Hi,

we are possibly looking to replace a Windows NAS server (vendor shall
remain nameless for now), with an HP NAS box.

On our current boxes, whenever there is a major code update the
operation involves reimaging (effectively ghosting) the server from
CD. - Any data on the box is wiped. - This is hardly an easy task, as
all the data (400GB) needs to be backed up, and restored, and
permissions recreated.
- this is hardly the switch off and forget about idea of an appliance.

Does anyone have any experience with the HP Windows based NAS
products. To keep the software up to date, do you need to reimage the
box, or is there a more sensible approach??

As we are only serving Windows clients, am I better off just buying a
server and disk array, and just installing off the shelf Windows?

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]

google@chris-howard.fsnet.co.uk (Chris Howard) wrote in
news:4287fb4c.0407210806.34533c1@posting.google.com:

> we are possibly looking to replace a Windows NAS server (vendor shall
> remain nameless for now), with an HP NAS box.

Haven't tried it, can't tell you about it.

> On our current boxes, whenever there is a major code update the
> operation involves reimaging (effectively ghosting) the server from
> CD. - Any data on the box is wiped. - This is hardly an easy task, as
> all the data (400GB) needs to be backed up, and restored, and
> permissions recreated.
> - this is hardly the switch off and forget about idea of an appliance.

Actually, it sounds like you *should* switch off and forget about that
appliance ;)

> Does anyone have any experience with the HP Windows based NAS
> products. To keep the software up to date, do you need to reimage the
> box, or is there a more sensible approach??

I hope that's something specific to that one product. Every solution i've
seen so far can do software upgrades without deleting the data.

> As we are only serving Windows clients, am I better off just buying a
> server and disk array, and just installing off the shelf Windows?

If the HP system doesn't fit your needs, there are several others that work
just fine. Netapp makes some excellent products and i hate the EMC Celerra
slightly less now than i did when i first started using it...



--
/Jesper Monsted

[ Post a follow-up to this message ]