Symantec ghost comes home

By RICHARD WOOD

Symantec is bringing all its development for Ghost disk-cloning software back into New Zealand, and increasing staff numbers in the process.

Disk-cloning software allows hard disks to be copied whole to other hard disks or CDs. This can be used for backup and recovery, or at enterprise level for creating standardised hard-disk configurations.

Around 16 staff will be hired in the programming, quality assurance area, and documentation areas.

The software giant, which specialises in internet security, picked up Ghost when it acquired Auckland-based Binary Research in 1998.

The original team of eight has since been expanded to 40 locally and seven based in Portland, Oregon.

The American team was originally the result of the purchase of Oregon-based 20/20 software in 2000, maker of Auto Install software, now been integrated into Ghost.

Olivier Duhamel, Symantec New Zealand director of research and development, said localisation testing work would now transfer to Auckland. Further staff were also needed to work on "companion functionality" for Ghost to make it more attractive for enterprise application.

"We are trying to expand the breadth of functionality to make it more attractive to large organisations who want to manage their network across multiple sites."

Duhamel said Symantec was targeting a part of the market where Ghost did not compete head-to-head with other brands.

The move would reassure Ghost customers globally because it represented a show of support from Symantec, which was otherwise marketing itself as a security specialist around products such as antivirus and network firewalls. Symantec NZ is involved in both software development and sales.