Cisco Systems moved further into the file virtualization arena when it announced a definitive agreement to purchase privately held NeoPath Networks, a network storage and virtualization firm. NeoPath's patented SMART virtualization technology and its File Director family of products simplify the management of network attached storage (NAS) and other file servers. Cisco has been aggressively moving into the stora Cisco Systems moved further into the file virtualization arena when it announced a definitive agreement to purchase privately held NeoPath Networks, a network storage and virtualization firm. NeoPath’s patented SMART virtualization technology and its File Director family of products simplify the management of network attached storage (NAS) and other file servers.Cisco has been aggressively moving into the storage networking space since it acquired Fibre channel switch maker Andiamo back in 2002. Cisco is not alone in this endeavor. Rival Brocade recently acquired NuView, and EMC recently purchased Rainfinity. The more Cisco plays in this space, the more the rumor mill will continue to charge that Cisco may yet acquire one of the many NAS vendors such as NetApp or ONStor.In a recent statement, Jayshree Ullal, Senior Vice President of Cisco’s Datacenter Switching and Security Technology Group (DSSTG), said, “Enterprise customers are asking Cisco how they can make better use of their existing IT infrastructure, and NeoPath is part of the answer. “NeoPath’s technology will enhance Cisco’s Services Oriented Network Architecture (SONA) direction and vision by establishing tighter linkages between file based data and network accelerated services.” Cisco expects that the deal will close in the current quarter, which ends April 28. However, terms of the deal were not disclosed. Software Development