Imation and Hi-Stor Technologies Announce Global Business Development Agreement

OAKDALE, Minn. and TOULOUSE, France, Jan. 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Imation Corp , a worldwide leader in removable data storage, and Hi-Stor Technologies, a leading storage system consulting and software development company, today jointly announced the establishment of a strategic business development initiative to provide a robust storage device monitoring solution to improve the effectiveness of customers' tape-based storage operations. Under the agreement, Imation and Hi-Stor will work together to deploy Hi-Stor's StorSentry(TM) data integrity protection software to end-user customers, leveraging Imation's extensive end-user customer relationships. Imation will also identify and qualify channel partners to sell and market this solution in all geographies of the world.

StorSentry is an innovative software solution for tape libraries that monitors real-time tape drive and media performance throughout the backup or archive cycle, providing businesses with the confidence that critical data has been successfully saved and is fully recoverable. As the most robust real-time offering of its kind, StorSentry continuously monitors the performance of a wide range of tape drives and media to analyze and manage your storage environment, predict and prevent storage failures, and increase the ROI of storage assets. Centralized administration through an intuitive user interface also ensures that limited management resources will be needed.

Many large enterprises have already adopted the solution in Europe, where StorSentry was first available, including the Bosch Group in France. "Running StorSentry in the tape automation infrastructure has provided Bosch a whole new insight into the performance monitoring of their tape infrastructure, said Dominique Bire, IT manager at the Bosch Group, a leading global manufacturer of automotive and industrial technology. "Such in-depth visibility is key to optimize our backup window but also allow us to identify proactively some potential issues on drive and media, reducing data loss risks."

"Imation is very pleased to be working with Hi-Stor Technologies to bring the StorSentry offering to our data center customers worldwide," said James Ellis, vice president, Strategic Growth Programs, Imation. "For more than fifty years, businesses have trusted Imation to help them protect their most critical data assets. With StorSentry, our customers can now access the most powerful real-time monitoring tool available and ensure that their company's data integrity is uncompromised. With access to an historical database of drive and media performance, StorSentry software is able to give recommendations on selective migration of data, recycling of defective media, and cleaning or preventive maintenance of library drives."

"Hi-Stor has developed a unique solution for the protection of data with its innovative StorSentry solution. We are very pleased with the partnership with Imation, whose customers worldwide will benefit from this unique monitoring software. Businesses who rely on tape libraries for their backup and archiving can have peace of mind with StorSentry's comprehensive data integrity protection," said Fabrice Aftis, vice president of Sales and Marketing, Hi-Stor Technologies.

StorSentry provides: -- Continuous Performance Monitoring -- helps you anticipate and react to potential equipment failure and performance degradation of tape drives and media, including Ultrium(TM) LTO 1, 2, and 3; SuperDLTtape(TM) 220, 320, and 600; DLTtape(TM) 4000, 7000, 8000; Sun StorageTek 9840, 9940, and T10000; and IBM 3590 and 3592. -- Powerful Diagnostic Analysis -- proprietary StorSentry algorithms that analyze data and separate drive versus media problems. -- Non-Intrusive Integration -- easily implementable with all major backup, archiving and migration applications, including IBM Tivoli Storage Manager; Veritas NetBackup and Symantec Backup Exec; Legato Networker; BakBone NetVault; Atempo Time Navigator; and HP Data Protector. Supports the following operating systems: Windows 2000, 2003, and NT; Sun Solaris; HP-UX, AIX, and Linux. -- Centralized Administration -- intuitive user interface allows administration of tape library systems in a heterogeneous LAN, SAN, or DAS environment.

"Until now, companies have been getting only half the information they need to identify and address problems with their backups," said Jon Toigo, managing principal of Toigo Partners International and widely read author and columnist on storage and data protection. "Administrators have been seeing the backup process from the perspective of the backup server, and not from the point of view of the tape device itself. StorSentry provides this additional view that, when combined with backup log analysis, can help businesses fix their backup problems."

"StorSentry is a unique approach for monitoring the performance and quality of tape components and backup operations that I would recommend to anyone who uses tape for data protection. It could help drive even more costs out of tape operations and set the stage for automating infrastructure fault prediction and establishing the means for self-correction," according to Toigo.

The StorSentry solution is available worldwide through local Imation representatives. In the U.S., it is available through Imation's Solutions and Services at 877-528-0380. For more information on the StorSentry solution, visit http://www.imation.com/ .

About Hi-Stor Technologies Inc.

For 10 years, Hi-Stor Technologies has developed its expertise in technologies for data storage environments with the key storage industry players and world class enterprises in Europe, US and Japan. Hi-Stor Technologies provides innovative software solutions for information integrity and active archiving, which allow companies to preserve their critical information. With StorSentry(TM) and StorBee(TM), Hi-Stor Technologies proposes an unique offer on the storage international market. Additional information about Hi-Stor Technologies is available at http://www.hi-stor.com/ or by calling +33 1 3009 8484.

About Imation Corp

Imation Corp is the only company in the world solely focused on the development, manufacture and supply of removable data storage products spanning the four pillars of magnetic, optical, flash and removable hard disk storage. With more than 50 years of data storage leadership beginning with the development of the world's first computer tape, in 2006 Imation proudly marked its tenth anniversary as an independent company. In addition to the Imation brand, Imation Corp's global brand portfolio includes the Memorex brand, one of the most widely recognized names in the consumer electronics industry, famous for the slogan, "Is it live or is it Memorex?(TM)" Additional information about Imation is available at http://www.imation.com/ or by calling 1-888-466-3456.

Imation, the Imation logo, Memorex, the Memorex logo, and 'Is it live or is it Memorex?' are trademarks of Imation Corp and its subsidiaries. StorSentry is a

registered trademark of Hi-Stor technologies. All other trademarks are

property of their respective owners.