Microsoft Moves On iSCSI
Microsoft Moves On iSCSI
March 6, 2006: After making its iSCSI initiator available for free three years ago, Microsoft has pumped new energy into its storage aspirations by acquiring new technology from iSCSI software from startup String Bean Software.
The company has picked up String Bean’s WinTarget Software, which turns a Windows File Server into an iSCSI target.
Unlike its iSCSI initator however, WinTarget won’t be free. It will be sold as an added feature for Windows Storage Server 2003 R2 allowing a storage server to be used as a network attached storage (NAS) device
Enabling increased communication performance with storage devices, iSCSI is an appealing low-cost alternative to Fibre Channel. However, it has met limited support in the mid to lower end of the market. Microsoft plans to change this by incorporating WinTarget’s technology into its own with simplified management features.
“Customers have said to us, since we have an iSCSI initiator, 'Why can't you provide us with a target?'” says Claude Lorenson, Microsoft storage product manager. “Instead of two storage devices, you can deploy one and allocate part for block storage and part for file.
“The reason we went with iSCSI is we felt that we have an obligation to simplify storage for our users.”
Windows Storage Server 2003 R2 is expected to be released in mid-2006.
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