Business Development, Strategy Alignment and Consulting News from The Business City London -

	The NearStore™ Backup Solution
	NearStore™ Cost-effective, fast-access storage for backup and recovery, reference data, online archival, and remote disaster recovery. Primary storage is best suited for workloads that require constant, high-volume access to data, such as intensive database activity and frequently accessed user data. Offline storage is used for applications where infrequent serial access is required, such as backup for long-term storage. Nearline storage is the ideal solution for workloads that require quicker random access compared with offline storage, but do not require the continuous, high-volume activity provided by primary storage. NearStore Solutions Network Appliance has established a reputation for reliable, scalable, and easy-to-use primary storage. NearStore inherits this optimized, proven software architecture while enabling a very cost-effective storage solution for nearline-based applications, including: Backup and Recovery, Reference Data, Online Archival, and Remote Disaster Recovery. With our strategic solution partners, we are now extending, enhancing, and leveraging previous work together by addressing the nearline storage needs of our customers.

	Nearline Storage Requirements The key to nearline storage is threefold. We must first integrate any new capability seamlessly with customer and existing NetApp® solutions. Second, we must offer a relatively quick access time combined with a cost per megabyte lower than that of primary storage. Third, we must incorporate robust data management architecture for the storage solution. Nearline storage users have typically turned to optical media (e.g., MO, CD, and DVD) and quick-loading tape drives (e.g., 3570, 9840). Access times of such technologies range from 10 seconds to over 20 seconds, including 5 to 10 seconds for a robotic media exchange. There are tape drives that have much slower access times, but they are not typically considered for nearline storage. They are used only for offline storage.				Faster Access Nearline customers have often asked for quicker access times, but all approaches heretofore have imposed significant cost both for acquisition and implementation. And since these higher costs translate into 30 times the cost based on lifetime ownership, customers have been frustrated despite their desire. This is why disk arrays are not used for nearline storage, even though they would allow for instantaneous access—the cost per megabyte and operational costs would simply be too high. Network Appliance, in conjunction with our solution partners, has changed this.
	NearStore Architecture Network Appliance is proud to introduce NearStore—a disk-based nearline storage solution. To create NearStore, we combined our award-winning Data ONTAP™ operating system with an array of ATA-based disk drives. Data ONTAP brings such features as the patented WAFL® (Write Anywhere File Layout) file system and integrated Snapshot™ technology. Data ONTAP also integrates technologies for data replication and online backup using the SnapMirror, SnapRestore, and SnapVault products. Using ATA-based disk drives allows us to deliver a next-generation nearline storage solution that meets customers' needs for much faster access (compared with current nearline storage solutions), thereby dramatically reducing the time-to-restoration of application service. This combination of inexpensive, ATA-based disks and the powerful Data ONTAP operating system gives NearStore a number of advantages over traditional nearline storage. http://www.netapp.com/products/nearstore/


























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