Earthquakes and the Modern Data Center
One of the challenges with cloud computing is that storing data in external storage systems is not as smooth a process as it should be. In an ideal world, cloud storage would appear to be a natural extension of the local storage system.
With that goal in mind, Quantum today has added three offerings to its storage portfolio that are designed to make it easier to access and share data stored via cloud service.
Q-Cloud Archive and Q-Cloud Vault use public cloud service provide by Quantum as an off-site tier within the Quantum StorNext 5 storage environment, while Q-Cloud Protect for Amazon Web Services (AWS) allows IT organization to use Quantum’s DXi deduplication appliances to replicate data directly to the AWS cloud.
Eric Bassier, director of product marketing for Quantum, says Q-Cloud Archive makes archived data stored in the cloud readily accessible to applications, while Q-Cloud Vault provides a lower cost service for archiving “cold” data for long term storage and to meet the needs of disaster recovery plans.
The end goal of all three services, says Bassier, is to make storing data in the cloud a seamless experience. To that end, cloud services appear as just another storage destination within the workflow of the StorNext 5 environment, says Bassier.
In terms of being able to replicate data into other public clouds, Bassier says that Quantum is awaiting feedback from customers before making a decision about supporting clouds beyond AWS.
As cloud storage continues to evolve, it’s apparent that the line between on-premise and cloud storage is getting blurrier with each passing day. In fact, in the not too distant future the natural assumption will be that some type of cloud storage is a fundamental component of the overall storage environment.
