A sample of SAN businesses was drawn for the survey from CMP Media's InformationWeek circulation base. The main goals of this research project were to study the SAN market to define adoption patterns, market drivers, key product requirements, acquisition strategies and ROI expectations. Nearly all of those planning to deploy SANs are targeting launch dates between May and November 2000. Disaster recovery is the primary reason why businesses currently use SANs, rating 5.0 on a 5-point scale where 5 means very important. Consolidation of storage is the key driver for businesses that are planning to use SANs, scoring 5.0.
Manufacturing is the leading vertical market for SANs, followed by government.
Windows NT is the leading platform for SANs. Cost and interoperability are the two most significant potential barriers to adopting SAN solutions. Performance is the single most influential product requirement when companies buy SANs. Information on software or platform interoperability is the most important type of data considered when companies buy SANs. The median expected return on SAN is 33 percent.