Want to centralize your storage, but afraid of how it will affect your WAN? It's possible, according to Riverbed. We know why you've been reluctant - greater bandwidth consumption, longer backup/restore windows, etc. But Riverbed contends that the benefits of centralized storage - less hardware needed, reduced administration time, and no security problems associated with loose tape media - make the move worthwhile. As the company says in its December 2006 white paper: "With the right wide-area data services (WDS) technology, a more scalable and secure data protection model can be implemented without the expense of an expanded WAN."

Go to the Ziff Davis web site to read the Riverbed white paper.