Data deduplication technology: A guide to data deduping and backup

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1 Tutorial Data deduplication technology: A guide to data deduping and backup Data deduplication is now a mainstream feature in data backup and recovery with an extensive range of vendors offering many different solutions. But a wide variety of products means more research and decisions on your end. This SearchStorage.com Tutorial will offer insight into the considerations you must think about when evaluating dedupe products. Learn about global data dedupe, inline vs. postprocessing options, the essential characteristics you should look for in a deduplication backup product and more. Sponsored By:

2 Tutorial Data deduplication technology: A guide to data deduping and backup Table of Contents Resources from Quantum Corporation Sponsored By: Page 2 of 5

3 Data deduplication technology: A guide to data deduping and backup By Dave Raffo, Senior News Editor Data deduplication is now a common feature across all disk backup products, with practically every major enterprise data storage vendor offering at least one data deduplication product. But a wide choice of data deduplication options require more homework and more decisions on your part -- do you want target-based data dedupe or source-based data dedupe? What's the difference between inline and post-processing deduplication? Should you go with a virtual tape library (VTL) or network-attached storage (NAS)? And will your backup load require global deduplication? In this data deduplication technology tutorial, we look at all of those alternatives and take a look at some of the most significant deduplication backup products. Learn about global data deduplication, what to look for in a data deduplication product, inline vs. post-processing deduplication, and more. Global deduplication and backup: A primer Now that data deduplication is rapidly becoming a mainstream feature in data backup and recovery, a big question for any data dedupe product is, "Does it do global deduplication?" Global deduplication reduces backup data across multiple devices and sites, so the devices act as one large system. The alternative is local dedupe, which reduces data on each device individually. Global deduplication becomes more important to your data storage environment when you have more data to back up and use more devices because it can often improve deduplication ratios. However, one of the biggest benefits of global dedupe is the ability to efficiently manage multiple devices. For instance, global dedupe allows load balancing and high availability. Sponsored By: Page 3 of 5

4 The major data backup software applications with dedupe today offer global deduplication. These include Asigra Inc. Cloud Backup, EMC Corp.'s Avamar, CommVault Simpana and Symantec Corp. PureDisk. Exagrid Systems EX Series, Falconstor s File-interface Deduplication System (FDS) and Virtual Tape Library, Hewlett Packard (HP) Co.'s Virtual Library System (VLS), IBM Corp. ProtecTier, NEC HydraStor and Sepaton DeltaStor support global dedupe on virtual tape libraries and disk targets. Some of the large deduplication vendors still only support local deduplication, including market leader EMC's Data Domain and Quantum Corp.'s DXi Series. Local dedupe devices each use their own repository, which limits the deduplication ratio when shifting a backup job to a different appliance. This means a 16-controller Data Domain array, for instance, acts as 16 separate systems. Data Domain execs argue that their systems are large enough and fast enough that global dedupe isn't necessary, although Data Domain also plans to include global dedupe for two nodes in its next product release this year. Independent backup expert W. Curtis Preston suggests that organizations backing up more than 50 TB of data a night should use global dedupe. Also, those with smaller but rapidly growing backups should also consider it. Sponsored By: Page 4 of 5

5 Resources from Quantum Corporation Learn How Data Deduplication Technology Works and How Quantum s Disk-Based Backup Solutions Can Help your Data Center Exceed Expectations Quantum s DXi8500 The Next Step in Enterprise Deduplication About Quantum Corporation Quantum Corp. is the leading global storage company specializing in backup, recovery and archive. Combining focused expertise, customer-driven innovation, and platform independence, Quantum provides a comprehensive, integrated range of disk, tape, and software solutions supported by a world-class sales and service organization. This includes the DXi-Series, the first disk backup solutions to extend the power of data deduplication and replication across the distributed enterprise. As a long-standing and trusted partner, the company works closely with a broad network of resellers, OEMs and other suppliers to meet customers' evolving data protection needs. Sponsored By: Page 5 of 5