Transcript
How to avoid a data disaster when a physical disaster happens A LaserVault White Paper
SUMMARY: Disasters happen. Fires, floods, tornados, earthquakes, hurricanes: any disaster that impacts your business can be devastating. And small and medium sized businesses often have the added challenges of limited IT staff and limited budgets. Regardless of the size of the company, data is a company’s most valuable asset and therefore it needs to be protected. This is why safeguarding your data to make sure it is quickly available after a disaster strikes is critical to ensuring your business continuity. When facing a disaster, the drawbacks of tape are numerous and can catch a company short when recovering their data is most critical. D2D backups offer easier, faster, more secure backups when it matters most.
CONTENTS: Just how much is your business worth? ...................................................... 1 What’s wrong with tape? ............................................................................. 2 False sense of confidence results in disaster ................................................ 3 The two questions that drive the decision ................................................... 3 Making it easy ............................................................................................... 3 Ease of use and implementation .................................................................. 4 When it all comes down to cost .................................................................... 6 Conclusion ..................................................................................................... 8
WHITEto PAPER How avoid a data disaster when a physical disaster happens
Disasters happen. Fires, floods, tornados, earthquakes, hurricanes: any disaster that impacts your business can be devastating. This is why safeguarding your data to make sure it is quickly available after a disaster strikes is critical to ensuring your business continuity. Unfortunately, for many companies backing up to tape today, it is difficult to find the time to think about changing their backup system to assure their data is there when they need it. This can be especially true if the company is a small or mid-sized enterprise with a limited IT staff and limited budget. However, with all the recent disasters that have occurred, perhaps you have asked: “How do I avoid a total data disaster if we are caught up in a physical disaster, be it a tornado, fire, flood, hurricane, earthquake, or other unexpected damaging event?” If not, perhaps you should, and here’s why: The thing about disasters is we never know when they’re going to happen. Disasters of all types seem to be occurring more often, with more extensive damage, and they are happening in unexpected places. Although more than likely most companies are not going to need disaster recovery, if and when they do, if the company is not prepared then the company is going to be toast.
Disasters can happen at any time and catch any business unprepared. The resulting loss of data can mean the end for most companies.
Just how much is your business worth? Data is any company’s most valuable asset and therefore it needs to be protected. A company that is using tape backups has a system that more than likely involves significant time to manage and is ultimately unreliable. Companies that have been using tape for a long time, and companies that are just comfortable with tape, may be inadvertently avoiding the issues of the lack of reliability of tape and the true amount of time it takes to manage it. Frequently this is because there are too many other important projects and priorities to deal with every day and there is no time or money to change. However, for a company to protect its data, it must invest in it. Why is this so critical? When you ask yourself how much your business is worth and how much you would lose if your data was suddenly gone, you have the answer: It’s priceless.
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What’s wrong with tape? “Why not continue with tape? We currently use it and it works well enough.” Or does it? Tape may be a seemingly low cost backup solution, but in actuality it is a high cost option in terms of daily management, troubleshooting, and when restores are most critical. What business can truly afford to lose data, whether to a major unforeseen disaster, or to a minor one, such as a tape or tape drive malfunction? The actual costs of tape backup is often a hard number to come up with because it is a combination of tangible and intangible factors, but there are several issues to consider when using tape backups, including: Cost of tape media and tape drives Tapes can be broken, mislabeled, lost, stolen and/or destroyed
Human error is inevitable and tape backups are always at risk – the more tapes made the more potential for error Offsite storage and transportation costs
Time to restore tapes is lengthy and can results in considerable downtime Restore periods increase when backup tapes are located off-site and need to be retrieved Tape media degrades over time resulting in irretrievable data; many industries require long retention periods therefore data stored on tape is vulnerable Costs for the ongoing maintenance/support for backup software Staff labor time consumed by administering tape management for daily, weekly, monthly backups, etc. Downtime – tape backups tend to be slow and always require downtime resulting in the system being unavailable to users
Holes or gaps in data backups due to manual process and potential errors means incomplete backups Tape backup software and hardware are expensive, and this cost increases when there are multiple offices or sites Operational costs for the actual manual process of tape backups and recovery Operational costs due to loss of data Management time spent reviewing, talking, and worrying about the true viability of the company’s data backups Business continuity costs due to loss of data – how many staff hours were wasted waiting for a restore? How many customers were lost or inconvenienced while the system was down?
Tape drives require ongoing maintenance costs and periodic replacements
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False confidence results in disaster In the end, tape provides a “false confidence” that data is 100% backed up and retrievable. When it comes to restores, the failure rate is high (most estimates run from 40-70%) so although the data may have “been backed up”, if it can’t be restored when it is needed then that backup is totally useless and that could be a disaster in itself; a disaster that could be avoided.
The two questions that drive the decision Although there is an onslaught of information and considerations when looking at changing from tape to disk to disk (D2D), it ultimately comes down to two questions:
1) How easy will it be? 2) How much will it cost? The reality is that most D2D systems are both complicated and costly, and that leads many companies to continue to remain with tape even when they want and need to change. There are a lot of backup solutions for the iSeries® (IBM i®, AS/400®, System i®) and Linux yet only one works like UBD, the Universal Backup Device from LaserVault. UBD is a D2D backup solution that seamlessly integrates with the iSeries and Linux using a Fibre Channel connection. UBD emulates a tape drive and uses existing backup procedures (SAVSYS, SAVLIB, SAVOBJ, etc.) creating an affordable D2D system that is easy to implement and use. Because when you ask the above questions about UBD, the answers are “UBD is REAL easy” and “UBD is VERY affordable”, it is an optimum solution for most businesses to replace tape backups for their iSeries hosts.
Making it easy UBD is a unique solution in that it provides a simple way to move to D2D backups and alleviate the “pain” of tape backups. Basically, you unplug the tape drive and plug in UBD. This is the usual effort expended for implementing UBD… 30 minutes to take it out of the box and plug it in. This easy implementation is possible because the UBD system imitates a tape drive and when you plug it in, your iSeries and Linux thinks it is a tape. In essence, UBD’s secret is that it is a “faux tape backup” and the iSeries or Linux works exactly as if it is a tape. Although the iSeries or Linux won’t know any differently, companies see an instant difference...how fast and easy it is to manage backups coupled with the new peace of mind knowing the backups are both reliable and restorable - the data is readily available if and when it’s needed. The company will know their backups work, they don’t have to constantly think about and manage them, and they get a true handle on their backup costs.
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Customer Solution: Keith Leonhardt, VP of Viewpoint Bank, needed an iSeries® backup solution that would shorten their backup window while allowing him to use no tape; as well as interface with their existing SAN infrastructure for off-site data storage. Keith states, “We perform two large backups during our nightly update each day and this process takes over 8 hours to our current tape devices.” LaserVault UBD emulates a Fibre Channel attached LTO tape drive to the iSeries and gives the ability to save iSeries backups to any Windows server hard disk, NAS, SAN or deduplication appliance using standard IBM save/restore commands. “I couldn't be more pleased with our LaserVault® solution. Not only is it fast, it's easy to use. The web interface is great and the installation was painless. We were told it would just emulate a tape drive when we turned it on, and that's exactly what happened. Other than showing the operators the web interface, there was no training because we just use the normal iSeries save/restore commands,” says Keith. Per Keith, “Based upon actual job times, our backups are 71% faster than before. On the first night of processing that we used the LaserVault system, my night operator's shift was 90 minutes shorter than it was previously.”
Ease of use and implementation The key to UBD’s ease of use is that it was designed specifically for iSeries, AS/400, and Linux systems, and uses existing backup procedures currently being used with tape backups: SAVSYS, SAVLIB, SAVOBJ, SAVCHGOBJ, etc. This allows the company to continue using these but without all of the manual processes, such as opening, labeling, inserting, changing, removing, and filing actual tapes. The training to switch from tape backups to UBD D2D is so minimal one comment often heard is, “That’s really it? That’s amazing.”
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Customer Solution: Michael Linardi, Manager of Systems Administration of Westmoreland County Information Systems needed an IBM iSeries/Power 6 backup solution that would shorten their LTO1 and LTO4 daily, weekly and monthly tape backup timeframes. Michael compared Sphinx® by Crossroads and UBD by LaserVault. He found each appliance connected to the Power6 using Fibre Channel and appeared as an LTO tape drive. But Michael quickly discovered a key difference in the two solutions: “The LaserVault UBD setup was definitely easier and took less time to configure. UBD autoconfigured an IBM tape drive on our system and used IBM commands, which made their appliance ready for production with minimal CL modifications. I have been very pleased with the LaserVault UBD solution; it has cut our IFS (image files), nightly and weekend backup’s timeframe by 30%. We are also experiencing a 6 to 1 compression of the data on the UBD appliance. “The UBD appliance worked exactly the way it was explained to us and it emulates an IBM tape drive, which uses the normal save/restore commands. The restore process is fast, whether restoring a full library or just one object. In the near future we will be backing up the LaserVault Universal Backup Device (UBD) appliance to our Exagrid ® disk backup with data deduplication system”, says Michael.
Every business is different and their ROI is as well. When considering a change from tape backups, ask yourself these critical questions:
How much time is actively spent managing tape backups? How much time can your business afford to try and restore backed up data? How much data can your company afford to lose? How will you notify your company and its clients that data has been lost? How many sleepless nights have been spent by IT staff or senior management either restoring data or worrying about being able to restore?
Although these factors are unique to each business, the fact is that for every company using tape backups for their iSeries, UBD is the absolute easiest and most affordable D2D backup solution available today.
For every company using tape backups for their iSeries or Linux, UBD is the easiest and most affordable D2D backup solution available today.
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When it all comes down to cost Even with UBD’s proven ease of use and implementation, it really does all come down to cost. Compared with other D2D backup systems, UBD is extremely affordable, and it comes with a 60-day money back guarantee with no questions asked. In addition, there is the added benefit of eliminating the ongoing costs of tape media. Once UBD is plugged in, it can be up and running. No more tapes, unless needed to fulfill industry or government requirements. No more sleepless nights wondering if the data is securely backed up and whether it will be there when you need it.
4 Reasons to use UBD instead of tape: 1) Easiest implementation – existing backup procedures are used resulting in a minimal amount of training needed to be up and running 2) Easiest management – backups can be automated ensuring complete backups every time & data is available when needed 3) Quickly eliminates the pain of tape backups and ROI starts immediately 4) A budget-friendly solution that works from hour one to virtually forever
UBD is cheaper, faster and easier to manage than tape, and with UBD a company can take all of the energies that have been focused on solely protecting their data when using tape backups, and focus instead on ensuring their business continuity, business growth opportunities, and a fast recovery in the case of a disaster.
In addition, UBD provides: Confidence in knowing the backups will work – enjoy a little peace of mind Improved reliability in the backups as well as the restores Decreased backup window times and getting all of the data backed up within the window allowing increased system access by users Faster and easier restores giving IT Staff the ability to provide employees with needed information in a matter of minutes. More layers of backups more often for better security without additional costs Basically, there is a zero install time. Unplug a tape drive, plug in UBD, and change from tape backup to UBD in less than 30 minutes including getting UBD out of the box. For locations using high availability (HA) they can backup remote sites without taking the primary site down
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The ability to store more data for longer periods to comply with ongoing industry and government regulations Eliminates the expense, hassle, and uncertainty of tape and tape drive issues Works with any version iSeries or AS400, and also with UNIX®, LINUX® and Windows® Does not use any space on the AS/400 Eliminates the need for offsite tape storage and retrieval Seamless interface with a variety of deduplication systems, RAID, NAS, or SAN, without any programming or CL changes Offers compression and AES-256 encryption Easy to navigate web browser interface Compatible with native iSeries backup commands and menus (SAVLIB, SAVSYS, etc.) Throughput speeds of up to 306/MB per second Available options include software/hardware or software-only solutions, including SaaS Attaches to the iSeries via Fibre Channel and appears as an LTO tape drive Multiport versions emulate up to 8 drives Can be operated from any location Works with DR site systems Use DUPTAP to make offsite backups for disaster recovery! Ease of managing daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annual backups Quick and easy recall of previous data if current data or programs are lost No backup file is too big. UBD doesn’t care. It’s all about speed… and UBD is FAST! With UBD, deduplication can be done after the fact and is better than compression. UBD works with cloud solutions that will backup Windows files
UBD D2D is functionally sophisticated yet incredibly simple eliminating backup challenges at an affordable price.
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Conclusion Although a massive disaster is unlikely, data is the lifeblood of any business and it needs to be protected. Tape backups provide a false sense of confidence that data is complete, safe, and easily restored. UBD’s disk to disk backup solution offers iSeries users the ability to achieve an easier, faster, secure backup at an affordable price. Take the time. Replace the tape. Be prepared for your data for disaster. To fully understand what UBD can do for your company is to see it. A quick on-line demo is available. Call or email us to learn more, request a quote, or schedule the demo at your convenience.
LaserVault, LLC A division of Electronic Storage Corporation 5127 S 95th E Ave. Tulsa, OK 74145 800-444-6283
[email protected] Website: http://laservault.com IBM Global Services Directory: http://ibm.co/121H8jH Electronic Storage Corporation, founded in 1989, is the creator of LaserVault document management and backup and recovery software products, designed for seamless integration, ease of use, scalability and affordability. LaserVault software gives businesses instantaneous access to critical business records, and is used by small to large businesses representing many industries, including: hospitality, financial, insurance, manufacturing, distribution, telecommunications, government, wholesale, retail, hospitals, pharmaceutical, construction, education, and utility companies.
©2013 LaserVault, LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, or translated into any language or computer language, in any form or by any means without prior express, written consent of LaserVault, LLC.
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