Speeding up backups using a VTL (virtual tape library) at a remote office promises additional benefits such as eliminating the need for clerical staff to handle tapes, and facilitating safer backup cycles with fewer headaches -- if you can afford it, that is.
If budget constraints and complexity have kept VTLs out of your remote offices or your small datacenter, you might take a look at the StorageWorks VLS1000i, a new line of VTL appliances that HP will begin shipping in May.
The first model of the new line, the VLS1002i, has the appearance of a 1U server and a usable capacity of 1.5TB, carved out of four 500GB SATA drives in a RAID 5 configuration. Using the Web-based management application, you can make the appliance simulate up to 12 LTO-2 tape drives and up to 180 cartridges.
Connectivity is via GbE. The appliance and its virtual drives and cartridges communicates with Windows servers via the free iSCSI initiator from Microsoft. Support for Linux should follow but HP has not yet announced a date.
For about $6,000, the VLS1002i bundles a single server license of HP's Data Protector Express, but I am told that qualification of the VLS1002i with other major backup apps is in progress.
What's not to like about the VLS1002i? It's a pity that the appliance cannot run the backup application itself, because that would consolidate two boxes into one, a great plus if you have many branches. Also, WORM is not an option; you'll have to look elsewhere if your lawyers say it's needed.
Finally, the appliance doesn't expand beyond 1.5TB, so you'll have to deploy multiple units for more capacity. If these points don't avert your interest, the HP StorageWorks VLS1002i comes with a price and features that put many LTO-2 autoloaders to shame.
--Mario Apicella
HP StorageWorks 1002i Virtual Library System
HP, http://www.hp.com
Cost: $6,000
Availability: May
Posted by Mike Barton on May 24, 2006 04:28 PM
