Francis Chu

Sun Microsystems Inc.s latest midrange Solaris server, the Sun Fire V440 server, is versatile and manageable. However, its lack of RAID options and PCI-X support might deter prospective customers. The Sun Fire V440 shipped earlier this month at a competitive starting price of less than $10,000 for a two-way system. The entry-level four-way system starts […]

With the recent announcements of Sun Java Enterprise System (formerly called Project Orion) and Java Desktop System (formerly called Mad Hatter), Sun Microsystems Inc. has significantly consolidated its software strategies. These software strategies are tied closely to Sun ONE and the Solaris/SPARC server platform. Sun is targeting Java Enterprise System at enterprise customers, aiming to […]

New chip technologies from Airgo Networks Inc. and Atheros Communications Inc. aim to break the current throughput and transmission distance barriers in WLANs. Based on our work with prior wireless LAN chip technology, eWEEK Labs expects these chips to add significant cost to the first round of WLAN vendors devices, but prices should drop on […]

Microsoft Corp.s newest addition to the Windows Server 2003 platform, Automated Deployment Services 1.0, makes it easier to automate the provisioning and deployment of large Windows server farms. In eWEEK Labs tests, ADS 1.0 was easy to set up and provided helpful automation tools for deploying Windows 2003 or 2000 server images to bare-metal systems. […]

Im glad Ive been testing Zone Labs ZoneAlarm Version 4.0 desktop firewall on my PC at home. This update, released in June, is a good desktop firewall application choice for Windows desktop users. The basic ZoneAlarm edition provides rudimentary packet-filtering firewall functions and can be downloaded for free from the companys Web site. In Version […]

Kano Technologies Corp.s SureVault 800 external hard drive unit provides robust storage capacity with the latest FireWire 800 technology and enhanced data protection with built-in RAID 5 support. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY SureVault 800 The entry-level SureVault 800 provides high data throughput rates and strong data protection with hardware RAID 5 built in. The system is plug […]

Aruba Wireless Networks Inc.s Aruba 5000 WLAN switch and Aruba 52 Access Points are good choices for companies deploying large-scale Wi-Fi networks, enabling businesses to meet performance demands while easing day-to-day management chores and keeping a close eye on security. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Aruba 5000 WLAN Switching System Aside from some complexity and Web interface usability […]

The recent outbreak of viruses targeting Windows systems has caused more headaches for beleaguered corporate IT staffs. For Windows users, the virus onslaught drives home the point that installing a desktop firewall such as BlackIce to protect against hackers and worms isnt a frivolous pursuit; its a necessity. Internet Security Systems recently released an update […]

Dell Inc.s PowerVault 725N NAS Server offers massive storage capacity in a compact form factor with a hard-to-beat price. Combining the performance of hardware RAID and Microsoft Corp.s Server Appliance Kit, the 725N provides affordable storage for small and midsize workgroup environments. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PowerVault 725N Dells entry-level PowerVault 725N harnesses hardware RAID to offer […]

RLX Technologies Inc.s System 600ex chassis, ServerBlade 2800i blades and Control Tower XT blade provide a robust, easy-to-manage blade server platform thats best suited to midtier applications. eWEEK Labs tests of a configuration including the RLX System 600ex chassis, four ServerBlade 2800i blades and the Control Tower XT blade showed RLXs latest platform offers impressive […]