What a year it’s been—2014 saw the release of FreeNAS 9.3 with new capabilities, the FreeNAS Mini platform that is now being sold on Amazon and doing extraordinarily well, and finally, the launch of our new TrueNAS platform during the Summer. Last year we saw the culmination of years of work on our own storage line and a shift in our business focus from servers to storage.
The decision to shift our focus at this time was twofold. The first was our commitment to the ownership of an enterprise class NAS storage device: TrueNAS. During the early years at iXsystems, we worked mostly as an integrator or reseller of hardware from other companies — and we’re at it. Thirteen consecutive years of profitability and thousands of loyal and satisfied customers will attest to that. However, from day one, we wanted our own product to sell, so we dedicated ourselves to building our own appliances. In 2009, we inherited the FreeNAS project and set about making it one of the strongest competitors out there, utilizing FreeBSD and ZFS. We maintained our dedication to development without any outside investment. It’s now the world’s most popular storage OS, and the accomplishments of the last year signal the maturity of that venture, and the business case for our realigned focus was solidified.
The second reason to shift now was stability. By establishing our storage products, we can add to our revenue stream by offering additional services and support to enhance our customers’ experiences at iXsystems. The increased business from our storage line provides us with greater stability as a company and opens up new opportunities for us in new industries with exciting verticals.
2014 was a banner year for us. We experienced growth in revenue, units, and added staff. Much of that growth was driven by storage and our ability to meet the increasing needs of our customers to keep their data longer and safer. For each level of product, from the sophisticated FreeNAS Mini and FreeNAS certified servers to our flagship enterprise product TrueNAS, iXsystems has risen to meet the expanding requirements of today’s businesses.
The bar has been set high for 2015—we plan to again double our sales of TrueNAS and the FreeNAS Mini. It’s an aggressive goal but it fits our strategy of expansion. Ultimately, we will continue to diversify our product line and offer solutions that appeal to an ever broadening range of customers. Several big projects are already in the pipeline including expanding staffing, the release of TrueNAS 9.3, a new FreeNAS Mini, a new building, and the launch of FreeNAS 10. Does this mean we’re abandoning our server business? Certainly not. That business is as alive and well as ever, seeing significant growth yet again in 2014. Our server business line was the foundation of our revenue for over a decade and provides the infrastructure and quality control for our storage hardware appliances as well. So, it’s not going anywhere. We will continue to nurture it, add new products, and maintain our commitment to industry-leading service, support, and innovation as we always do.
Thanks to everyone who supported us in getting here and I hope you stick around for years to come.
Mike Lauth
iXsystems CEO
