Data storage unpicked

zoom

The demand for more advanced and flexible storage options increasing, we talk to the key players about the latest products and what they can do for your business.

Recent government regulations, such as Sarbanes-Oxley, require businesses to maintain and back up a variety of data they might have otherwise deleted so for legal reasons, many small businesses are now archiving e-mail messages dating back five or more years.

Not only is this rise in accountability to blame but the expansiveness of the internet, its viruses and spyware, requires ever more vigilant backup and more storage capacity. For the small business leader all this spells extra cost.

Each new version of a software application or operating system also demands more hard-drive real estate than its predecessor. And it is not just the pervasiveness of the internet that is to blame.

The growing need to store large media files, such as video, and make them available to users on a network is generating demand for more sophisticated storage solutions.

What these storage solutions need to take account of - as well as the businesses controlling them - is the issue of security which, as the number of mobile workers rise, is a growing correlative.

Martha Young from business consulting company Nova Amber LLC has this advice on how to protect your PC's, smartphones and PDA's from external threats; the biggest one being the threat to your bottom line. If you consider these things when purchasing new storage you'll be able to serve your customer better which will result in better and more profitable business.

Establish who needs access and the level of access they need.

Implement storage access controls; with the theft of mobile equipment on the rise, make sure your devices have inbuilt security software that will prevent any sensitive data getting into the wrong hands.

Systemitise data storage procedures: Decide who will conduct back-ups, who will secure the data set, how the data will be secured and for how long. Set up a written storage policy and include information of how to use USB Storage devices, such as remote wiping capabilities and extra password protection. Try Bluefire security technologies and Credant Technologies for help.

Make the most of your storage provider: utilise their expansive knowledge as your own, they will want to keep you happy and in their custom.

The problem for any business is how to rise to these challenges without incurring the costs that integrating a whole new system would inevitably incur.

Such dramatic changes would entail long delays as the old system was closed and replaced with the new one, normal working hours disrupted and staff reorganized, all of which has to be managed with the right knowledge and experience.

Whats the best storage package to go for?

For businesses that can't afford to install a new storage solution there is Sun Microsystems. David A. Beck Storage Practice Manager for MENA.

Sun Microsystems, Inc told us about their latest thinking. Their system of data storage ticks all the boxes and negates the bind of getting tied into a single provider.

What often happens says Beck is that the service providers increase their prices and the customer can't afford to keep up; especially in these times of financial crisis.

According to Beck, small businesses need something that is scalable which is basically that they can be scaled up or down depending on how much it is being asked to do. Another thing they look for is cost-per-gigabyte and fault tolerance.

If a system rates highly on these points, you are on the right track but beyond that it is simply a case of deciding how much capacity your company needs.

The best in the industry according to EMC for fault tolerance is the 5 9's approach which means the only amount of unexpected downtime in a year is not more than 5.26 mins.

Print | Email | Discuss this article

| Share |

READERS' COMMENTS

Click here to post a comment

Add your Comment All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic. Arabian Business would like to point out that only comments relevant to the story will be published. Any containing personal insults or inappropriate language will not be approved.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *	(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Enter the words above *
Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.

MORE FROM ARABIANBUSINESS.COM