A new series of data-backup and disaster-recovery appliances has been unveiled by a company this week. The appliances combine a server, hard-drive cache, tape library, and the Tivoli Storage Manager (TSM) software application in a turnkey solution.
According to Kevin Hoffman, vice president of sales at Hoffman Technologies, a storage solution provider based in Sacramento, California, this product brings an enterprise-level storage solution with full TSM support to smaller businesses. He mentioned that most smaller customers are not interested in TSM due to the high cost of integrating the necessary server, tape, and software, which typically amounts to about $50,000. However, Hoffman expects customers’ perceptions to change with this fully integrated solution.
While the company has previously offered similar appliances based on tape libraries from vendors like Overland Storage, Qualstar, and Spectra Logic, the latest family incorporates a Sony tape library using AIT drive technology. This marks the company’s first offering aimed specifically at small businesses, according to Ellen Rome, vice president of channel sales and marketing at StorServer in Colorado Springs.
The Y-series solution consists of a 4U rack-mount server with hard-disk-based storage and a 2U Sony AIT tape library, as explained by John Sorensen, vice president of manufacturing at StorServer. Customers need to perform a full backup to the appliance upon installation. After that, TSM allows for incremental changes to be backed up to disk first and then to tape.
Sorensen highlighted that as a result, a full backup is available for restoring files or a system for as long as needed. Additionally, customers can go back up to 20 days to recover files or systems at a specific point in time. He emphasized that TSM is the best technology for this capability.
For small business clients interested in implementing a disaster recovery program, the Y-series is worth considering, according to Hoffman. He mentioned that TSM includes Disaster Recovery Manager, which is the only product he knows of that writes a disaster recovery plan for customers. This plan includes instructions on where tapes should be stored. Hoffman explained that customers just need to answer a series of questions, and the plan is generated automatically.
Hoffman also noted that the Y-series is suitable for the government space. He explained that if the government requires a solution like this, it would typically involve separate bids for a server, tape library, and software, potentially going to different companies. However, the Y-series offers a turnkey solution, allowing it to be done with a single bid.
The Y-series appliances are available in different configurations and price points. The Y1 starts at $12,900 and comes with 100 Gbytes to 300 Gbytes of non-RAID ATA hard-disk capacity and one AIT drive. The Y500 starts at $13,900 and offers 20 Gbytes to 160 Gbytes of non-RAID SCSI disk and one tape drive. The Y1000 starts at $20,900 and provides 50 Gbytes to 190 Gbytes of RAID SCSI disk and two AIT drives. These appliances are available to both StorServer and Sony solution providers.
StorServer currently sells its products exclusively through solution providers. According to Rome, the company has around 65 partners in North America but is actively recruiting more partners who can sell this turnkey solution. Partners have access to online quoting tools from StorServer and can receive margins of up to 35 percent on the integrated solution.
Currently, implementation is handled by StorServer. However, the company plans to certify partners who undergo two weeks of training, participate in three installations with StorServer personnel, and have previous certification for TSM, as stated by Sorensen.