Irwin Magnetic Systems was a computer storage manufacturer founded in 1979 and based in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor ...

. At its height, the company employed 600 people in Ann Arbor. The company's primary product line was

magnetic tape data storage Magnetic-tape data storage is a system for storing digital information on magnetic tape using digital recording. Tape was an important medium for primary data storage in early computers, typically using large open reels of IBM 7 track, 7-track, ...

systems, particularly the proprietary AccuTrak format. This format was widely adopted by

Compaq Compaq Computer Corporation (sometimes abbreviated to CQ prior to a 2007 rebranding) was an American information technology company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced ...

, HP and other OEM manufacturers, and was also incorporated into IBM Personal System 2 (PS2) personal computers as an option. In 1989, the company was acquired by

Cipher Data Products In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is ''encipherment''. To encipher or encode i ...

, which was in turn acquired by

Archive Corporation Archive Corporation was a computer tape drive manufacturer, based in Costa Mesa, California, that was acquired by Conner Peripherals in 1993. History The company was founded in 1980 and based out of Costa Mesa, California. The company employed 3,3 ...

a year later. Archive maintained Irwin as an independent brand for a while after the acquisition.

Notable products

* EzTape - Backup/Restore Software * AccuTrak Plus 120Mb and 250Mb Tape Drives

References

External links

Description of Archive's plans after the takeover
Companies based in Ann Arbor, Michigan {{ict-company-stub