Top Storage Products of 2007

There are lots of reasons to take stock during the holidays, not the least of which is to plan for the new year. In this month of "budget flushing," we at Byte and Switch think it's time to look back at the products we've covered in 2007 that have had -- or could have -- the biggest impact on our readers.

Any list like this is highly subjective, and we're pretty sure we'll generate some controversy with the picks that follow. But in our view, the products we've chosen to profile deserve to be thought of as "disruptive" to the status quo.

Our listees have three things in common: First, they were introduced in 2007, even if they're not yet shipping; second, they're concrete entities, not architectures or strategies like data center automation or FCoE; and third, each item has changed or has the potential to change the everyday lives of storage managers.

Our list is presented in alphabetical order by vendor name. In the two instances where we've opted to allocate one spot to two vendors at once, the listing of one's name first is strictly arbitrary.

Please note: We haven't picked a magic number like 10. We can't even pretend to be comprehensive. Instead, we've opted for a sampling of what we think are leading product offerings. We know that some of you would make this list longer or shorter, and we welcome your views.