Six reasons to centralize backups

Six reasons to centralize backups

Mark Lewis, SearchStorage.com Site Editor
Ed note: A SearchStorage.com reader posed this question to Bill Oliver about why you may want to centralize backups. Bill is currently the storage practices manager for PDC Solutions, Inc. Pose your own backup and recovery question to our resident experts.

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Question: What central storage system would fit our company? We have four existing servers catering to five divisions and 20 sections. We want a central storage system that would allow sharing of data and resources while providing automatic backup.

Bill Oliver's answer:

There are two primary models of centralized storage that fit your requirements. One is network-attached storage (NAS) and the other is a storage area network (SAN). Both architectures will provide for sharing of data, centralized storage management, greater utilization of storage resources, improved speed, and highly automated backup and recovery.

Which system will fit your company will depend on many factors:

  • What operating system(s) are currently utilized in your company
  • What applications are utilized
  • What is the existing infrastructure (i.e. network topology, server type and interface, etc)
  • How much total data space is required
  • What budget is allocated for storage
  • What type of automated backup you require

    For more information:

    A centralized backup can reduce admin costs

    Nine steps to less expensive, more reliable backups

    NAS gives hotel a vacation from backup headaches

    This was first published in August 2003

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