San Jose, California--(Newsfile Corp. - February 6, 2017) - Sphere 3D
Corp. (NASDAQ: ANY), a containerization, virtualization, and data management solutions provider, today announced that Alcorn
State University (Alcorn) has selected HVE ConneXions Desktop Virtualization (VDI) technology for its initial VDI deployment of 100
desktops, with future plans to expand to additional appliances and desktops as a part of the university's classroom technology
modernization efforts.
Alcorn is a four-year university located in Lorman, Mississippi. The university has an annual enrollment of over 4000 students
with support from nearly 800 employees. Alcorn has received nationwide recognition for excellence in liberal arts, agricultural
research, technology, music and nursing. Like other higher education facilities, it recognized the advantages of VDI and embarked
on a thorough evaluation of its options.
The academic environment of higher education often requires more complex IT solutions than those found in commercial
environments; primarily due to the sheer number of applications they need to support. Businesses often have a manageable number of
desktop builds, and the hardware that supports those workloads. However, in school environments, there are often wide ranges of
applications that can span from those that run microscopes to those that design aircraft. In addition, there are just as many
unique hardware end clients or workstations on which those applications must run. With this diverse set of needs constantly
evolving and the requirement for facilities to keep them supported and current, many higher education facilities are turning to
virtualization to meet their IT demands.
HVE evaluated Alcorn's requirements and determined that the solution should address the immediate needs of the computer lab, but
provide for future growth. The initial installation was one lab of 35 virtual desktops. The HVE-101-N VDI appliance was chosen, as
it would give Alcorn the potential to add more virtual desktops, providing room for expansion. The second portion of the project
was updating the remote technology classroom located in a shopping mall in Meridian, Mississippi; the HVE-51-N was purchased for
this portion of the solution due to its ability to provide 30-50 VDI sessions to their lab which included the purchase of PCoIP
Zero Clients. This was a great improvement over the outdated physical desktops that were previously being used and provided a
single pane of glass management for the Alcorn IT Support team. Alcorn is now in a position to grow its environment based on its
needs and at the pace that meets its IT and budget objectives. For further information on the Alcorn deployment, read the white
paper at this link here.
Quotes
Felton Square, Senior Multimedia Architect for Alcorn, said, "With VDI, we can access the classroom environment and virtual
desktops remotely and support them from our main campus. This means we do not have to be onsite, thus allowing that time to be used
on other matters." He added, "We also looked at other brands and competitors and asked them to do an apples-to-apples comparison of
the equipment to match the HVE solution. Through that comparison, we found that HVE was around 20-30 percent lower in cost.
Moreover, HVE was not only able to accomplish our goals at a better price point; they did so without needing to sacrifice
performance."
Joseph O'Daniel, President of Virtualization and Professional Services for Sphere 3D stated, "We have been successfully
delivering robust solutions to educational institutions for years, and pride ourselves in making the transition to virtual
environments seamless and painless for these organizations." He added, "We accomplished this by working closely with the talented
and dedicated staff at Alcorn State University, to ensure that we not only deliver, but exceed customer expectations."
About HVE
HVE ConneXions, recently acquired by Sphere 3D, is a fast growing technology manufacturer of next generation storage and
virtualization hardware. Its engineering philosophy is dedicated to creating Manageable, Scalable, Reproducible, and Predictable
(MSRP) solutions based on proven virtualization technologies running on high-performance, next generation hardware. For more
information and technical specifications on the HVE product line, visit www.hveconnexions.com.
About Sphere 3D
Sphere 3D Corp. (NASDAQ: ANY) delivers containerization, virtualization, and data management solutions via hybrid cloud, cloud
and on-premise implementations through its global reseller network and professional services organization. Sphere 3D, along with
its wholly owned subsidiaries Overland Storage, and Tandberg Data, has a strong portfolio of brands, including HVE ConneXions and UCX ConneXions, dedicated to helping
customers achieve their IT goals. For more information, visit www.sphere3d.com. Follow us on
Twitter @Sphere3D, @overlandstorage, and @tandbergdata
Safe Harbor Statement
This press release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to
predict. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements
as a result of risks and uncertainties including our inability to comply with the covenants in our credit facilities or to obtain
additional debt or equity financing; any increase in our future cash needs; our ability to successfully integrate the UCX and HVE
ConneXions business with Sphere 3D's other businesses; our ability to regain compliance with the NASDAQ minimum closing bid price
requirement between now and July 31, 2017; our inability to take other actions to regain compliance with the NASDAQ minimum closing
bid price requirement; our ability to maintain compliance with other NASDAQ Capital Market listing requirements; unforeseen changes
in the course of Sphere 3D's business or the business of its wholly-owned subsidiaries, including, without limitation, Overland
Storage and Tandberg Data; market adoption and performance of our products; the level of success of our collaborations and business
partnerships; possible actions by customers, partners, suppliers, competitors or regulatory authorities; and other risks detailed
from time to time in Sphere 3D's periodic reports contained in our Annual Information Form and other filings with Canadian
securities regulators (www.sedar.com) and in prior periodic reports filed
with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov).
Sphere 3D undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to
time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by law.
Investor Contact:
The Blueshirt Group
Mike Bishop
Tel: +1 415-217-4968
mike@blueshirtgroup.com
