Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

NAB Reflections: Scale Logic's Bob Herzan on Proactive Monitoring for Storage, Sports' Sophisticated Needs

25/04/2018

NAB Reflections: Scale Logic's Bob Herzan on Proactive Monitoring for Storage, Sports' Sophisticated Needs HMS tracks health' of Genesis storage products installed at customer sites By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor

Wednesday, April 25, 2018 - 8:00 am

Print This Story

Story Highlights

Scale Logic was at NAB 2018 showcasing its portfolio of storage solutions and introduced a new feature across the entire range of products: a proactive Health Monitoring Service (HMS). The service communicates directly with installed products at customer sites, using the equipment serial number to track service outages, system temperature, power-supply failure, data-storage drive failure, and dozens of other mission-critical status updates.

SVG sat down with Scale Logic President/CEO Bob Herzan to discuss HMS, the company's recent installation with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Linx, Scale Logic's growing third-party warranty service, and more.

Scale Logic's Bob Herzan: We have a heartbeat built into the [Genesis platform] that reports back to our NOC.

What is the big news at the show this year for Scale Logic?

I think the coolest announcement is that we have introduced 24/7 proactive health monitoring to the entire Genesis platform. That means, when we install these at our customer site, we have a heartbeat built into the system that reports back to our NOC [Network Operations Center]. It is reporting all the basic health symptoms within the system, so it's looking at the drives, the rate sets, the motherboards and heat level, the fan efficiency. This is an enterprise-level feature that this industry has never seen in this level of storage, unless you were buying on the level of IBM or EMC and paying through the nose. And we don't even upcharge for the service.

We have the NOC already in place for all the other services that we're doing for our [Media Storage Services] third-party extended-warranty program. We're just taking that and implementing a new proactive health platform.

All new shipping products will now have the health monitoring, and then we're going to go back and start adding it to our legacy support contracts. To me, it's a genuine game-changer for our customers

We have also introduced HyperLock [at NAB 2018]. HyperLock is a feature set that goes on top of our HyperFS [file system], Genesis NX [NAS solution], and Genesis ZX [software-defined storage] and provides Avid bin locking for all three platforms. Those people looking for traditional Avid workflow can now do that on top of any one of those three file systems.

Scale Logic recently completed a large installation with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Linx. Tell us something about the project.

This type of configuration has become a real sweet spot for us. [The Timberwolves and Linx] are using a multi-tiered configuration that starts with Genesis Unlimited, which is our high-performance, high-capacity storage. It's connected in two ways - via Fibre Channel and Gigabit Ethernet - so that they can have multiple workflows with that shared storage. We also have an agent inside the Genesis Unlimited that will sync the primary data over to our second tier, which is Genesis NX. That's a second instance of the data on spinning disk that they keep as an archive copy. And that same agent inside the Unlimited also can write to a tape library, which they have there.

In the end, this client has three copies of their data across two different technologies, and they can even take some of it offsite if they want to store it elsewhere. It's a very small footprint that gives them a completely automated workflow that protects the data and is scalable as they grow. They're already talking about upgrading more storage because they're starting to go back and digitize a whole bunch of old legacy, historical content now.

How does the T-Wolves and Linx installation reflect where the sports market is headed in terms of storage?

All of the [teams] have the same issues, and they're all struggling with the same types of workflows. [Large organizations like] MLB and NASCAR can spend the money for big, multi-tier infrastructure like that with high availability. But we are giving them that same footprint and doing it at a price point that is a fraction of the cost, depending on the size, of the primary storage that they're putting in. We also try [to integrate] with as many MAM players as we can so that we can show our customer and the resellers a very completed turnkey solution that includes that asset-management layer as well.

In addition to the Scale Logic product portfolio, you've put a major focus on your Media Storage Services third-party extended-warranty business over the past couple of years. How is that segment of the company doing, and how has the market reacted to it?

It's growing hand over fist right now, and we've been very successful in mid and high-end accounts. I think one of the trends that I'm seeing right now is the mid to larger companies are unsure of what the next few years have in store for them. They're trying to figure out what their cloud play is and if they're going to be migrating a lot of content to the cloud or not. At the same time, they're being bullied to either refresh or pay heavy fees for the support [of existing equipment]. And they feel each decision is rotten because either they are going to spend a whole bunch on opex and keep this thing alive or they are going to refresh and be stuck for the next three to five years anyway. We are saving them from having to make those decisions right away; we give them a chance to breathe a little bit. We customize this SLA for them and save them a ton of money, and now they can really start to focus in on what they think they can do.

This interview has been edited for leng
LINK: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2018/04/25/nab-reflections-scale-logics-bo...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

09/10/2026

Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026

September 10 2026, 06:00 (PDT) Dolby Expands Dolby OptiView Platform with New Capabilities at IBC 2026 New Sports Intelligence helps providers better unders...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

30/09/2026

Clear-Com's Arcadia Central Station Brings Professional Production Communications to...

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...

30/09/2026

AWARN Alliance Urges FCC to Let Broadcasters Tap Full 3.0 Capabilities

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Senator Asks If All-GOP FCC Would Violate Federal Law

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Marshall PTZ Cameras Bring Legendary Progressive Rock Exp...

The An Evening with Emerson, Lake and Palmer tour brings one of rock's most iconic bands back to the stage. These performances seamlessly blend live foota...

30/09/2026

Schibsted Media Chooses DHD RX2 and TX2 Mixers for Remote...

Schibsted Media, one of Norways largest and most influential digital media publishers and content producers, has invested in mixers and digital signal processor...

30/09/2026

Big Blue Marble adds live multiview channels to its video...

Big Blue Marble announces the addition of live multiview channels to Cloud Video Kit, its broadcast-grade video processing platform. The feature is powered by A...

30/09/2026

Telekom Slovenije brings local advertising to internation...

Leading video software provider Synamedia today announced that Telekom Slovenije, Slovenia's largest provider of telecommunications and TV services, is open...

30/09/2026

PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow

PODCAST EXPO 2026 Recorded Using Blackmagic Design Workflow Brie Clayton September 29, 2026 0 Comments Conference featuring 24 sessions over two days ...

30/09/2026

IBC2026 Show Report

IBC2026 Show Report David Kirk September 29, 2026 0 Comments The International Broadcasting Convention has long been Europe's equivalent of the US...

30/09/2026

SGO Unveils Workflows Slate To Enable Automated Burn-ins, Slates

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Public Advocacy Group Urges Broadcasters to Stop Airing Trump Taxpayer Funded Ad

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Qvest Promotes Katlyn Alexander to CEO, North America

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/09/2026

Mavis Camera 8-2 adds iPhone 18 Pro Support with Variable...

Mavis has launched Mavis Camera 8.2, the latest release of its professional camera app for the iPhone and iPad. This update brings support for iPhone 18 Pro and...

30/09/2026

Claire Brock and Sophie Morris discover how consumers can shop smarter in new RT documentary series

How to Shop Well Now starts Monday at 9.35pm on RT One and RT Player On the...

30/09/2026

From Training to Production, NVIDIA and CoreWeave Close the Loop on Agentic AI

Building on nearly a decade of co-engineering, CoreWeave has built NVIDIA compute, networking and software into a cloud purpose-built for AI that's still re...

29/09/2026

Oak View Group Names Cisco as Official Technology Partner

Oak View Group (OVG) has announced Cisco as an Official Technology Partner, with plans to standardize infrastructure across its venue network on Cisco solutions...

29/09/2026

SportsNet Pittsburgh Wins Three Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards

SportsNet Pittsburgh (SNP) won three honors at the 2026 Mid-Atlantic Emmy Awards. Program awards went to Bucs BP in the Sports Program Live category (produced ...

29/09/2026

CBC, PWHL Revive Hockey Night in Canada' on Saturdays

The Professional Women's Hockey League has announced home openers for all 12 teams for the 2026-27 season, along with a broadcast partnership with CBC under...

29/09/2026

Manifold Technologies Recognized as MXL Contributor Following IBC Innovation Award

Manifold technologies has been recognized as a contributor to the Media eXchange...

29/09/2026

Fubo Launches My Local Sports RSN Add-On Package

FuboTV has announced My Local Sports, allowing subscribers in select markets to add their local regional sports network (RSN) as an add-on to a Fubo Sports subs...

29/09/2026

ANI Deploys Grass Valley AMPP and Framelight X for News Operations

Asian News International (ANI), a wire agency and video news provider based in India, has deployed Grass Valley's AMPP Media Operating System and Framelight...

29/09/2026

SABC Deploys Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras for IP-Based Production

South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has deployed Ikegami UHK-X600 cameras as part of an upgrade to IP-based production infrastructure. The deployment ...

29/09/2026

Busy in Bristol: ESPN Headquarters Come Alive With New Studio W, Remote-Production Workflows

REMI, REMCO models will drive the bulk of the broadcaster's NHL productions ...

29/09/2026

NASCAR Productions' Keith D'Alessandro on the Continued Evolution of Its Centralized Production Hub

Three years in, the facility is supporting more centralized race production, com...

29/09/2026

NBC Sports Brings Robust Sunday Night Baseball Production Playbook to MLB Wild Card Round

NBC, Peacock, and NBSN are carrying all four Wild Card series with a production ...

29/09/2026

Sundance Institute Announces 2026 Doc Fund Grantees

19 Nonfiction Projects Across All Stages of Production to Receive More Than $1 million in Support as Documentary Film Program Approaches 25th Anniversary LOS ...

29/09/2026

Zynaptiq introduce Loud & Wide

Two new plug-ins launch alongside updated bundles Zynaptiq have just announced the launch of two new plug-ins, alongside new and improved versions of two of...

29/09/2026

Wes Audio unveil the ngOmniBox

All-in-one bus processor revealed Wes Audio's ng product range has come a long way since it was first introduced, and now includes a tasty selection of ...

29/09/2026

First Baptist Nashville Drastically Upgrades Production Communications with...

eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......

29/09/2026

Fubo TV Launches My Local Sports'

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

ARRI Targets Content Creators with New HONOR Smartphone

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Asian News International Enhances Workflow with Grass Valley AMPP, FramelightX

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

SABC Chooses Ikegami UHK-X600 Cameras to Support IP Studio Transition

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

SABC Upgrades to IP-Based Production with Ikegami UHK-X60...

Ikegami announces that the South African Broadcasting Corporation, SABC, has chosen Ikegami UHK-X600 camera systems as part of an advance to IP-based operation ...

29/09/2026

Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone

Blendkit Offers 20% Discount to Celebrate Crossing 150K Asset Milestone Brie Clayton September 29, 2026 0 Comments Blendkit, the largest 3D asset libr...

29/09/2026

Ease Live Reports over 75 Million Interactive Sessions Du...

Interactive streaming specialist Ease Live supported more than 76.5 million fan sessions across three major European media operators during this summers FIFA Wo...

29/09/2026

Ease Live to monetise key moments in live sports

Ease Live has added support for VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) to its graphical overlay technology, opening up new ways for broadcasters, streamers and rights...

29/09/2026

Rise AV launches awards celebrating the women advocates a...

Rise AV has announced the launch of the inaugural Rise AV Awards, a new global awards programme celebrating the women, advocates and organisations across the AV...

29/09/2026

Netflix Deploys Advanced Sony PTZ Cameras For Wonka's The Golden Ticket' Production

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Massachusetts Broadcasters Association Names Gene Lavanchy 2026 Broadcaster of the Year

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

ESPN Reports Its Most-Watched WNBA Regular Season

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Scripps Taps Digital News Veteran Sean McGarvy to Lead News Strategy

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Gray Raises Political Ad Revenue Estimates

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

Edward Czarnecki Uses Game Theory to Assess ATSC 3.0 Transition Policies

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/09/2026

First Baptist Nashville Drastically Upgrades Production C...

Clear-Com announced that First Baptist Nashville has upgraded its production communications with a Clear-Com intercom solution as part of a comprehensive sanct...

29/09/2026

Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch

Blackmagic Cinema Camera 6K Captured Action Shots for Sketch Brie Clayton September 28, 2026 0 Comments Camera's portable design and dynamic range...