The idea of a network being down is simply unacceptable nowadays in many organizations, so keeping everything redundant so we don't lose data and using hot-swappable components to avoid down time is a must for many companies. NEC just let us know about three new additions to its series of fault-tolerant servers that are another attempt to keep everything on-line. The first is the NEC ft Disk Expansion Unit (ft DEU), which provides external storage capacity for Intel-based Windows 2000 fault-tolerant server platform. Then, we have the NEC Express5800/320La (2-way) and Express5800/320Lr (8U, 2-way) servers. These two new, 2-way servers are the second and third fault tolerant servers announced by NEC. The NEC Express5800/320La 1-way fault tolerant server was introduced back in September.

The NEC ft DEU is an external, rack-mounted storage device capable of adding from 18 to 468 gigabytes of storage for NEC Computers' fault tolerant servers. Holding up to thirteen hot-swap hard drives, the ft Disk Expansion Unit is available with 18- or 36-gigabyte interchangeable drives. Managed by VERITAS Volume Manager software, hard disks can be inserted into the RAID without interrupting service. The VERITAS external storage management software mirrors hard disk drives while data is being transferred from the processors. If a drive is removed for any reason and replaced with a new drive, data on the new drive will be mirrored from its redundant twin drive. The 19 inch rack-mount unit (3U each, requires 6U total space to house redundant storage drives) is priced at U.S. $11,999, Canada $18,238.

The NEC Express5800/320La (2-way) and Express5800/320Lr (2-way, rack mount) operate a set of redundant subsystems for data integrity in the event of a hardware failure. Both servers are available for order immediately in Canada and the US. The NEC Express5800/320La (2-way) pedestal server will list for U.S. $24,653, Canada $37,473, when configured with 512MB RAM, 18GB HDD, and pre-loaded with Windows 2000 Advanced Server OS. A similarly configured rack mount (8U) NEC Express5800/320Lr (2-way) server will go for an additional U.S. $400, Canada $608. Stack `em up, keep `em running.