SNIA Releases Its First Software with XAM Software Development Kit

XAM Specification Version 1.0 Receives SNIA Vote Approval;
On-Track for ANSI Standards Submission
SAN JOSE, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) announced today
at the SNIA 2008 Summer Symposium that it has approved the eXtensible
Access Method (XAM) version 1.0 specification and released a working
draft of the associated XAM Software Development Kit (SDK). The XAM
specification is now being prepared for ANSI and ISO accreditation and
is expected to be integrated into storage products by Fall 2008 and
into applications by early 2009.

The July working draft of the XAM SDK is available for download
today and will provide Independent Software Vendors (ISVs), storage
vendors and operating system vendors a preliminary version of the
tools they need to develop and test the latest XAM specification. The
initial release of the XAM SDK will include a C XAM Library with a
Java Native Interface (JNI) Wrapper; a Java version of the XAM
Library; a Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) VIM and a Reference
Vendor Interface Module (VIM). The latest version of the XAM SDK can
be accessed here at www.snia.org/xam/software.

"The availability of a preliminary version of the SNIA's first
software suite, the XAM SDK, marks a significant step forward for both
the association and the XAM specification in helping to resolve the
barriers associated with accessing data 5 minutes, 50 years or 100
years from now," said Vincent Franceschini, Chair of the SNIA. "With
reference data expected to account for more than half of all corporate
data in the next few years, the XAM specification will help fulfill
the market needs for a standard that enables information independence
for applications and storage needed for long-term digital information
retention requirements."

The XAM Initiative and associated specification development
efforts continue to progress and build momentum. More than 45
participants, which include storage vendors, application developers
and academia, are participating in the initiative and its two
associated Technical Work Groups. The XAM Initiative is also holding a
"plugfest" at the SNIA Technology Center the week of August 18th for
vendors and ISV's interested in testing their integration with the
multiple platforms available at the center. In addition, the first
Hands-On-Lab for Developers will be held during SNIA's Storage
Developers Conference in September. In support of the community of XAM
developers, the association has also created a new publicly available
XAM Developers Group community site aimed at sharing best practices,
expert advice, first-hand experiences and links to critical XAM
resources.

"Our aim is to create both a specification and an SDK that can
ease deployment for vendors and provide a simplified and valuable
asset to end users," added Mark Carlson, co-chair of the SNIA XAM SDK
Technical Work Group. "The approval of the XAM specification, delivery
of this working draft of the XAM SDK, and formation of the open XAM
Developers Group mark significant milestones for SNIA, end users and
storage vendors. Together these achievements provide the tools,
resources and capabilities needed for the industry to come together,
accelerate the adoption of the specification and ultimately realize
the value of the eventual implementation of XAM in products."

The discussion surrounding XAM development continues at the 2008
SNIA Summer Symposium, taking place through July 24, as several
sessions focus on refining the XAM SDK and the XAM specification. For
an overview of the Symposium's agenda, please visit
http://www.snia.org/events/summersymposium. For more information on
the XAM Initiative, specification and SDK, please visit
www.snia.org/xam or sign up for the XAM Developers Group at
groups.google.com/group/xam-developers-group.

About the SNIA

The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) is a
not-for-profit global organization, made up of some 400 member
companies and 7,000 individuals spanning virtually the entire storage
industry. SNIA's mission is to lead the storage industry worldwide in
developing and promoting standards, technologies, and educational
services to empower organizations in the management of information. To
this end, the SNIA is uniquely committed to delivering standards,
education, and services that will propel open storage networking
solutions into the broader market. For additional information, visit
the SNIA Web site at www.snia.org.

Ogilvy Public Relations for the SNIA
Dan La Russo, 303-634-2632
Cell: 720-840-8254
dan.larusso@ogilvypr.com

Copyright Business Wire 2008