Small and midsize businesses (SMBs) and data storage providers alike have become almost transfixed by storage system features that control storage capacity growth. Yet there are SMBs that possess applications such as medical imaging, healthcare records and video surveillance who need storage solutions that prioritize data life cycle management over controlling data growth. It is these SMBs who stand to benefit the most from Imation’s recent acquisition of ProStor Systems and its InfiniVault platform.
Technologies such as data deduplication, thin provisioning and even VMware vStorage API integration are increasingly found on storage systems as a means for SMBs to optimize capacity on their storage systems. Yet the key for these technologies to be beneficial to SMBs is they must possess applications that routinely store redundant data, are over provisioned with too much storage capacity and/or are virtualized.
While this formula holds true for many applications within SMBs, these features provide minimal value to medical imaging, healthcare records management applications and even video surveillance systems. These more specialized applications store little redundant data, are generally not over provisioned, and may not even be virtualized.
These applications instead need storage solutions that can manage data over its life. While these storage solutions offer some storage capacity optimization features, their primary objective is to place data on the most appropriate tier of storage to ensure its protection, recovery and its long term viability even as it minimizes storage costs.
It is this more specialized role of data life cycle management that the Imation InfiniVault platform fills. The InfiniVault storage solution (which became a part of Imation as a result of Imation’s recent acquisition of ProStor Systems) is a platform on which small and midsize businesses (SMBs) can store data that they need to retain for a long period of time. Once stored there the InfiniVault assumes the role of economically managing and protecting the data over a long period of time even as it provides SMBs the assurance that they can recover the application data when they need it.
To deliver on these features, the InfiniVault offers:
- NAS interface. The InfiniVault presents standard file shares that are recognizable and addressable by these applications so they can easily store data to it.
- VaultCenter Operating System. As applications store data on the InfiniVault, its VaultCenter Operating System takes over the long term management and protection of the data. Part of what it does is the automated placement of data on the most appropriate tier of storage to meet application requirements. It also continually verifies the integrity of the data so it can retain it for up to 30 years.
- Multiple tiers of storage. The InfiniVault supports both fixed and removable hard drives (RDX media.) This gives SMBs the option to put their data on the most cost-effective media in order to meet each application’s specific data protection, retention and recovery needs.
- No licensing fees. SMBs have access to all of the hardware and software features on the InfiniVault VaultCenter Operating System without needing to pay an additional fee.
However what SMBs may find equally re-assuring is that as part of Imation’s acquisition of ProStor Systems it also retained ProStor’s existing channel. In so doing, Imation preserves the expertise that these channel partners have gained over the years deploying the InfiniVault storage systems and will serve to augment Imation’s initial channel force in the US before it looks to expand the reach of the InfiniVault internationally.
In the last few years there have been significant feature enhancements on storage systems to enable them to control and manage data growth. But not all data is created equal and SMBs will continue to possess and use applications that need and will benefit from storage systems that manage their data over its life. The Imation InfiniVault’s NAS interface, VaultCenter Operating System, support for multiple tiers of storage and absence of software license fees make it well-positioned to address this specific need within SMBs.