This IDC study analyzes the results of a United States–based survey of storage end users that currently deploy or plan to deploy storage and/or data efficiency technologies in their datacenters as well as the benefits these users were able to gain as a result of implementing these technologies. The rapid increase in the amount of deployed storage capacity, pressure to increase capital expenditures associated with the acquisition, and operating expenses associated with management of this capacity, while economic issues pressured organizations' ability to increase storage budgets, paved the way for the adoption of various technologies that help optimize the amount of storage necessary to store the data and optimize the amount of data that needs to be stored. There are multiple technologies currently available on the market that help boost efficiency of the existing and new storage system deployments.

"Technologies that help increase utilization of existing and new storage assets are very welcome by end users," says Natalya Yezhkova, research director, Storage Systems at IDC. "As awareness of these technologies increases, storage vendors should be ready to deliver a variety of technologies to the whole specter of customers, from large businesses all the way down to small companies."