Grid, Storage Grid, and the HP StorageWorks Grid

Our research program in Enterprise Storage Solutions makes this Technology Trends available to all our subscribers. Those interested in this program should contact [email protected]. The concept of Grid computing promises an on-demand and highly utilized computing environment that appeals to many enterprises. Recent developments in server virtualization technologies enable server resources to be centrally managed and distributed – similar to the way a storage network partitions storage resources. The current state of technology development has inspired the concepts of “server Grids” and “storage Grids.” HP, an established technology leader in the storage market, has delivered the first “storage Gridenabled” product among the major storage vendors. The HP StorageWorks Grid, based on Smart Cell technology, is a visionary architecture for an intelligent, scalable, reliable, and agile storage platform. The Smart Cell architecture also promises reduced infrastructure, hardware, and management costs. Nevertheless, DHBA envisions the ideal Grid computing environment to be a single Grid consisting of both server and storage resources; it remains to be seen whether HP will eventually converge its server Grid and storage Grid developments toward this vision.