HP has announced several new converged solutions, including the HP E5000 Messaging System for Microsoft Exchange Server 2010, and new SAN and backup solutions. HP also announced the integration of 3PAR Utility Storage across the HP Converged Infrastructure portfolio, in a move that will also have channel implications by broadening out the 3PAR technology.

“What all these announcements have in common is simplifying IT,” said Lee Johns, director of marketing for next-generation storage in HP’s StorageWorks division. “That’s the opportunity here, and that’s what all of these things are ultimately about. They bring our server and storage and networking portfolios together and converge them together in ways that others won’t.”

“This breaks down the boundaries of server and storage solutions,” Johns said. “The E5000 is a completely unique product. There is nothing else like it on the market. We looked at the issues companies had in upgrading to Exchange 2010, and we worked with Microsoft in building a solution that knocked down all the barriers.”