Exploding volumes of data are driving the search for faster and more reliable backup, but data value and restore speed are also critical considerations. Designing a best-fit architecture requires that these elements are evaluated alongside total cost of ownership (TCO). This storyboard will help you: •Understand the business drivers that determine the value and sensitivity of backed-up data. •Recognize potential trigger points for a backup architecture redesign. •Compare the backup architecture and target available options. •Compare the TCO of different architectures. •Select a backup architecture based on a strong business case and best-fit analysis. Designing a best-fit architecture will ensure that you are adequately protected without overspending. The key is to find an architecture that is just good enough.

1. Mitigate Costs & Maximize Value with a Best-Fit Backup Architecture Strategy

3. Executive Summary Info-Tech Research Group

7. Don’t confuse backup with archiving Info-Tech Research Group Although backup and archiving play very different roles within storage architecture and have very different needs, they are often incorrectly used synonymously. Understand the distinction to effectively accomplish both goals. “ I don’t think of backup by itself ... because your storage has to include everything from primary storage to backup to disaster recovery and redundancy.” Ted Kull, Director of Information Systems Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) Police officers call in for “backup” to protect their immediate interests and initiatives. Data backup is no different. It protects the services from a short-term failure or outage. All current data and the majority of important historical data must be backed up to ensure a smooth process. Archives typically exist to provide occasional access to historical information. Most archived information will never be touched, but it simply exists to protect against the need that past data needs to be recalled. Archived data can tolerate a slow restore or retrieval because by nature it isn’t usually time sensitive. Even archived data should be backed up . In the case of an archiving failure or malfunction, important archived data may still need to be on hand. Info-Tech Insight:

18. Backup architecture is not one-size-fits-all; u se these scenarios to pinpoint the right architecture strategy Info-Tech Research Group

20. Use tapes for cost-effective backup of data that is not mission critical Info-Tech Research Group Speed is the top priority of tape owners looking into new platforms

21. Virtual tape libraries enable faster and more reliable disc-based backup while appearing to be tape Info-Tech Research Group Virtual Tape Libraries (VTLs) virtualize a disc array to appear as tape, which enables organizations currently using tape to utilize their existing infrastructure, software, and tools while exponentially increasing the performance of the backup and recovery processes. Tape Library Before After Most infrastructure remains the same before and after a move from tape to a VTL Virtual Tape Software Interface Disc Array SAN Backup Server SAN Backup Server Don’t use VTLs as a permanent solution, only as a temporary transition from tape to disc. In the long run, the slight inefficiencies of the extra virtualized layer will be significant. Info-Tech Insight:

22. Make an easy switch from tape by opting for a VTL for increased restore performance Info-Tech Research Group Data integrity and restore speed are the two biggest issues that drive organizations from tape libraries to using VTLs. Many tape users have complete confidence in their backup architecture in terms of capacity and backup speed.

24. Disc-based backup is gaining ground and adds increased comfort & short-term restore reliability improvements 1 Info-Tech Research Group Tier One Tier Two Archive 39% 32% 29% 46% 27% 27% Tape Disc Disc arrays tend to have slightly higher levels of tier one data, driving the need for increased backup and restore performance that comes with disc. 7%

26. Outsource backup directly to the cloud for smaller data sets to lower capital costs, but beware of the risks Info-Tech Research Group “ As for Cloud, to me that’s mostly hype. Sure, there’s something to be said for it, but in all the stories I read (and hear) people always seem to gloss over the minor issues of security and accounting. And performance, of course. You always hear of the miracles that will come your way with Cloud, but I’ve seen projects trying to get Cloud up in the air. And I’ve seen grownups about to burst into tears.” -Willem Vermeer, IT Specialist at ING Personeel VOF (DSP) Although it appears that data is just being shipped off to a theoretical “cloud,” there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes that add value to the availability of the backup. Pure Cloud Not Ready for Most Cloud direct backup is unrealistic for backups of more than a terabyte or two, especially if changes are frequent. Bandwidth would be constantly congested, and there is a high risk of bandwidth overage charges and a crippling of other Internet-reliant core business functions. Ideal Case There are ideal cases for cloud backup. A small business office that needs to back up a few workstations would likely find higher value and lower overall TCO through cloud direct backup, because it would obtain more value adds with almost no upfront costs. Don’t Underestimate Bandwidth Small shops moving to cloud backup usually underestimate their anticipated bandwidth usage by a significant margin. For a more accurate estimate, calculate not only the size of your data sets, but also the frequency of changes. E-mail servers are often the most overlooked while being the most backup bandwidth heavy, because they look small but change often. SAN Backup Server Deduplication Primary Backup Offsite Replication Thin Provisioning Local Redundancy Local Redundancy

27. Direct cloud backup eases the pain of upfront capital costs & increases flexibility, but puts valuable data in third-party hands Info-Tech Research Group Speed of backup and low upfront costs are the most important factors for those who use cloud direct backup.

29. Employ online/cloud local replication to ensure timely recoverability Info-Tech Research Group The extra backup step causes replication users to be less confident in their backup speed, but the local replication inspires much higher confidence in the restore. SAN Backup Server Local Backup Appliance

36. Watch out for these “gotchas” & pitfalls

40. Appendix I: Server Acquisition Survey Demographics Info-Tech Research Group Responses by Industry Responses by Number of Employees Which describes your current server acquisition situation How many virtual and physical servers do you maintain?