And Vmware Provide Path To Virtualized Data Centre, Cloud Computing

NetApp Storage Solutions Combined with VMware vSphere 4 Deliver Cloud Infrastructures Today

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — 22 April 2009—NetApp (NASDAQ: NTAP) announced the integration and certification of its storage platforms with VMware® vSphereTM 4 in conjunction with VMware’s announcement of vSphere 4 at a press conference held today at VMware headquarters. VMware vSphere 4 is the industry’s first operating system for building the internal cloud and enables the next generation of flexible, reliable IT services. Combined with NetApp® storage solutions, vSphere 4 provides customers the foundation to run their data centres in a more flexible and cost-effective way.

VMware vSphere 4 is a platform for building out cloud infrastructures that aggregate CPU, networking, and storage resources into a seamless, flexible, and dynamic cloud that delivers maximum efficiency, control, and choice to customers. NetApp provides the storage foundation for VMware customers to transform their storage into a highly efficient pool of resources that can scale and adapt to any need. Now customers can take advantage of the following benefits in their VMware vSphere 4 environments:

• Improved efficiency. NetApp storage technologies such as deduplication and thin provisioning help customers achieve greater than 50% infrastructure savings in their virtualized server and storage environment. Now VMware customers can take advantage of NetApp’s Virtualization Guarantee* Program that will enable them to use 50% less storage in their environments with NetApp storage compared to traditional storage arrays.

• Better control. NetApp provides secure separation of network and storage resources in multitenant environments to enable hosted IT services. Customers can receive a real-time view of their entire VMware vSphere 4 environment—from virtual machine to volume—using VMware vCenterTM Server and optimise their utilisation. Additionally, customers can simplify management with automated cloning, provisioning, and backup and recovery for virtualized servers and storage. Together, these capabilities dramatically improve control of the data centre environment through better availability, security, and manageability.

• Greater choice. The NetApp unified architecture gives customers the flexibility to match the right performance and price point using any storage protocol to address their changing business needs. Customers who invested in other storage solutions can use NetApp V-Series to unify their existing infrastructure under a common storage architecture and take full advantage of the benefits of the powerful features of Data ONTAP® to improve storage efficiency and dramatically simplify data management. Customers now have the flexibility and choice to do what best suits their needs, now and in the future.

Data centre customers are being challenged to do more with less in today’s economic environment. In most instances, only projects that show immediate ROI within 6 to 12 months are being approved. As budgets are cut or remain flat and IT staff are being asked to increase service levels, virtualization has proven to reduce both capital and operating expenditures and provide IT staff the required flexibility to rapidly respond to evolving business challenges.

“We believe that VMware vSphere 4 will bring enterprises a nondisruptive and pragmatic path to the cloud,” said Parag Patel, vice president, Alliances, VMware. “NetApp has been a valued, trusted technology collaborator in helping customers eliminate unnecessary inefficiencies and better utilise their existing infrastructure investments. Together, we plan to help dramatically simplify the landscape of today’s data centres and enable customers to rapidly deliver adaptive and reliable IT services.”

“VMware’s efforts to tie all the diverse cloud components together into a single managed entity is directly aligned with our vision of how the data centre is evolving,” said Jay Kidd, chief marketing officer at NetApp. “Just as VMware vSphere 4 is the foundation for cloud computing, we believe NetApp provides customers with the best storage platform for delivering the next generation of IT services. We’re excited about the positive benefit VMware vSphere 4 is going to have for our customers. Together, NetApp and VMware provide our joint customers a solid path to cloud computing to better manage the complexities of their data centres.”

To hear more about how NetApp and VMware will provide the foundation for the next evolution of the data centre, watch this video with Jay Kidd at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSRfNlJzqBk.

For customers who want to get there faster, NetApp Virtualization Services for VMware environments can deliver a smooth transition to the optimal infrastructure. NetApp’s dedicated Professional Services team and Authorised Professional Service Partners have the expertise to assess customer environments, provide valuable insights, and create and execute a plan that will help customers achieve their goals with the least cost, minimum risk, and the least disruption to their ongoing operations.

Product Availability
NetApp storage platforms and software products such as SANscreen® VM Insight and MultiStore® are certified for VMware vSphere 4 and available immediately directly from NetApp and channel partners. The NetApp Virtualization Guarantee* Program for vSphere is also available immediately. For more information, visit www.netapp.com/guarantee, where you can access program details, including Guarantee Program terms and conditions, FAQs, technical resources, best practices, and the new NetApp Storage Efficiency Calculator to evaluate your current environment and learn how NetApp storage efficiency technologies can lead to higher storage utilisation.

For more information on how NetApp SANscreen can optimise your virtualized data centre, read the white paper located at http://www.netapp.com/us/library/analyst-reports/ar-optimizing-virtualized-data-center.html.

Discuss this news in the NetApp Community, where you can exchange thoughts and ideas on a variety of topics with our community members. Collaborate with our company, engage in conversation with NetApp leaders and employees, and participate in our passion to go further, faster. Join now at www.netapp.com/us/communities/.

About NetApp
NetApp creates innovative storage and data management solutions that accelerate business breakthroughs and deliver outstanding cost efficiency. Discover our passion for helping companies around the world go further, faster at www.netapp.com.

*This guarantee and related Program are limited to the terms set forth in www.netapp.com/guarantee applicable only to prospective orders placed after the Program effective date and are dependent upon your compliance with the terms and conditions set forth in this document and any of the instruction sets and specifications set forth in the referenced documents. NetApp’s sole and exclusive liability and your sole and exclusive remedy associated with the terms of this guarantee and related Program is the provision by NetApp of the additional storage capacity as set forth in this guarantee and related Program.

Disclaimer - Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains “forward-looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or implied in the forward-looking statements. NetApp advises readers that these potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: potential fluctuations in operating results; the ability to maintain and gain market or industry acceptance of the company's products; the company’s dependence on a limited number of customers; fluctuations and variances in customers’ overall products, product architectures, and internal configurations; variations in product availability; fluctuations and variations in the virtualization product markets; fluctuations in software development and release schedules; customers’ demand for products and services; changes in partner, channel, and vendor relationships; international economic, regulatory, political, and other risks; and uncertain benefits from strategic business combinations. More detailed information on these and additional factors that could affect the company's operating and financial results is described in NetApp’s Forms 10-K, 10-Q, and other reports filed, or to be filed, with the Securities and Exchange Commission. NetApp urges all interested parties to read these reports to gain a better understanding of the business and other risks that the company faces. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made only as of the date hereof, and the company does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

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