Architectural simplicity is inherent in the NetApp approach to storage and the leading reason for the rapid customer adoption of standards-based NetApp SnapLock compliance software. SnapLock software is unique because it is the only solution available today that does not require customers to deploy a separate storage silo that is dedicated to storage compliance needs. The benefit to customers is a highly cost-effective and flexible solution for customers' sophisticated storage compliance needs that both minimizes risk and protects their business. The NetApp approach seamlessly fits into a customer's existing storage infrastructure, works across storage tiers, optimizes storage utilization, and provides seamless integration with archiving applications.

SnapLock software is complemented by a comprehensive suite of integrated NetApp products, helping customers expand storage capacity on a common NetApp platform and deploy increasing compliance functionality in enterprise data centers and remote offices for growing and changing compliance regulations. Additionally, Decru DataFort™ appliances for "military-grade" encryption and NetApp Information Server 1200 (IS1200) appliances for data visibility and classification provide customers with the option of a holistic and long-term solution that addresses several of the critical "layers" of a compliance system.

"The rapid adoption and growth of data retention for compliance needs are incredible," said John McKnight, research director at Enterprise Strategy Group. "Our most recent research found that 91% of large enterprises have been asked by courts or regulators to produce e-mail messages as part of a legal proceeding or regulatory inquiry, and 56% of these same organizations have been asked to produce corporate financial statements. With organizations retaining more types of records for a longer period of time to comply with these increasingly common requests, customers require a scalable, standards-based architecture for enabling long-term data access and avoiding vendor lock-in years from now."

A sampling of enterprises currently entrusting their data to NetApp compliance storage solutions include Bronson Healthcare Group, a U.S.-based and community-owned not-for-profit healthcare system; TNO Science and Industry, a Netherlands-based knowledge organization for government bodies, companies, and public organizations; and Russell Investment Group, a U.S.-based global leader in multimanager investing, providing investment products and services in 44 countries.

TNO uses NetApp LockVault™ software, which integrates NetApp SnapLock and NetApp SnapVault® technologies, to create the only solution designed to address regulatory compliance requirements for unstructured data such as spreadsheets, presentations, files created by in-house applications, and other data normally stored in a file system.

"This May, TNO kicked off a massive archiving project for our postal mail that will store and protect all our mail in a NetApp LockVault storage environment, providing us with a unified compliance, backup, and disaster recovery solution," said Lex Beijk, ICT and IS manager at TNO Science and Industry. "Our goal is to leverage the efficiencies and reliability of a disk-based compliance storage solution while minimizing both the expense and amount of physical resources required managing and storing a paper-based archive."

NetApp SnapLock software is supported today by leading application partners including AXS-One, Bus-Tech, CommVault Systems, CA, EMC (Legato), Enigma Data Systems, FileNet, FileTek, Global 360, IBM, Messaging Architects, Mobius, Network Intelligence, Open Text, Oracle, Overtone, Inc., Phoenix Systems Integration, Princeton Softech, Stellent, Symantec, Vignette, and ZANTAZ.