Dot Hill Innovation Protects Data from Shock and Vibration

LONGMONT, Colo., April 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Dot Hill Systems Corp. (Nasdaq: HILL), a leading provider of SAN storage solutions, today furthered its reputation in the ruggedized storage space by announcing two new patents that address the concept of "ruggedization" inside the storage system to safeguard the performance and security of data – even under extreme conditions such as earthquakes.

The company's newest additions to its extensive patent portfolio describe technology that provides greater data reliability and protection from vibration and shock resulting from earthquakes and other environmental events. This technology is the latest developments in Dot Hill's efforts to enable greater levels of data protection for its highly reliable AssuredSAN™ storage line, which already delivers over 99.999 percent availability.

Dot Hill's 81st and 82nd U.S. patents, Numbers 8,132,196 and 8,159,779, apply to designs to prevent shocks and vibrations from affecting access to data. When a sensor detects a shock or vibration event, the controller alters an operation involving a storage device. The altered operation includes instructing a host computer to delay sending data to the storage system or to re-route data to a different storage device. 

The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that several million earthquakes occur in the world eafch year. Shaking to storage systems causes data corruption and in some cases total data loss. Spinning hard drives – when suddenly jolted to a stop – can cause damage.

"Following a natural disaster such as an earthquake, it's not uncommon for businesses to experience the pain of data loss," states Jim Kuenzel, senior vice president of engineering, Dot Hill Systems. "For some this will be a mere inconvenience, but for others it will be a financial catastrophe," he continued.

According to the National Archives & Records Administration in Washington, 93% of companies that lost their data center for 10 days or more due to a disaster later filed for bankruptcy within one year of the disaster. A frequently cited study in Contingency Planning and Management magazine found that 40 percent of companies that shut down for three days failed within 36 months. While it varies according to industry segment, it is estimated that every hour of computer downtime can cost businesses thousands, and even millions of dollars.

"For decades, Dot Hill has been a leader in ruggedized storage which offers optimum performance in truly mission-critical environments, and we continue to build-in innovations to deliver ultimate uptime and reliability. The newest Dot Hill patents describe technology that goes farther in providing reliable access to data in the event of an earthquake or other source of unforeseen disruptions. Customers have come to rely on Dot Hill AssuredSAN storage solutions, which have demonstrated 99.999 percent availability," said Kuenzel.

About Dot Hill
Leveraging its proprietary Assured family of storage solutions, Dot Hill solves many of today's most challenging storage problems – helping IT to improve performance, increase availability, simplify operations, and reduce costs. Dot Hill's solutions combine breakthrough software with the industry's most flexible and extensive hardware platform and automated management to deliver best-in-class solutions. Headquartered in Longmont, Colo., Dot Hill has offices and/or representatives in China, Germany, India, Japan, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

For more information, visit us at www.dothill.com.

HILL-G

Certain statements contained in this press release regarding matters that are not historical fact are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Because such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by the statements. Forward-looking statements include the availability and performance of current or future Dot Hill product features based on the patented technology described in this press release, any competitive advantage that the patents and technology provide to Dot Hill, any positive effect on Dot Hill's financial results due to the patents, and Dot Hill's ability to continue to receive patent protection on current or future technology. DOT HILL DOES NOT WARRANT THAT ITS PRODUCTS WILL REMAIN OPERATIONAL AND DEFECT-FREE IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES, NOR DOES DOT HILL WARRANT THAT CUSTOMERS WILL NOT EXPERIENCE DATA LOSS OR DATA CORRUPTION.  The risks that contribute to the uncertain nature of the forward-looking statements include: any unforeseen technological, intellectual property, supply or engineering issues, and changing customer preferences. However, there are many other risks not listed here that may affect the future business of Dot Hill, as well as the forward-looking statements contained herein. To learn about such risks and uncertainties, you should read the risk factors set forth in Dot Hill's public filings with the SEC, including the Forms 8-K, 10-K and 10-Q most recently filed by Dot Hill. All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as the date on which they were made. Dot Hill undertakes no obligation to update such statements to reflect later events or circumstances.

Contact:
Steve Sturgeon
Lutz PR
858-472-5669 
[email protected]

Company Contact:
Ruth Macdonald
Marketing Communications Manager
303-845-3364
[email protected]

SOURCE Dot Hill Systems Corp.