Measuring Backup and Archiving RoI Through Tapes

author-image
DQI Bureau
New Update

How Tape Scores

Tape is less expensive and one of the most portable media for high capacity
needs, especially for backup purposes.

Buying Tips for Backup Software

  • Calendar-based scheduling to customize backup strategies at the click of a
    mouse.
  • Easy wizards to configure, backup and restore files and applications.
  • Ability to backup and restore multiple servers and operating systems from
    a single console.
  • Rotation schemes to easily manage daily, weekly and monthly backup jobs
    without user intervention.
  • Easy to install with the ability to start conducting backups
    out-of-the-box

Why Upgrade My Tape?

Capacity of each tape cartridge roughly doubles with each generation (about
18 months) which means the current technology stores four times as much data as
three years ago.

Performance of tape drives also usually doubles with each
generation so that the latest drives are also four times faster. So not only
will your backups now fit on one cartridge, they will finish four times sooner.

Media
Type

Native
Capacity (in GB)

Native
Transfer Rate (in MB/sec)

Cost per
unit (in $)

Cost per
GB (in $)

CD-RW

0.7

0.00276

1

1.5

DVD-RW

4.7

0.0162

4

0.9

DDS-4

20

3

10

0.5

ZIP

0.8

7.3

10

13.3

AIT-3

100

12

80

0.8

DLT VS160

80

8

45

0.6

DLTtape IV

40

6

40

1.0

Super DLTtape I

160

32

60

0.4

SDLT--II

300

36

130

0.4

LTO-1

100

15

40

0.4

LTO-2

200

30

90

0.5

LTO-3

400

80

115

0.3

Reliability has advanced with a number of new features making
errors extremely rare, and in the unlikely event of one, easier to recover from.

Compatibility is not a worry as SDLT, LTO and DDS drives have
read compatibility to data created two generations back.

Compliance has driven WORM (Write Once, Read Many) technology
forward, allowing data to be recorded and appended to a tape cartridge but
prevent erasure or modification to meet audit requirements.

Archiving Data-What's the Cost?

Archived data is retained for years, not weeks or months like traditional
backup data. Therefore, organizations need to factor in the cost of storing data
records over the life of the record retention period, not just the initial
software/hardware costs of implementing the data archive.

Hardware Requirements

  • How much data must be archived? What is the projected growth
    rate? How long will data be stored? Will the data be backed up to
    onsite/offsite tape or disk? Should extra capacity be allocated for
    unanticipated growth?

  • Will data be stored on disk (generally Serial ATA variants),
    specialized appliances, or a combination of disk and tape? What is the
    projected average disk and tape cartridge utilization?

  • Is WORM support required?

  • What level of RAID protection is necessary for disk-based
    systems?

Purchase and Maintenance Costs

  • What is the initial cost of the equipment?

  • What is the warranty period and what are the maintenance
    costs after the warranty expires?

  • What is the lifespan of the equipment? Will disk systems be
    replaced every three years, and tape drives every five years? Will new
    equipment need to be purchased before the data expires and is deleted?

Drive
Brand

Approximate
Drive Price (in $)

Native
Capacity (GB)

Native
Speed (GB/hour)

DLTtape *Prices
shown for bare standalone drives

DLT VS80

800

40

10.8

DLT VS160

1400

80

28.8

SDLT 220

3300

110

39.6

SDLT 320

3400

160

57.6

SDLT 600

4000

300

129.6

LTO

LTO 1

2000

100

54

LTO 2

2400

200

108

LTO 3

5500

400

288

AIT

AIT-1

1100

35

10.8

AIT-2

1400

50

43.2

AIT-3

3100

100

43.2

DAT

DDS-3

500

12

4.3

DDS-4

600

20

10

DAT-72

850

36

10

Software Requirements

  • Is the archive software compatible with the proposed
    equipment? Are any other software products or options required? If so, what
    are the costs of these products?

Environmental Information

  • What is the square footprint of the device(s)? How much
    does data center space cost (per square foot) in your area?

  • What are the power consumption and cooling requirements
    for the equipment? What are current electrical costs (kilowatts per hour)?

Source: Data Mobility Group Team DQ