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Dot Hill Systems, a Carlsbad maker of data storage products, said yesterday it has agreed to buy privately held software company Cloverleaf Communications for $12 million in stock and cash.

The purchase gives Dot Hill a foothold in cloud storage and storage virtualization software. It furthers the company’s goal of offering more software-related storage products with its current hardware and software, thus boosting profit margins.

Founded in 2001, Cloverleaf was based in Woodbury, N.Y. It also had operations in Israel.

“Cloverleaf had invested over $43 million and nine years of development in these products,” said Dana Kammersgard, chief executive of Dot Hill.

Dot Hill, which makes disk storage arrays, said Cloverleaf’s technology came out of Elta Systems/Israel Aerospace Industries. It raised venture capital money primarily in Israel.

As part of the transaction, a number of Cloverleaf’s founders will join Dot Hill.

Dot Hill expects the acquisition to begin adding to its financial results in 2011. The purchase was funded by $2.5 million in cash and $9.5 million in stock.

Dot Hill also reaffirmed its fourth quarter forecast of $62 million to $67 million in revenue and a loss of 1 cent to 7 cents a share. Analysts are predicting a fourth quarter loss of 5 cents per share on revenue of $64 million.