Microsoft has acquired StorSimple, a cloud storage company.
In a press release, Microsoft said it had “reached a definitive agreement to acquire StorSimple, a leader in Cloud-integrated Storage (CiS) solutions. The addition of CiS will advance Microsoft’s Cloud OS vision and help customers more efficiently embrace hybrid cloud computing.”
StorSimple, in an announcement, said, “StorSimple has defined the frontier on how cloud can empower enterprise IT. We have done so by pioneering the integration of on-premises and cloud storage in a single solution that delivers the functions of primary storage, backup, archival and disaster recovery with automated data management. We are excited at the opportunity to continue our work with Microsoft to bring this innovation to their Cloud OS vision.
“Looking back over the last three and half years, after long nights and days of innovation, and early customer deployments followed by mainstream enterprise adoption, it became clear that the combination of StorSimple and Windows Azure delivers a best in class cloud-integrated storage solution that enables customers to use public cloud services as a seamless extension of their IT infrastructure. The result is that a wide range of customers from non-profit organisations to Fortune 500 companies and government agencies have adopted this solution at an amazing rate.”
In a Windows Azure blog post, Michael Park, Corporate Vice-President, Server and Tools Division, Microsoft, said, “StorSimple’s approach of seamless integration of on-premises storage with cloud storage is clearly aligned with our Cloud OS vision. Their innovative solutions enable IT organisations reduce the cost of storing data for backup, DR and archival and ensure fast recovery through a single console.”
Michael Park said there were a number of “robust storage options already available that integrate with Windows Server 2012 and Windows Azure and we will continue to work with our broad ecosystem of partners to deliver a variety of innovative storage solutions – both on-premises and cloud integrated.”
The Register said StorSimple had “a deal with Microsoft's Azure, but also with Amazon's S3 cloud storage, HP Cloud Services, AT&T Synaptic, Google, Rackspace, and EMC Atmos cloud systems. While customers aren't going to be left in the lurch, they should expect to be encouraged to move to Microsoft.”