Deni Connor

As battered Novell Inc. preps to report quarterly earnings this week, there is mounting evidence that a key component of the company's recovery blueprint

Users will be able to more quickly integrate and expand network-attached storage (NAS) with a high-end, embedded Linux appliance that VA Linux Systems Inc. introduced last month.

Storage utility company PowerQuest Corp. this month is expected to launch software for midsize Windows NT companies that helps network professionals monitor, manage and reconfigure storage resources.

Start-up FalconStor Inc. last month launched software for integrating disparate storage resources over Ethernet, an offering designed to protect customers' investments in IP and older storage gear.

Open source databases may not yet be armor-clad enough for use as back-end corporate data stores, but observers say those displayed at the LinuxWorld Conference & Expo last month are on the right track. At the very least, analysts say, these databases are becoming viable foundations for Web and application servers.

Sun Microsystems Inc. this week announced an update to the Solaris operating system that the company claims will increase network performance and eliminate bottlenecks.

The newest Linux kernel has a bundle of features that should make it more attractive to companies and better able to compete with the likes of Windows NT and Unix, say those who helped write and test the open source software.

Start-up Cereva Networks Inc. is planning to introduce a storage subsystem early this year that exceeds the scalability and performance of storage and network infrastructure devices now used by ISPs, application service providers and storage service providers to deliver rich media content more quickly to customers.