Entries categorized under “Replication”

When Symantec shipped its first backup appliances in late 2010, it could arguably be said the primary intention of these appliances was to simplify the deployment of Backup Exec and NetBackup at customer sites by shipping both hardware and software as a single SKU. While that still holds true, these appliances also opened the door for them to offer specific features and assume their own unique identities. The new NetBackup 5220 begins to deliver on that promise as it now offers specific software and features that make it much more than just a "server with NetBackup software pre-installed on it." (read more)

As small and midsize businesses (SMBs) virtualize their servers at an increasing pace, many fail to consider the impact this change has on how they do backups - or that it impacts their backups at all. However since many IT administrators who are responsible for backups in these environments would freely admit to not being backup gurus, here are some tips on what features to look for in backup software in order to properly protect and recover your newly virtualized environment. (read more)

Server virtualization has effectively broken the one-to-one relationship between servers and applications, enabling more efficient use of the host's physical resources. But this is not without its drawbacks, as applications like backup software that took advantage of these idle resources no longer have access to them. (read more)

Multiple interfaces, multiple products, and multiple systems to learn and become an "expert" in each one - such is the life of a backup administrator. Every administrator has at times longed for the day when he or she might be able to manage all of their backups and recovery operations, as well as virtual machine and replication snapshots, from a single, integrated interface. That day may be coming sooner than you think. (read more)

Using a common console to manage servers and storage coupled with a roadmap to automated disaster recovery (DR) are becoming almost prerequisites in VMware vSphere deployments. Key to delivering on these emerging requirements is employing a midrange array that (1) integrates with and is managed by vCenter Server, and (2) facilitates the implementation of VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager (SRM). (read more)

Using array-based snapshots for virtual machine (VM) protection and optimizing storage efficiency are two sought after features in VMware deployments. However, this does not mean that all midrange arrays deliver on these capabilities equally. If anything, the differences in how midrange arrays support them may be quite substantial. (read more)

One of the more revealing findings out of the recent DCIG 2012 Midrange Array Buyer's Guide was the gap between those midrange arrays that integrate with the VMware vSphere storage APIs and those that do not, as it was almost a case of the "Have's" and the "Have-not's." But among the "Have's" there are still levels of differentiation in vSphere integration that the Buyer's Guide did not examine in depth. (read more)

On the surface, the idea of transitioning from tape-based to disk-based backup sounds relatively straightforward. But managing backups across multiple sites takes on a life of its own with virtualized machine (VM) backup adding yet another level of complexity to the mix. It is when the Daughters of Charity Health Systems (DCHS) considered this mix of variables and who was in the best position to ensure success that it opted to roll out Data Domain in its environment. (read more)

DCIG regularly talks to organizations that are confronted with continuing data growth, ongoing tape problems, saturated WAN links and overworked IT staff who recognize that changes to their existing backup environment are needed. However non-profits such as the Daughters of Charity Health Systems (DCHS) with limited funding for new technology purchases are particularly challenged as they have no margin for error. (read more)

Today there are more open system arrays with more features from more vendors from which organizations may choose. Yet what is emerging as an obstacle to organizations considering some of these arrays as viable options is their inability to leverage these snapshot capabilities. That obstacle may be short-lived thanks in part to the CommVault IntelliSnap Connect Program. (read more)

Implementing and then managing DR is still no "gimme." It requires that SMBs select a solution that offers the right five features so they can successfully execute on a DR initiative in their environment for 2012 and beyond. (read more)

About a month ago I started to put some thought and research into what might emerge as the top trends of 2012 by keeping a notebook next to my keyboard so as ideas struck me I could jot them down. Now as I look at the four trends that made today's short list, they ended up being on the surface ones that I hear, write and talk about every day. (read more)

Enterprises have been hearing about the value and veracity of public cloud for years even as Symantec has been getting feedback on its value proposition from its public cloud customers. The message that Symantec has received is that "ripping and replacing" is not an option. Rather enterprises want and need revolutionary infrastructure with evolutionary products and prices. (read more)

You may be wondering what a backup website, a WAN optimization technology and a blog entry have in common. Under normal conditions, probably nothing. But on a rather slow news week and me finally being in the office for more than two consecutive weeks in about 3 months, I finally had a chance to catch up with both Quantum and a new company called Infineta regarding some recent announcements from both of these companies. (read more)

It is no secret that virtualization is changing everything about how organizations think about and manage their data centers. But perhaps one of the more dramatic changes in thinking that still needs to take place is in how they should approach disaster recovery (DR). The odds of this shift in thinking occurring sooner rather than later just got a boost as a result of the announcement of a new replication software solution from a new company called Zerto that emerged from stealth mode this week. (read more)

Today DCIG, LLC, is pleased to announce the availability of the DCIG 2011 Midrange Array Snapshot Software Buyer's Guide. This Buyer's Guide weights, scores and ranks the snapshot feature from 18 midrange array providers. In this report, special attention is given to how overall snapshot functionality and how well the snapshot feature on each midrange array integrates with specific applications, backup software and operating systems. (read more)

Backup redesign continues to be one of the hottest topics among end users for three years running with blog entries on that topic on DCIG's website consistently being among the most read. The problem is that many backup redesign offerings turn out to be just a rehash of the way backup has always been done which is inadequate when it comes to protecting growing virtual server environments. (read more)

Few things in the IT industry are truly both push button and fully featured. This adage is so engrained in the community that when a product line breaks that axiom it defies belief. Cofio's AIMstor is designed to do just that. (read more)

Over the last few months I have been talking to a number of end-users about their implementations of deduplication technology. In the process of doing so, they have provided me with valuable insight into how they are implementing deduplication when using disk-based targets that deduplicate data. Based upon that feedback it appears that most are adhering to the following five guidelines as they implement deduplication in their environments. (read more)

Does anyone find it somewhat ironic that backup software providers are spending more time and effort to make sure that the backup and recovery of both physical and virtual machines (VMs) take no time? This is being driven by enterprises who increasingly expect application backups and recoveries to occur without waiting. So to better meet these rising expectations, Symantec NetBackup™ 7.1 got cozier with Symantec's NetBackup RealTime software to provide the near real time backup and recovery functionality that enterprises increasingly want. (read more)

A couple of months ago I wrote a blog entry commenting that, based upon the research that DCIG had done to date, allocate-on-write (or redirect-on-write) had emerged as the "best" snapshot method that a midrange array could support. That opinion was formed after looking at snapshot functionality on over 20 midrange arrays and the pros and cons of each snapshot type. But yesterday I had a lengthy conversation with HP 3PAR's Director of Product Management, Sandeep Singh, that suggested the copy-on-write algorithm used by HP 3PAR' is as good or better than any other vendor's allocate-on-write snapshot method. (read more)

Nearly every small, medium or large organization is heading down the path of adopting disk-based data protection as a way to solve their legacy problems of backup to tape. But what many of these organizations have yet to recognize is that as they adopt disk to store these post-production copies of data, a new opportunity is presenting itself. They now have the option to manage and leverage post-production data in ways that were never possible when on tape but now lack the tools to do so. (read more)

The topic as to what storage management features organizations really need on a storage array continues to be a hotly debated. In the last decade, we have seen a multitude of features propagate on storage arrays including disk striping, thin provisioning, and storage tiering just to name a few. But deciding which of these features are "nice-to-haves" and which ones are really "needed" in a virtual operating environment (VOE) becomes very difficult to make without a close examination of one's environment. (read more)

In about a month or so DCIG is going to release its first Midrange Array Snapshot Software Buyer's Guide. It is in preparing for the release of this Buyer's Guide that DCIG had to evaluate a number of different implementations of snapshot software on midrange arrays. In so doing it became evident that DCIG had to make a determination as to what was the "Best" method for a midrange array to take snapshots of a volume in order for DCIG to properly score and rank snapshot software on different midrange arrays. (read more)

Moving from "D2D2T" to "D2D2D" is sometimes seen as an unattainable hurdle that enterprise organizations cannot overcome when tape is used for secondary roles such as archiving or disaster recovery (DR). But replacing the "T" in "D2D2T" with a "D" is now practical, possible and affordable. Doing so simply means enterprises need to demonstrate that disk offers the same or more functionality than tape when used in these capacities while costing the same or less. (read more)