Everybody wants to go to heaven someday, but nobody seems to want to go now. Why so? Perhaps it's mere uncertainty. If we substitute the cloud for "heaven," the same seems to be true today. That is why it is so important for vendors to create products and services that can actually get clients to the cloud today while still keeping their feet on the ground. With that in mind, CommVault's ability to effectively extend its data management platform into the cloud provides a positive illustration that the cloud can provide real value today and not just someday. Such examples are important so that the cloud is not just dismissed as hype.
CommVault is a profitable, publicly traded, worldwide software company
with annual revenues in the $250 million range, all accomplishments for
which a single product platform company can be proud. Now that it seems
to have navigated through the hazardous economic shoals of over a year
respectively, CommVault, along with numerous other companies, are
seeking new business opportunities.
A recent CommVault survey on the cloud revealed the challenge facing vendors. Only five percent of the respondents said that they currently utilize at least some cloud storage today, and only six percent more plan to do so in the next 12 months. Another 41 percent professed consideration of the use of cloud services in the future although they are not sure when. For them, "cloud heaven" is still not now. And a near majority - 48 percent - still does not plan the use of cloud services at all. So in order to help those who expressed an interest get to the cloud sooner than later, vendors are making their products and services available within the cloud. And CommVault is no exception.
CommVault sells a data management software product called Simpana 8. Data management controls broad processes related to data, from creation to deletion, such as replication and backup/restore. One of Simpana's recognized strengths is in data recovery management, including backup and recovery capabilities. But data management is a much broader topic than just those processes, and Simpana also provides tools for active archiving, replication, storage resource management and search. Customers can start with one or more Simpana capabilities and add more over time should they wish.
All of Simpana capabilities are available on a common CommVault platform. The company has been able to take advantage of the fact that its basic code base was developed later than some of its competitors when more advanced software development technology was available. That newer technology means that CommVault may be able to provide extensions and additions to its core base more quickly than some of its competitors. The latest version of CommVault Simpana 8 offers a native cloud storage connector: a Web services interface that already supports storage as a service to cloud providers, including Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure and Nirvanix SDN now, as well as EMC Atmos and Iron Mountain soon. These cloud providers offer a multi-tenant architecture that delivers self-service and pay-as-you-go over the Internet services where the customer rents storage to deposit and retain data.
