Alex Truax

Do we still need VM-specific backup tools? [video]

by

This is one of the big questions in 2016 (and each of the past few years as well). Have the “traditional” unified data protection solutions caught up in reliability and agility to the degree that the need for “point products” that only protect VMs are no longer necessary? To help answer the question, I’ve recorded a short … Read more

Mix and match data protection methods

by

There’s a debate going on about data protection methods right now, and it centers on “disk, tape or cloud.” Of course, cloud is a delivery mechanism, not a medium, and cloud providers are using disk and near-line tape, too. But what kinds of media and architectures are organizations really using for backup? According to ESG … Read more

Plan for Hybrid Data Protection Media in 2016

by

More and more folks are first protecting their data (backups, archives, etc.) to disk — for several good reasons, including SLAs for data retrieval/restoration/recovery, deduplication efficiencies, etc. But as definitively as disk is the preferred “protection storage” as a second tier, the third tier is far less defined. For some, the deterministic factors are BC/DR … Read more

New Year’s Resolution – Talk to More People about Data Protection

by

For 2016, one of my hopes for IT professionals is that you’ll talk with a wider variety of stakeholders within your organizations about data protection and the myriad methods for data retention and recovery that should be part ofone holistic strategy in ensuring the protection and preservation of corporate data, regardless of where the data resides or … Read more

Are cloud storage gateways the new virtual tape library?

by

There are a myriad of data protection appliances available, many of which defy the early definition of a purpose-built backup appliance (PBBA). Today, there are at least four types of data protection appliances: (Real) backup appliances: Includes both the backup engine and some amount of storage. Storage/Deduplication appliances: Target devices that are fed by backup/archive … Read more