StorMagic announced the StorMagic SvSAN, a storage virtual appliance that helps small to mid-size organizations build a cost-effective virtual SAN in just a few minutes. The StorMagic SvSAN is designed to enable the deployment of a high-availability shared storage solution for VMware ESX environments for less than US$2,000, allowing users to take advantage of enhanced server virtualization functions without the need to purchase expensive shared storage. For a limited time, by contacting StorMagic or one of its resellers, end-users can obtain a promo key for a free copy of SvSAN, with no expiration date.



StorMagic SvSAN includes features users would expect from an enterprise-class SAN and provides optional licenses for high availability and capacity management. By turning unused storage capacity into a virtual SAN, the solution is designed to enable users to take advantage of high-end features of VMware environments such as VMware VMotion, without the need for an external SAN. StorMagic SvSAN is also designed to work with VMware vCenter, so that administrators are able to manage datastores, the StorMagic iSCSI SAN, and the internal RAID controller from one interface.

With capacity that starts at 2 TB and scales to unlimited storage, the SvSAN enables administrators to create, manage and provision datastores through a single-step process, which allows them to rapidly deploy datastores without managing multiple applications.

“After a simple software download, we set up our virtual SAN in minutes, and we are now able to manage the SAN, datastores and internal RAID through one tool. Having integrated management made things a lot easier for us,” said Gavin Murrill, network administrator at Make-A-Wish Foundation. “The StorMagic SvSAN pretty much takes control of our storage, leveraging internal storage resources. We can now easily and cost-effectively build a highly available environment without the complexity of traditional systems.”

“We are looking forward to offering our customers a unique experience that gives them access to enterprise-class features they didn’t know they could have at this price point – or even get for free if they have a promo key,” said Mike Asbury, director of sales and business development for Personal Computer Systems, Inc. “The promo is not an evaluation copy, but a licensed version of the SvSAN, and a great way to provide users the functionality they need today, with an upgrade path that allows them to scale non-disruptively as their needs increase.”

“StorMagic recognizes that the key to unlocking many of the problems SMB VMware users face is simplicity,” commented Steve Duplessie, founder and senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group. “By eliminating the complexity of storage in a virtual server world, and by letting people continue to use the internal disk devices they already own, everybody wins. This is a smart play all around.”

“Our customers’ IT budgets are still shrinking while their data needs continue to grow,” said Mike Stolz, vice president of marketing at StorMagic. “With SvSAN, we are enabling these organizations to create, manage, and provision storage in their VMware environments through a highly affordable and easy-to-use console.”

Add-on features include active-active mirroring for high-availability and capacity management upgrades.

Pricing and Availability
The StorMagic SvSAN is available today through a worldwide network of channel partners at an MSRP starting at US$995 for a single virtual appliance license and 2 Terabyte capacity management license. High availability option is US$995. Capacity management licenses are available for 4, 8 and unlimited data storage. For a limited time, qualified customers can get a promo key for free access to the StorMagic solution (not a trial version).