The flagship offering from Open-E is their Data Storage Server (DSS) software, which can be installed on an x86 PC and will convert the PC into an iSCSI or NAS storage server (or both). Hardware requirements of the PC include x86 compatibility, 1 GB RAM, included hard drive and/or attached RAID, FC, or iSCSI storage, a NIC, and an internal USB DOM port. A 3 GHz Pentium IV or better CPU is recommended, and the vendor notes the product supports boxes with up to 32 CPUs.

DSS is also now available for use over VMware ESX 3.5 servers.

The DSS product is, in fact, its own operating system; which is shipped on a USB Disk-On-Module (DOM) that can be plugged into the machine's internal USB DOM port. The machine is then set to boot from that port, with initial setup allowing for the setting of basic network configurations and continued management facilitated through an SSL-protected browser-based interface. (A Lite version of the product can be downloaded and installed either on a user-supplied USB DOM, or a USB pen drive; which would then be plugged into the target PC for booting.) Though primary management of the appliance is through the browser-based interface, a Console Tool is also provided for the performance of certain high-level administrative tasks such as removing a volume, repairing the file system, installing drivers, etc. This Console Tool can also be accessed from a remote location.

The appliance communicates with the network via the NIC(s) of the PC, with standard features including DHCP client support, support for multiple NICs (for accessing differing sub-nets or for NIC failover), 10 Gb Ethernet support, InfiniBand support, and IPsec communications support. Storage wise, the appliance supports internal drives (SAS, SCSI, SATA, IDE), FC HBAs, or hardware RAID controllers, including those from Dell, Intel, LSI Logic, Promise, and more. Software RAID is provided at levels 0, 1, 5, and 6.

As a NAS appliance, DSS boasts a journaled file system accessible via CIFS/SMB, NFS, FTP/Secure FTP, and Apple Talk. Network integration features include Active Directory, PDC, and LDAP, and enable the setting and enforcement of ACLs and quota controls based on user/group settings. iSCSI specific features, on the other hand, include support for CHAP designations per target, multi-path support, and volume replication.

Other features of DSS include support for anti-virus scanning (periodic, or online as files are transferred via SMB or FTP); support for backup platforms via backup agents for Veritas, EMC Dantz, and CA BrightStor; support for read-only LUNs; Snapshot support with scheduling; support for automated monitoring with E-mail alerts; support for NDMP communications; support for WORM designations; automatic failover between storage servers; and multiple language packs (English, German, Russian and Japanese).

DSS is available now. The full version of the product is priced starting at $895 for 4 TB of available storage (additional storage licenses can be purchased separately as upgrades). Also available from the vendor are DSS Lite, a free, feature-limited downloadable version of the software limited to 1 TB of available disk space; and iSCSI only/NAS only versions. Among the features not available on DSS Lite are upgrade support, WORM and NDMP support, Infiniband support, hardware RAID support, and support for backup agents.

Visit the Open-E Web site for further information.