With the retention life of data increasing, many organizations are trying to determine the best long-term storage strategy for the future. To do this, organizations must analyze the reliability, security and speed of data storage solutions, including both cloud and tape storage.
“Comparing Tape and Cloud Storage for Long-Term Data Preservation”, a white paper published this month by Spectra Logic, explores how a hybrid archive solution, consisting of both cloud and tape, may be deployed to optimize the strengths of each medium while reducing risks of storage failure.
A quick web search could convince someone that cloud technology has taken over the computing and storage market. “Comparing Tape and Cloud Storage for Long-Term Data Preservation” demystifies current perceptions of each technology’s inherent strengths and weaknesses to allow for a side-by-side comparison of factual performance in areas of great importance to any organization’s long-term preservation strategy.
Catch a glimpse below of some of the points discussed in the Spectra white paper.
Reliability
Reliability, stability, and life expectancy are always top considerations for any organization when choosing a storage platform. Storing data at only one storage site is not a sound business decision, with lots of recorded individual failures of data. This paper examines what is required to achieve optimal reliability with tape and cloud technologies, as well as the nuances of cloud Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and the impacts of potential downtime.
Security
According to the Identity Theft Resource Center (IRTC), three-quarters of US businesses, including retailers, restaurants, hospitals and doctors’ offices, have had cloud-related data breaches of some kind, and half of all those data breaches happened in 2017 alone. The white paper goes over strategies to protect data from ransomware and cyberattacks with both cloud and tape technology, as well as potential vulnerabilities and pertinent cost considerations for each storage method.
Speed
Previously, tape had a reputation of being slow, while cloud storage has the perception of being fast and agile. This paper reviews recent technology advancements, and flips the script by scrutinizing how control, flexibility and bandwidth affect data uploads. Data retrieval scenarios are also analyzed, examining which technologies performs best when data capacities grow and speedy recoveries of data becomes necessary. Read the white paper to understand what impacts retrieval time for each storage method and how to make the educated decision that best serves your business.
Data Growth
In the next two years, many organizations are expected to quadruple the amount of data that needs to be stored – driving storage technology vendors to develop improvements and upgrades to their solutions. Read on to learn how data growth and technology advancements affect cloud pricing and what to consider when navigating growing amounts of data.
Expected Future Costs
Total cost of ownership (TCO) is perhaps the most important upfront factor when making the final decision for a storage option. What TCO trends can be observed in each of these solutions?
With the above factors in mind, many organizations are finding that a combination of cloud and tape for archiving is extremely effective at ensuring reliability, security, and cost savings. Read “Comparing Tape and Cloud Storage for Long-Term Data Preservation” for an investigation into the best suited approach for long-term data storage and archive.