Remote backup solutions

[magikman]

Hola,

 

During my first few weeks at my new job noticed that their backup solutions are really outdated or are simply non-existent. They currently have a large tape library that is connected to Backup Exec which is meant to do backups for the entire server farm. However, currently this system isn't connected to the network in such a way that will allow me to backup remote servers. So, I have two solutions for that problem.

 

1) Build an ATM circuit from the remote locations to the local tape library over a private 172 address space. The problem with this is that the ATM link will only be ~500M and there are ~5 servers to be backed up via this method. (~$23K)

 

2) Build a SAN at the remote location and have the backups for the remote servers created locally to that server location. This system would use iSCSI over an existing Ethernet infrastructure and thus would be considerably faster than the WAN link. This solution would provide storage expansion and facilitate much faster backups. (~$20K)

 

I am leaning toward the second solution to this issue. The backups would be much faster and it would be way easier to recover files from a local server rather than a remote library. However, the only issue I am looking at is the variety of servers which need to be backed up. We have a combination of Linux and Sun 2.7,8 and 10 servers.

 

Do any of you have a setup like this? How are you doing your backups? What types of systems are you using/running? If you are using a SAN, what are you using? I am looking at the PowerVault MD3000i.

 

Anyweb, could you get me some information on the MD3000i or put me in contact with someone that can provide me some in depth technical information on it (maybe even you)? If so, please PM me and I will send you my work email.

[znx]

Well, where I work we have two ancient backups, which is a ufsdump to a DLT tapes, a slightly more modern (but still old) mini-cartridge tape system. Then we have an older Networker based backup with two jukeboxes (16 DLTs). However the main backup system and thus the one you will be interested in no doubt is IBM Tivoli StorageManager/TotalStorage systems. We have two SANs on differing campuses and a third for the admin block. Two tape libraries on differing campuses too. Thus providing us a remote backup without needing to move tapes. Old Aberdeen Tape Library contains the backups for the Foresterhill campus. Foresterhill Tape Library contains the backups for the Old Aberdeen campus. So the controllers is on the campus, whilst the tapes are remote. Just recently to increase our overall storage, we have acquired ExaStore (by an IBM parent called Exanet).

 

See IBM article about us taking on exanet.

 

Of course we are lucky enough to have a really good network between both campuses (a 2Gb link iirc), see the layout of AbMAN.

 

Any questions? :P