Expand file servers on the fly

Every time you need to expand the storage capacity of one of your file servers (Windows or Mac OS), you need to choose between creating an additional volume and exposing your users to a new share (mount point) or spend countless hours backing up, reformatting and restoring all files onto a single larger volume so your users can continue to access a single mount point. Learn how Tiger Technology poolIt can help you expand your file servers’ capacity on the fly and without disrupting users.

Just “pool it”

poolIt is a new and affordable software tool that lets you pool multiple disks into a single namespace. Simply connect new drives (or RAID) to your file server and format them using standard disk utilities. But instead of creating a new share, simply "pool" this new volume with your original one. Within seconds, all the additional free space becomes available to your users. There is no need to reboot your server or disrupt LAN clients. When accessing the pool, users are presented with a “logical merge” of all the volumes it contains (aka pool members). This means that files stored on two different volumes having an identical folder structure will appear to the users as if they were stored in one and the same place.

Non-destructive, fast and safe for your data

Add or remove physical volumes (which can contain live data) to/from the pool at any time to grow or shrink the total pool size. Add a drive to the pool, and all the files and free space it contains become part of the available space on the pool. poolIt Server won’t move files unless you instruct it to do so. Detach a drive and all the files (and free space it contains) disappear from the pool. Nothing ever gets lost. Your files are still on the drive. To ensure total data integrity, all file operations are carried through the operating system. In addition, there is no visible performance impact.

No more broken links

poolIt Server offers all the tools you need to explore your storage pool’s content. You can schedule or manually migrate files from one pool member to another. These migrations do not affect users or applications, as file paths and links remain intact. This lets you easily manage individual file location and consolidate content prior to releasing a pool member so it can be decommissioned or reused somewhere else in the facility.

Each file in its place

When writing new files to the pool, simple policies are used to decide where they will get stored. By default, poolIt Server writes new files to the top priority pool member until it gets near-full, at which point it starts writing to the next pool member, and so on. But poolIt Server also lets you better match the type of storage with the value of your data. Policies, such as “File-type”, can be used to discriminate target destination based on file type. For instance, it might be a good idea to store important documents on a fast and secure RAID that gets backed up daily while storing iTunes media and web downloads to a slower drive that only gets backed up weekly.

Affordable and easy to use

Managing storage infrastructures and keeping up with constant data growth requires lots of time and energy. With its patent pending technology, poolIt is the first virtualization software tool designed to work with existing storage infrastructures and file systems.

With poolIt Server you can:

Combine multiple volumes into a single pool
Easily expand capacity of your existing volumes
Migrate data from one storage device to another transparently
Implement tiered storage for better matching the type of data with the available resources
Make use of all the available space distributed across your multiple volumes
Keep recently used files locally but transfer aging files on remote servers
Create very large volumes safely and easily
Easily move and repurpose storage resources within your facility

Experience poolIt today!

Evaluating poolIt Server is safe and easy. Just load the software on your computer, activate your trial license and start pooling your existing volumes!