Press Releases
C3 Identifies Cost-Effective Remote Data Replication as Top Priority for SMB Storage AdministratorsFebruary 14, 2005
Compellent Customer Council (C3) of 50 IT professionals sets 2005 priorities for Compellent's product direction; Group reports strong savings related to current capabilities
Minneapolis, Feb. 14, 2005 — The Compellent Customer Council (C3), a formalized product development program bringing end users and Compellent experts together to understand and address today's storage requirements, today announced that remote data replication is the number one priority for storage administrators at small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in 2005. The information was provided by C3 members during their recent winter meeting.
Commonly, SMBs are relegated to using tape and off-site storage facilities due to the high costs and complexities of remote data replication. The reliance on tape backups has created a reactive environment in which the entire company could be at risk if they are unable to recover critical data in a timely and accurate fashion.
"Today, having a true remote-site disaster recovery infrastructure is unattainable even for mid-size organizations - Compellent will dramatically change the playing field," said Don Himsl, C3 member and IS director for CNS (Nasdaq: CNXS), a manufacturer and marketer of consumer health care products with $90 million in annual sales. "You don't have to wonder why the company has such enthusiastic users - Compellent has a track record of implementing customer feedback."
In 2003 and 2004, the C3 identified capacity management and data recovery as the top storage priorities for SMBs. Based on that input, Compellent released two key features - Dynamic Capacity and Data Instant Replay. After more than six months of regular usage, C3 members reported the following results:
- Dynamic Capacity simplified capacity management: on average, Compellent customers are allocating 300% more storage capacity than they have physically installed while experiencing a 67% reduction in management time.
- Data Instant Replay automated data recovery: on average, Compellent customers are recovering from data hazards 20 times faster.
About the Compellent Customer Council
Driven by interest from end users and storage resellers, Compellent formalized its interactive product development strategy in early 2003 by forming the Compellent Customer Council (C3) — involving dozens of customers in structured meetings to provide input on the design and development of Compellent's product and support offerings. The C3 meets at regular intervals to review product development progress, identify and set future priorities and discuss industry trends and technologies.