AAPT to resell the Google box

Stuart Corner
Friday, 16 February 2007 01:08

Your IT - Home IT

AAPT is to resell Google's hardware units designed to enable enterprises to use its search technology across their internal databases and other electronic information.

Google introduced the technology to the Australian market in June 2006. http://www.itwire.com.au/content/view/4733/127/Two versions of the product are available. The Google Search Appliance is designed for larger organisations and has the capacity to search from 500,000 to 30 million documents. It features instant, real-time secure access to all the information and knowledge across the organisation and uses an interface claimed to be as simple and intuitive as Google.com.

The Google Mini is designed to meet the needs of small to medium businesses and is physically half the size of the Search Appliance. It supports from 50,000 to 300,000 documents and enables multiple document collections, search across file servers and improved reporting.

Until recently the Google Mini Google lacked security features, meaning that it could be used either to index public-facing websites, or internal intranets and documents, but not both, according to a news report quoting Google's European enterprise director Roberto Solimene. However Google in January announced an upgraded version that adds security features, enabling it to be used to search for both public and private data on company networks.

An AAPT spokeswoman told iTWire that the Google Mini required only  a firmware upgrade, to provide the additional functionality currently supported only by the larger Google Search Appliance. "Provided the box is still under contract either AAPT or the customer can at any time request the Mini/GSA to upgrade itself to the next firmware release."

The Google Search Appliance and Mini are priced from $75K and $5K respectively. AAPT will provide sales, installation and consulting support for both.