HP upgrades Unix platform with data protection

HP this week unveiled updates to its HP-UX Unix OS and Serviceguard high-availability software, offering capabilities in data protection, data privacy, and business continuity.

Update 5 of HP-UX 11i v3 and Serviceguard restore application services in the event of hardware or software failure, HP said. The software packages run on HP Integrity and HP 900 servers.

The Unix upgrade offers automated features to reduce maintenance requirements, improve availability, and enhance security, the company said. Users can lower operational costs and increase efficiency in such demanding applications as online transaction processing or business intelligence, according to HP.

“Comprehensive” data protection is provided through encryption for data in transit and at rest, HP said. Enhanced data privacy is provided through Bastille, an automated system-hardening tool that configures a system to protect against unauthorized access.

Update 5 provides as much as 99 percent of raw disk performance, enabling reduction in operational costs for large databases and accelerated access to business-critical information. Administrator productivity is improved with expanded security bulletin analysis and patch maintenance. Security issues are identified for as many as 100 systems in a single view when integrated with HP System Insight Manager.

Business continuity is improved through minimization of downtime in the OS’s Logical Volume Manager.

Simplified standards compliance is offered through PCI (Payment Card Industry) and Sarbanes-Oxley Act report templates

HP Serviceguard, which is part of the HP Virtual Server Environment software suite, is integrated with HP-UX 11i to protect applications from down time, HP said. Business connectivity is enabled during Serviceguard upgrades through a Dynamic Root Disk tool that reduces server network down time by 75 percent, the company said.

Another improvement is elimination of business interruptions with Online Package Maintenance capabilities that run routine maintenance and upgrades while the system is active. Management of server connections is improved with a graphical cluster topology map for administration and configuration. Also, traffic is coordinated between clustered servers and storage arrays.