Data deduplication for SMEs |
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| Technology | |
| Written by Kevin Moreau from Acronis | |
| Thursday, 08 October 2009 | |
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What is data deduplication and why should SMEs take interest? Data growth in small and large companies alike continues to increase rapidly. According to IDC research, the amount of digital data created and stored worldwide has increased by 3,000% in just three years. In the current economic climate companies are under increasing pressure to cut storage costs, yet at the same time consolidate data. And regardless of these challenging requirements, IT departments must also be able to recover data quickly after a disaster to minimise business downtime.These are the drivers behind the hottest data-storage topic of 2009 – data deduplication. Enterprise companies have been quick to recognise its ability to reduce storage space requirements, improve storage systems performance and cut backup times. While this technology has traditionally been reserved for large organisations due to its high cost, as the technology matures it is fast becoming more affordable and therefore accessible to SMEs. Data deduplication: What is it? Data deduplication is a data consolidation technique that searches for large blocks of redundant data (typically 4KB and larger), and stores them only once, regardless of how many copies there are. A ‘pointer’ references the original blocks of data, rather than storing the data all over again. Put simply data deduplication eliminates multiple copies of the same data, by looking for files or data blocks that are identical and storing them only once. Types of deduplication There are two ways in which data deduplication works; deduplication at the source level and deduplication at the target. Some solutions provide both, whereas others just focus on one. When deduplication takes place at the source, replicated data is eliminated during the backup process before the data gets sent to the storage location. This method saves network bandwidth as the amount of data being transferred over a network to a target location has the possibility to be reduced by up to 20 times. This is particularly efficient in scenarios where existing networks are already running at near capacity or where remote office backups are carried out over limited network bandwidth. However, when using this method backups can take longer and use a lot of CPU cycles in the process, possibly creating performance issues on production machines. When deduplication takes place at the target, replicated data is eliminated during the backup process - when the data arrives at the storage location. This allows the initial backup to be completed more quickly by avoiding CPU-intensive deduplication activities on the source CPU. However, as all copies that exist prior to deduplication are sent over the network, this could potentially cause a bandwidth bottleneck as unduplicated data puts a strain on transfers. Less data, more benefits The huge potential of data deduplication is that it can cut data storage by as much as 90%. It’s a proven way for companies to store more data on less storage and as such it can lead to several noticeable business benefits: * Lower overall storage costs as storage capacity is used more efficiently resulting in a potential reduction of storage systems purchased and managed. * A greener environment as requirements for power, cooling and equipment are reduced, resulting in a smaller carbon footprint. * Fast return on investment as storage capacity requirements are reduced– this is particularly relevant for SMEs as they have the ability and flexibility to make changes quickly which translate into immediate results. * Faster backup and increased data retention capabilities offering the ability to respond to legal and corporate compliance requirements without adding an extra burden on storage. Deduplication for everyone Data deduplication technology is increasingly a must-have when it comes to increasing storage capacity and reducing storage costs. Although traditionally it has been hardware based and reserved for large companies, as it reaches maturity it is now available as an affordable software-based solution. Any organisation, regardless of size or sector, can benefit from data deduplication through backup and recovery technology.
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