AutoVirt Announces Trade-In Program

AutoVirt, Inc., provider of management software for unstructured data on Windows networks, launched a Trade-In Program for customers of Brocade’s StorageX and NetApp’s VFM file management products, which are now scheduled for end-of-life.

        Comparison of StorageX and AutoVirt Functionality

Customers that wish to replace their current StorageX or VFM products will receive a 50% discount off an AutoVirt software perpetual license and one year of free product support. This offer applies to any of Brocade’s StorageX, File Lifecycle Manager (FLM), MyView, and File Management Engine (FME) products, as well as versions of those products offered by resellers, including the NetApp Virtual File Manager (VFM) product suite, IBM StorageX, and Hitachi StorageX.

“Hundreds of IT organizations around the globe are being impacted by Brocade’s decision to end-of-life their file data virtualization and management solutions,” said Josh Klein, President and CEO, AutoVirt. “AutoVirt’s StorageX Trade-In Program was created in response to the many inquiries we’ve received from StorageX and VFM customers looking for a replacement solution. AutoVirt delivers an incredibly easy transition process that requires no changes to UNC path names and will not disrupt end-users. Furthermore, customers feel the platform is functionally superior to StorageX, and we are offering it to trade-in customers at a price point that makes the ROI instantaneous.”

The IT organizations that have made the strategic decision to implement file virtualization and unstructured data management solutions have done so for a host of reasons, including:

• Migrating data and managing growth in distributed storage environments
• Increasing utilization of distributed storage
• Reducing data management complexity
• Maintaining high availability (HA), disaster recovery (DR) and business continuity

Unfortunately, those companies that chose StorageX or its rebranded versions are now faced with the termination of this file management product line. As a result of the product’s end-of-life, Brocade has stopped developing and distributing new feature releases and upgrades. In addition, customers will see annual maintenance costs rise 10% each year until support is completely discontinued in 2012.  

“Of the hundreds of IT organizations I consult with on a regular basis, unstructured file data is a rapidly escalating management problem,” said Marc Staimer, Founder and President, Dragon Slayer Consulting. “AutoVirt offers a cost effective intuitive solution to this troubling issue.”