Since computers are an essential aspect of modern life, looking set to become yet further embroiled in our every day movements, their day to day reliability is fundamental.

Unfortunately there are people who seek to disrupt the use of computers with a variety of programs that are able to infect computers and subsequently damage them in some way.

These malicious programs range in effect from the mildly irritating to severely damaging. Computer operation is interfered with, data is deleted, recorded or corrupted, movement of the infection often rapidly spreading by the use of the internet.

Assaults on our computers often display the weaknesses in our security. Attacks such as these also highlight the degree to which we have all become interconnected and more sophisticated technologically.

Of the wide variety of computer infections in existence four characteristic varieties occur:

- Trojan horse: a computer program that masquerades as being able to perform a certain (usually benign or useful) task but that actually performs a different and damaging action e.g. erasing your hard drive or allowing open access to your computer. Once you click to use the program it downloads and your computer is suddenly infected.
- Viruses: these software programs attach themselves to specific programs. When these particular programs run, so does the virus, the result typically that your computer has been damaged in some way.
- E-mail viruses: these viruses are transported between computers via e-mail messages. Replication is achieved usually by this virus automatically e-mailing its self to most if not all of the e-mail addresses on the host computer.
- Worms: computer networks and the particular weak spots in their defenses are exploited by this electronic infection in order to propagate its self. A copy of this worm is able to scan the whole network for other computers with similar security holes through which it can then move to another computer for duplication.

Amongst the many cases of highly successful electronic infections a few notable ones have occurred. One of the best known was:

Code Red worm. This worm was released to devastating effect on the 19th of July 2001. In the space of 9 hours the worm duplicated its self onto new computers over 250,000 times. This worm replicated its self during the initial 20 days of each month, replaced infected servers with web pages displaying “Hacked by Chinese”, and continuously targeted the White House Web server aiming to slow it or shut their website down. After a computer had become infected a wait of about an hour occurred, after which 100 connections would be attempted to port number 80 of the www.whitehouse.gov website (IP number 198.137.240.91). The US government responded by modifying the IP address and spreading the word about the Code Red worm. As with many infections, strains have appeared over time. Since this is a well known infection it has been monitored very closely with patches being freely available on the internet with which to combat the new strains.

Other major malicious programs from the past have been the “Slammer worm” from January 2003, “Mydoom worm” (January 2004), the “ILOVEYOU” (2000) and “Melissa” viruses.

So as not to become yet another statistic during the next major computer infection outbreak what is imperative is that you frequently update your computer with the latest antivirus tools and patches, read about current threats and follow basic preventative protocol regarding the opening of attachments and downloading of files.

If your computer does become infected the most important aspect to focus in on first is to target it specifically so that it is unable to spread to any more computers.

Is information on virus data recovery required? If so, visit http://www.easydatarecovery.info/Got-Virus.php for more information.

These are tiny portable storage devices that are known by the other terms like ‘memory stick’. USB drives such as these are created by a whole host of brands such as Mini Cruzer, Lexar and Memorex, to name but a few. Computers that are less than 8 years old, or those that have a USB port work with USB flash drive technology. Prices of these drives have gone down significantly now with some models of around 1GB of space costing under $100.

The most frequent use of USB flash drives is for transferring data from work to home computers, negating the old requirement to ferry a laptop to and fro.

Flash drives are not as new a technology as you may think. These drives started back in 1963 as a new concept, and beginning production in 1968 as integrated circuit chips known as ‘Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor’s’ (CMOS). These chips soon became standard in the vast majority of electric devices available. CMOS chips managed a computers basic system settings, rather like the ‘Basic Input/ Output System’s’ (BIOS) of today.

Flash memory is a type of non-volatile computer memory that is able to undergo electronic erasing and reprogramming. In opposition to ‘Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory’ (EEPROM), typical of general PC memory, this flash drive memory is able to be erased or programmed in various blocks made up of numerous locations.

These devices are highly durable, computers don’t need to be shut down when they’re removed, and there are no moving parts (’solid-state’). Due to their very small size, around the size of a lighter, the biggest problem encountered is that of simply misplacing it. Many come with attached cords from which you can hang them around your neck or attach them to things e.g. your wallet.

What is important to know is that these devices have a limited lifespan. Only a certain number of write cycles are possible, depending upon the manufacturer and/ or model. As such these drives should generally not be used as an extra document folder with documents being saved frequently, e.g. every 5 minutes, for long periods of time. High levels of re-writing i.e. saving data tend to rapidly wear out the flash drive’s memory.

To stop people stealing your USB flash device and retrieving potentially important and/ or secret information getting USB flash drive stored information encrypted through a manufacturers recommended encryption service is a great idea.

With this kind of storage device data recovery is typically possible, especially if there is no physical damage. Recovery can be performed on your USB flash drive far from various recovery experts’ offices simply by them accessing it through an internet connection in your PC.

Did you know that lightning can cause computer damage promoting the need for data file loss recovery. For more information go to http://www.easydatarecovery.info/Lightning-Season-How-To-Avoid-Data-Loss.php .

Today’s computing networks typically have very powerful client computers with significant amounts of captive storage attached to each one. Processing power is very easily available and the Internet interconnects a huge number of private networks and individual computers. Captive storage for clients, servers and dedicated applications has exploded. Successfully executed backups and (more importantly) successful restores, may mean the difference between gracefully recovering from data loss and starting the countdown to seeking new employment.

As processing power proliferates, and dedicated captive storage follows along with each new machine, storage “islands” are gradually formed. Islands are dedicated storage arrays or volumes that are only used by a single host or a single application. One example of a common island is an Exchange server with an external SCSI array; another could be a SQL server with some dedicated RAID-protected drives. Captive locally attached storage for a database cannot be shared out to other computers nor can it be easily grown, moved or duplicated without placing a significant burden on or even causing downtime for the host.

These islands represent wasted hardware investment dollars, since many times some are underutilized while others are overflowing. Also these islands propagate over time they increasingly burden the systems administrators with management of the new growth. Storage islands often cause backup problems, requiring dedicated tape drives and software to manage multiple individual backup tasks - not to mention the time and burden on the host when a restore is necessary.

The benefits of centralized storage are that application data can be combined into a single storage device or pool of devices called a Storage Area Network (SAN). SANs provide very high performance data storage that can be scaled as needed. File sharing services, usually proved by partially or wholly dedicated servers, can be consolidated into a Network Attached Storage (NAS) server. A single application server can share files as well as host dedicated application data, as well as run software for backup and restore tasks. But as servers grow in capacity while narrowing their specialization, the advantages of consolidating become clearer.

With increasing pressures of security, regulatory compliance and corporate governance, management of business data is becoming ever more complex and important. Technology is allowing organizations to create and store exponentially more data; the key to being successful is managing that data explosion.

Consolidation means reducing the amount of time spent managing tasks, jobs,
applications and data growth. Moving all types of data to a single, central, redundant and high-performing storage server could mean less time spent handling repeated storage-related tasks and worrying about backup failures.

Direct Attached Storage (No sharing of data resources)
The most common form of server storage today is still Direct Attached Storage (DAS). The disks may be internal to the server or they may be in an array that is connected directly to the server. The storage may only be accessed through that server. An application server will have its own storage; the next application server will have its own storage; and the file and print servers will each have their own storage. Backups must either be performed on each individual server with a dedicated tape drive or across the LAN to a shared tape device consuming a significant amount of bandwidth.

Storage can only be added by taking down the application server, adding physical disks and rebuilding the storage array. When a server is upgraded then its data needs to be migrated to the new server.

SAN (Sharing of data resources)
A SAN allows more than one application server to share storage. Data is stored at a block level and can therefore be accessed by an application, not directly by clients. The physical elements of the SAN (servers, switches, storage arrays etc.) are typically connected with Fibre-Channel. Backups can be performed centrally and can more easily be managed to avoid interrupting the applications. The time taken for backups is dramatically reduced because the backup is performed over the high-speed SAN and no backup traffic ever impacts users on the LAN. The primary advantage of a SAN is its scalability and flexibility. Storage may be added without disrupting the applications and different types of storage may be added to the pool.

Adding storage capacity has become more simplified for systems administrators, so it is no longer necessary to bring down the application server. Additional storage can simply be added and then configured and made immediately available to those applications that need it. Upgrading the application server is also simplified; the data can remain on the disk arrays, the new server just needs to point to the appropriate data set.

The actual implementation of a SAN can be quite daunting given the cost and complexity of Fibre-Channel infrastructure components. For this reason, SAN installations have primarily been confined to large organizations with dedicated storage management resources.

The last few years have seen the emergence of iSCSI (which means SCSI over IP or Internet Protocol) as a new interconnect for a SAN. iSCSI is a lower cost alternative to Fibre-Channel SAN infrastructure and is an ideal solution for many small and medium sized businesses. Essentially all of the same capability of FC-SAN is provided, but the interconnect is Ethernet cable and the switches are Gigabit Ethernet, the same low-cost technology that is commonly in use today on most LANs, slightly lower performance but most organizations will not notice.

Network Attached Storage
A NAS appliance is a simplified form of file server; it is optimized for file sharing in an organization. Authorized clients can see folders and files on the NAS device just as they can on their local hard drive. NAS appliances are so called because they have all of the required software preloaded and they are easy to install and simple to use. Installation consists of rack mounting, connecting power and Ethernet, and configuring via a simple browser-based tool. Installation is typically achieved in less than half an hour. NAS devices are frequently used to consolidate file services. To
prevent the proliferation of file servers; a single NAS appliance can replace many regular file servers, simplifying management and reducing cost and workload for the systems administrator. NAS appliances are also multi-protocol, which means that they can share files among clients using Windows and UNIX-based operating systems. Administrators manage the NAS device via a browser window from anywhere they have network access and can assign shares, security settings etc. NAS fits right in with existing security and network management tools. As the business grows and needs more capacity, more storage can be added to the NAS device without disrupting users. One of the most common requests to a systems administrator is to restore a single file or group of files. With NAS, a feature called Snapshot

The Sarbanes Oxley Act was one of those historical events that changed the face of business forever. In its wake, many companies were left confused, wondering which types of data needed to be saved under the Sarbanes Oxley Act and which types fell outside of the scope. In order to avoid potential problems, most companies have adopted an all inclusive data storage approach, holding onto all data that flows through the company.

For most companies, the passing of the Sarbanes Oxley Act means a complete overhaul of their current data storage processes and a switch to smart, scalable, extremely safe methods of data storage. This article offers some points to consider when choosing data storage solutions designed for growing small to medium sized businesses.

Both tape storage and disk storage can be perfectly secure and sound solutions for complying with the Sarbanes Oxley Act. However, tape storage and disk storage are very different types of storage and the decision to choose one type of storage of the other is as individual as the company itself.

Tape storage is best suited for doctor’s offices, insurance companies, dentists, and other businesses that need to keep records of customer data. Even though there may never be a need to access the stored data, keeping it safe and archived is essential for being prepared for lawsuits, investigations, or general reference.

The reason that tape storage is a favorable medium for this type of business is that it is inexpensive to store massive amounts of data on tape media before having to purchase new hardware. Retrieving data from tape storage often isn’t as fast as with disk storage, but that isn’t too large of concern in terms of Sarbanes Oxley compliance. The Sarbanes Oxley Act requires that businesses produce documents within 48 hours which is perfectly feasible with tape storage.

Many companies that have been using disk storage are finding that they are quickly running out of room with all of the excess data being stored to meet Sarbanes Oxley requirements. However, this doesn’t mean that disk storage isn’t an optimal solution for many types of businesses. The biggest benefit of disk storage is that disk storage archiving doesn’t require a backup window and that data is quick and simple to retrieve. Today’s disk storage equipment is built to be scalable so that companies can afford to grow.

The most prominent problem businesses face following the Sarbanes Oxley Act is the issue of constantly shrinking storage space. The Sarbanes Oxley Act requires that all financial documents be saved - and that includes email correspondence. The storage of all of this additional data has really put a strain on some companies that are outgrowing their data storage needs every 6-12 months or are having difficulty organizing stored data. Luckily for most small to midsized businesses, large amounts of disk storage space is now affordable and designed for scalability to grow with the company.

NetApp and EMC, traditionally manufacturers of disk storage devices for large corporations, have recently brought to the market robust storage solution for small to medium sized businesses. The NetApp Storevault S500 and EMC’s Clariion AX150 allow companies to add blocks of storage as needed so that companies don’t need to shell out big bucks for storage space they don’t yet need. HP and Dell are expected to release disk storage products to compete in the SMB market very soon, meaning more options and affordability for growing businesses.

Though Sarbanes Oxley has been a source of stress for many organizations, the requirement to store and organize data is good for business beyond just compliance. In today’s information age, a company’s data is often its most important asset. Sarbanes Oxley encourages businesses to get their business practices organized and documented which almost certainly leads to a healthier company.

Author is a writer for Sunstar Co who specialize disk
storage and backup solutions. For more information you can visit http://www.SunStarCo.com

Buying recycled tape media for your storage drives can be a smart way to reduce costs associated with data storage. However, there are facts that you must consider before choosing lower-cost recycled tape storage. While some businesses regularly use recycled tape media to meet their data storage needs, there are arguments against its use as well.

Just like the audio tapes that you could re-record again and again, computer data can be erased, resold, and reused. Companies that sell recycled tape storage such as Graham Magnetics and DTC buy used cartridges from businesses, then inspect, test, and retest each individual cartridge and sell it as “like new.” Because these are not new, it’s less expensive than buying it as new.

If you do decide to use recycled data storage, it’s important that you choose a company that guarantees and certifies the quality. There is no industry standard definition of “certified” when it comes to this type tape storage. The value of the certification is essentially as strong as the reputation of the company that provides the refurbished tape and marks it as certified.

The most prominent concern with purchasing used tape media is that the end consumer has no idea where they originated or how it has been cared for. Though high-quality tape recycling companies thoroughly test and hinge their reputation on the quality of what they are selling, the ‘origin unknown’ factor just doesn’t sit well with some.

Tape media doesn’t last forever and does deteriorate over time. With used products, one doesn’t necessarily know how far along in its lifespan an individual used cartridge is. High temperatures and humidity are both factors that can shorten the lifespan, no matter its age. If stored properly, new cartridges will generally last for 20 years.

Suppliers of used tape media often offer their own lifespan guarantees. Graham Magnetics for example offers a quality guarantee of 10 years while DTC backs the quality of their cartridges for 5 years. If you’re serious about keeping your data for longer than can be guaranteed by a recycled tape media provider, then you may want to choose to purchase new cartridges.

The choice to use new or recycled depends on your company’s current situation. For a new, budget conscious company, choosing recycled storage for its lower cost is far better than holding off on implementing a data storage solution because of the cost of new media. Plenty of companies have relied on recycled tape media with no problems whatsoever, but ultimately you must balance the potential risks and rewards associated with new and used tape media against your individual business strategy.

Author is a writer for Sunstar Co, who specializes in disk
storage and backup solutions. For more information you can visit http://www.SunStarCo.com.

When you stop and think about it, it’s amazing how much of a company’s profitability is tied up in its archived information. 99.9% of the time, the right bit of critical information is there when we need it so we tend to take data storage for granted. Like anything else, digital preservation media such as magnetic tape media and optical disks have a finite lifespan. But ultimately, it is the way in which you protect and care for your digital media that determines how long the data will keep its integrity. In this article we’ll discuss ways to care for your various data storage media to increase its lifespan.

Tape Media
Tape media is one of the first forms of digital data storage and is still heavily used today. One of the reasons why tape media is so popular, aside from its dependability, is that that tape media is a mature media. Unlike the newest fad in digital storage media like the mini disk, devices that read tape media will most likely still be prevalent years down the road.

Before recording on new tape media, it’s best to send it through a full forward and rewind cycle for the purpose of equalizing the tape tension. In order to keep the tension retained while in storage, archived tapes should be put through a full forward and rewind cycle every year or two. When handling tape media, it’s essential that the magnetic tape always remain encased and never touched. Not only is the tape in jeopardy of being torn or stretched, but oils on the skin can destroy the stored data over time.

As for storage tape media, optical disks, or solid state media, it’s critical that the media be stored in its correct case. Tape media cases are designed to protect the tape media from harm by magnetic fields. When possible, choose archival quality cases for tape media that are designed in such a way that they don’t emit chemicals over time that could damage the tape media. Even if these archival cases cost a bit more, they’re well worth the few extra cents.

Optical disks
The top layer of the underside of an optical disk is where the data is stored which is why it’s so important only to touch optical disks on the outer side edges. Optical disk cases are designed to prevent scratches and should remain in their cases at all times. Preferably, cases should be made of heavy plastic and disks should never be stored in a paper sleeve alone.

If you do need to clean optical disks, use only optical disk cleaning solution and a lint-free cloth. Never wipe in a circular motion around the circumference of the disk. Instead wipe the cloth across the disk from the center hole to the outer edge. Take care with the label side of the disk as well. Only use a soft-tip marker with water soluble inks and never write on the disk with a ball point pen or a fine tipped marker.

Both tape media and optical disks should be stored in cool, dry environments that are free of smoke and protected against insects. Temperature, humidity, and other environmental factors must be rigidly controlled. The temperature in your storage room should be between 60 and 68 degrees and humidity maintained between 35% and 45%. Still, even with proper care, digital storage media doesn’t last forever. The life expectancy for tape media is around 20 years and about 10 for optical disk. To be safe and to keep your data in the best shape possible, you should recopy tape media every 10 year and optical disks about every 5 years.

Author is a writer for Sunstar CO. who specialize in data
storage and disk backup solutions. For more information you can visit http://www.SunStarCo.com.

Traditionally, many businesses have at some point done backup directly to relatively inexpensive tape systems. For many computer applications, it’s important to have data immediately ready to be restored from a secondary disk if and when the data on the primary disk becomes inaccessible. The time to restore data from tape would be considered unacceptable. On the other hand, tape is a more economical alternative for long-term storage (archiving). Because it’s also more portable, tape is often used for off-site backup and restoration in case of a disaster.

Disk-to-Disk-to Tape which is also known as D2D2T, refers to backing up data on disks first and tape (or optical disk) second. Backing up onto tape is performed at less frequent intervals than from disk-to-disk.

As backup and recovery becomes more of a chief concern in the data centers, many storage managers are looking to new technologies to make the process easier. In the near future tape is not going away, but it will be increasingly joined by disk as a core backup technology.

Tape was the only acceptable method of backup for some time. As with any other technology there have been problems, whether it be the media, the drive/library or the backup window. However, backup to disk locally, replicates the backup to offsite disk, then backup to tape there. One will never have to touch the tapes as they’re offsite already. In order for this to work though, you have to have something that changes the way backups are done. It simply cannot be completed with traditional backup software because there would not be enough bandwidth to replicate full and incremental backups.

When it comes to disk-to-disk tape, there are numerous manufacturers of hardware and software that will copy the data across. Most recently introduced is the Assureon, which is a combined hardware/software platform that provides fixed-content archive storage capabilities for the enterprise. This platform is disk-based, and offers both WORM storage capabilities as well as automated retention periods in which files cannot be changed or erased until their designated retention period has elapsed.

There are those skeptics that feel that disk is not ready for “prime time.” Many others may disagree. SATA Disk based arrays have penetrated every market, there are millions of these drives “spinning” and drive failures are rather infrequent. With RAID5 or RAID6 and hot spare implemented the odds of data being lost is extremely slim.

Author is a writer for Sunstar Co. which specializes in disk
to disk tape backup and recovery. For more information you can visit http://www.SunstarCo.com.

With technology today, you have a variety of options of backing up your data. In this article, I will cover many of the options that are local to your computer. Before you begin, you need to create an inventory of your data the locations and size of all your data. Please note: The tips/advice here are for backing up user/data files and not for backing up system/Windows files. As you read through this information, you will notice that much of this is “old school” back-up processes. I have used Windows XP backup but I prefer writing my own batch files and creating my own process as I believe this is cleaner for what I need. For example, in Windows XP backup, when you create a backup of several files, Windows XP backup, backs them up all into a single file. My method simply copies the files to another location, file by file, which means you are not later dependant on any Windows software for restores. Now, please know, that the Windows XP backup utilities are full of cool features, it is just I prefer to have more control over what I am backing up.

You are now ready to backup where data? But wait, my data is spread out all over my hard drive. Is there an easy way? Yes, there is. My method may not be the best way, or most slick method, but it works for me and has saved me many times. I write a batch file using the old dos command (xcopy) and copy my data from all the different locations on my hard drive into one central location. I can then save this folder to CD/DVD/etc. To improve speed, I use the command line options to copy only new files or files that have changed. The batch file has several lines like this

xcopy c:pictures*.* d:backuppictures /e/s/h/c/d
xcopy c:mydata*.* d:backupdata /e/s/h/c/d
xcopy c:mydocu~1*.* d:backupdata /e/s/h/c/d
etc

I now have all the data I need in one main folder

With that in mind, here are your options:

Saving Data to Floppy - I feel silly even mentioning this option, but it is still an option if you need to back up a few very small files and bring them with you somewhere. Please note, most computers today do not even come with floppy drives making this option all but obsolete.

Saving to a Zip Disk - A Zip Disk is much like a supercharged floppy or external hard drive. It is just another form of media that you can use to store data. While quick and simple, in order to restore to another computer, it has to have a zip drive attached, or you need to bring your actual drive with you.

Saving to a CD - Most computers today come with a CD drive that has write capabilities. What this means is you can save your data (up to about 700 Meg) to a CD. This option is more than adequate for the majority of computer users. Each CD drive has its own set of software that enables you to do this, so you will have to refer to your own manufacture/software instructions for details.

Saving to a DVD - If you have more then 700 MB of data, you may want to consider getting a writable DVD drive for your computer. While you may think of DVD’s for movies, the reality is a DVD is just another form of media for storing data. The movie is nothing more than zeros and ones. The advantage of the DVD is that a DVD can store up to 4.7 Gig of data. That is considerably more than a regular CD. Of course you will need a DVD writer. Fortunately, they are not that much more expensive than a CD writer. If you are buying a new computer, you should consider the DVD burner option. Like a CD, instructions for copying data to a DVD differ by the software being used.

Saving to a USB Flash Drive - Flash drives are now at 2 gigs of data and will soon be more. A flash drive is a small device you connect into a USB port. It is somewhat like your computer memory except it does not lose data when the power goes out. These handy little devices are becoming more and more popular as a quick and easy way to get data from one computer to another and have basically replaced the floppy drive. They can be used to back up your data, but you will only have the most current backup, and of course you are limited to the data storage limits of the device.

Another Disk Drive - Got tons of data? Get another drive. My preferred method of backing up data is to another hard drive. This is perhaps a little overkill, but it works. I back up all my data (many, many gigs of data) to another hard drive in my computer. This is quick and fast. It is also rather expensive and does not solve the off-site problem, so still need to save data to DVD’s. But this method allows me to incrementally backup my data at any give time, and allows me the options to create a permanent backup at a later time. The advantage was clear when I had to rebuild my computer. Once the OS was installed and patched, I simply attached my backup drive, and presto, there was ALL my data. No restores, no waiting around, it was just there. Had I had to rebuild my computer due to viruses or other issues, I may not have been able to do this because my files on my backup drive could have also been infected. So be careful when using this strategy. You can purchase external hardrives for this type of activity.

Saving to Tape - It is unlikely that you will want to save your data to tape if all you have is a personal computer or two. Tape drives are expensive and the tapes for the drives are expensive as well. Tape backup does make sense in large data centers or file servers as this method provides a good alternative to backing large amounts of data day after day. It also provides a good back tracking record as tapes are usually rotated on some sort of schedule. If you have a home business with several computers, a few file servers, and gigs and gigs of data, then a tape backup may be the thing for you.

Keith Scott is a successful Webmaster and publisher of Computer Backup and Recovery Strategies. His website provides practical backup tips, advice, solutions, remedies etc., on how to backup and secure your personal computer that you can explore in the privacy of your own home.

When comparing different types of data storage devices, you’ll certainly read and hear about all of the great things that each product has to offer. But what about the downside to each type of media storage? Optical drives, tape media, and disk storage, all have their own set of pros and cons that you’ll need to evaluate before making a decision about which type data backup strategy to implement.

#1 Lifespan of the Data:
In most sales copy, you’ll read about how much storage space a particular type of media offers, but rarely will you read about how long that data will last. Most people just assume that once stored, their data will be safe forever. The data stored on optical drives, tape media, and disk storage each has a shelf life depending on the media type, the brand of storage device, and how it’s cared for.

Optical disks: Between x and x years
Tape media: Between x and x years
Disk storage: Between x and x years

Just because one type of media has a shorter lifespan than another doesn’t mean you shouldn’t choose it. It is, however, critical to know the life expectancy so that you can implement a foolproof process for recopying the data at regular intervals. It’s more important to choose a data storage type that fits with your business processes than the one that will last the longest.

#2 Potential for Data Failure:
The whole point of backing up data is to have it available should the unthinkable occur. But what if it’s not there when you need it? Optical drives, tape media, and disk storage all have their own acceptable and expected rates of failure. According to some statistics, disk storage has an approximate Mean Time Before Failure (MTBF) rating of 600,000 to 1,000,000 hours while tape media has a MTBF of about 400,000 to 500,000 hour.

Again, just because one type of data storage has a greater rate of failure than another doesn’t mean it’s not the right option for your business. After all, a failure every 1,000,000 or a failure every 600,000 is still a failure. The logical approach is to ensure that there is system in place to catch and repair failures. It’s more important to inquire about a specific product’s failure backup strategy than make a decision based on failure rate alone.

#3: Length of Time to Restore Data:
When data is lost, recovering systems and data to their pre-disaster state doesn’t just happen instantly. Optical drives, tape media, and disk storage each require different processes and require different lengths of time to recover data. It’s essential to calculate the cost of downtime for your business. How much money will you lose for each hour you’re your systems are down? How much downtime can you afford?

You won’t want to choose your data storage device on this factor alone, but it should be a big part of your consideration. While disk storage can have everything back up and running fairly quickly, it can’t store nearly as much data as tape media. You may need to combine multiple types of data storage devices for different types of data.

It’s important to seek out an unbiased opinion on these issues when choosing your data storage solution. When you begin doing your own research on any one of these subjects, you’ll find that each of these issues tends to spark heated debates among proponents in different industries. Not surprisingly, the data figures vary widely depending on who publishes them.

In order to obtain the most objective information about the right type of data storage solution for your particular business, a value added reseller is a smart option. These are educated resellers that offer a wide variety of media types and brands along with free one on one consultation. This way, you’ll not only get a logical, unbiased consultation, but a data backup strategy that is completely customized for your business.

Author is a writer for Sunstar Co. who specialize in disk
storage and data backup solutions. For more information you can visit http://www.sunstarco.com.

In today’s competitive and growing business environment, information is an increasingly valuable, but costly organizational asset.

The volume of information is growing very rapidly in most organizations and the need to protect and manage information also continues to increase. Organizations are seeking to minimize risk, reduce costs, and increase flexibility by aligning IT investments according to information value and business needs.

With information on demand, business can respond with flexibility and speed to customer requirements and market opportunity.

Getting there involves three aspects: