Data, Data Everywhere

After unpacking the unit and connecting the surprisingly few cables necessary between the server and the library unit, I was ready to begin. Installing the Tivoli client was a breeze--StorServer includes the software for multiple operating systems with the appliance and a customizable global template file that ensures all clients are configured identically. Clients are available to support 35 operating systems, including HP-UX, IBM AIX, Sun Microsystems Solaris, Novell, Linux, Windows and Macintosh.

Good News Fast, easy data backup and restore. Compelling price point. Bad News Must bounce back and forth between various programs to accomplish all tasks.

The machines I was backing up were all configured with multiple partitions containing file systems. The Tivoli client recognized each partition, and I had the option to decide which partitions I would like included in the backup set; I was most impressed. Another interesting feature of the client is its Web-based interface, which lets users request file restores and gives them a venue for data archival.

Once the client installation was complete, each machine automatically registered itself with the backup appliance. After entering a name for each client node and making some final changes unique to each client, I was ready to set up the backup schedule. The S10000 comes with two backup schedules predefined: a daily incremental backup and a full backup slated to run on weekends. I configured each node for both backup schedules and waited for the fun to begin.

The next day, I found that the S10000 had performed as advertised--all the workstations had been backed up, as had the S10000 itself. The job logs indicated that the initial data had been copied quickly to the disk pool until the pool reached its threshold. Then data began copying a bit slower as the tape drives kicked in and began transferring the information to tape. A full backup of four of the machines in the lab and the S10000 took less than four hours.

Vendor Information S10000, starts at $19,900. StorServer, (888) 786-7765, (719) 266-8777; fax (719) 266-5576. www.storserver.com

Pools and Policies

One of the most attractive features of the S10000 is its ability to perform a disk-to-disk-to-tape backup. Data from the client computers is copied locally to the appliance and is put into the disk pool--a sort of holding ground. This allows for simultaneous backups from multiple clients as well as high data throughput largely because you don't have to rely on the speed of the tape drives for the backup. The S10000 comes with a 30-GB disk pool, which is small for some companies, but you can expand it by adding up to two 72-GB drives. Once the data has been moved to the disk pool or the disk pool fills up, the data can be copied to tape using the dual AIT-1 tape drives in the library unit, or it can be copied to another predefined disk pool. An unlimited number of storage pools can be configured, and these can be disk, optical or tape storage. Each disk pool operates under a policy that determines the amount of time data will reside in that particular pool or at what percentage of capacity the data will get moved to another pool. All this enables the S10000 to make the tedious but necessary job of backing up data less painful.

The product comes with a full three-year warranty, the first year of which includes a four-hour response time to calls. After that, the S10000 must be shipped back to StorServer unless you've purchased the company's extended service contract. This plan retains the benefit of the first-year coverage's four-hour response time. In all, it's a pretty good deal.

Eric Fleming is a network administrator for KI, a furniture manufacturer based in Green Bay, Wis. Send your comments on this article to him at efleming@nandgate.com.