Redundant Backup arrays are getting bigger
by Mountain Computers Inc., Publication Date: Saturday, July 23, 2022
View Count: 755, Keywords: Backups, Arrays, Data Redundancy, Hashtags: #Backups #Arrays #DataRedundancy
In the past 15 years, backups went from server image cloning and snapshots to redundant arrays. While I have maintained N+1 is 1, then N+2 is still 1 in a way. Here is what I mean.
I have rolling redundant arrays working all the time in various locations, and teams and contacts who have alerts and tools to pick and review files across a time line and continuum, from just a few hours, to a day, week, two weeks, and months. It just depends on how much your data is growing and changing.
Well, in the past 3-5 years, the big data has come to the picture and video industry via drones. For example, a site survey of a property is to be a few snapshots from the ground or from some higher building nearby above elevation of the property, yet now with drones, those 5-10 pictures are now 50-100 and the image resolution is not 200-500KB its now 1-2MB or larger.
I have seen site survey folders with pictures ranging from the old days of 50MB to now 20GB. That is huge. Then, the folks zip the pictures and videos up as a package and then deliver that, so that is twice the space, just for one instance for one site project. That is crazy. Yet, IT does not tell business what to do, just sort of how to help them do it more efficiently.
Which leads me to larger redundant arrays use to take 24-36 months to require doubling in capacity, yet now its more like 12-18 months. What 4TB use to be good enough for 100-150 project in live storage, it's now 4TB at a minimum, requiring 4TB in file level incremental hot backup and 8TB warm backup, to now 8TB live backup via incremental snapshots to 16TB warm backup in no time, 20TB-32TB. The good thing is that drives are about $350 for 16TB and 16-32TB arrays are now about $1200. So that's good.
It's just business need immediately access to at least 5-7 years back for lots of different things, from construction expansion and review on pre- and existing sites in order to to audit, fulfill compliance, and other purposes like litigation and insurance.
It's really takes due diligence and perseverance to keep data protected, layered, hot, warm, cold and more.
What is your viewpoint and strategy? Just buy something BIG one time a black box OEM proprietary solution that requires expensive OEM support and MSP prowess oversight, or incrementally add to OEM white box solutions that actually work and are easier to support and manage, and of course, are mobile.
You decide. For me, I do both. I mix black box OEM and white box OEM and get creative yet efficient and effective with limited resources and time, yet maximum return on investment for layered protected storage.
Don't forget this lovely tool set below as well. most docking stockings for hard drives won't support 16TB unless you get something like this.
Do your due diligence and sleep good at night.
References:
5. Windows Server ROBOCOPY utility (built-in / baked-in) since 2008 and before...
6. Windows Server Backup (Full Metal Barebones)
8. Cloning Tools ; EASEUS ToDo Clone, MiniTool Partition Wizard, CloneZilla, and more...
more to come...
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