CPU Inc

Data Storage and Backup Solutions

Imagine this scenario. You walk into the data storage room at your business to change out a tape drive on your aged tape drives. You insert the tape and start the machine, but instead you hear a strange noise….. the tape has jammed and is no longer feeding but the head is still spinning….in a panic you hit the stop button. Now what?

We all know there are things that can go wrong with tape drives. Sometimes they’re not cleaned often enough and dust, media particles, and other contaminants could corrupt the drive. Maybe constant use and the vibrations have caused the read/write head to become misaligned. Maybe its head life has simply expired.

Regardless of the problem, you are faced with a choice. You could buy a new system which would cost thousands upon thousands of dollars…..or you can trust CPU Inc.’s professionally trained and highly skilled technicians to repair your tape drives. We apply a unique and effective method in which we keep all parts and supplies on site which translates into one of the fastest turnaround rates in the industry. In most cases, we are able to have your tape drive repaired and on its way back to you the same day it’s received.

We’ve recently increased our repair services to include all the following models-

• 18 track – 256 track (3480, 3490, 3490E, 3590, 3590E)
• 4mm tape drives (DDS-1, DDS-2, DDS-3, DDS-4, etc)
• 8mm tape drives (AIT-1, AIT-2, AIT-3, SAIT, Exabyte, etc)
• DLT and LTO
• 9-track tape drives
• Fujitsu, IBM, Tandem, JVC and other brands

As new technologies continue to unveil in the data storage market, many businesses are asking themselves the nagging questions, “Should we upgrade our tape based storage system to disk or a hard drive solution? Would it save us enough money in the long run to pay more now for an upgrade?” These are important questions that should be addressed with much consideration and care. There is a common tendency for each of us as humans to want to be impulsive in obtaining the newest and latest of everything. This passion does not exclude the desire for companies to be up to date with new storage devices.

There has been an enormous shift in the market, especially lately, in favor of consumer demand for data deduplication devices that store changes from backup to backup instead of storing full file copies. This unique approach reduces the disk space required by at least 10, and up to 50 to 1, delivering unparalleled cost savings and performance all in a solution that is less than 30% the cost of standard SATA based storage. A popular data deduplication company, Acronis, announced just yesterday that they have released a device that can calculate the amount of money any particular business can save by switching from their old storage system to one of their data deduplication systems. The deduplication calculator, “quickly estimates the storage savings an organization could realize using deduplication to cut storage requirements.” For example, ” a customer with 10 servers and 2TB of data that changes 5 percent per day and is kept for four weeks, will save about $20,000 in storage costs annually.”

Just because a fancily designed calculator says you’re going to save “X” amount of money per year by switching to a new system, doesn’t mean it is necessarily the best way to go for each person or business. These guys are, of course, trying to sell their product just like the rest of us and if it takes a money saving calculator to convince some than that is what they are going to provide. There are however, many criteria that should be considered when deciding whether or not to upgrade your storage solution.

One obvious aspect is the cost of upgrade. A completely new disk based backup solution for an average sized company is going to cost upwards of $20,000. In the end it may save you enough money to compensate for the high upfront cost but it still boils down to whether or not you have that kind of dispensable cash in your porcelain pig. Maybe you have one tape drive that needs to be replaced while the rest of your system is in tact and working fine. In this case, perhaps purchasing a newly refurbished  IBM 3590 E11 would be sufficient and would save you thousands of dollars without sacrificing valuable downtime required to order in a whole new system.

That leads to another aspect to consider which is the time it will take to set up a new disk based backup system. A good system should only take minutes to setup and begin working properly. If it needs anything more than an IP address, a system name, and the creation of one or more destination NAS shares to get online, then it is too complex. Also, once installed, the system should require almost no on-going management. It should worry about capacity, backup verification, and simply alert you when something needs attention. If the new system doesn’t line up with any of these criteria than it is probably not worth the hassle of upgrading from your old system.

As with any big decision in life, you should talk with an expert on data storage before making any rash choices. Our representatives at CPUInc are highly qualified and will make absolutely sure you get exactly the right product tailored to your specific needs. We can help you upgrade to the newest disk-based backup solution with byte-level data de-duplication or help maintain your previous tape drives with affordable refurbished models from all the major brands. Contact us today for a free consultation and to find out more about our products and services.

Dell is looking to beef up it’s storage features on its products and the debate is hot as to which company Dell should strive to acquire in an attempt to do this. A couple of different names fostering reputations in the storage department are CommVault, Acronis, BakBone and DataCore. All of these could offer Dell the benefit of owning a storage-focused software vendor. Dell hopes that an acquisition of this type is just what it needs to restore and maintain its growth that it has been historically known for.

As of now, CommVault seems to be in the forefront of the talk. Meanwhile, EMC and NetApp are engaged in a war in striving to obtain the data deduplication leader Data Domain. Because these, and many other competitors, seem to be gaining an edge on Dell, it is in their best interest to dive into their deep pockets and make a move such as the one they are trying for here with CommVault. There is an issue with the deal though that could potentially arise and that is in regards to the software required to run CommVault’s dedupe technology. It only works with CommVaults Simpana software. Also, if Dell were to purchase CommVault, it would likely hurt its relationship with Symantec. Severing these type of relationships in business can prove quite costly in the long run so Dell needs to be careful with its choice in the matter.

Another possible storage provider that Dell is looking into is a smaller company in San Diego called Bakbone. This would be an easier target to shoot at due to their size and could probably save some of the big relationship issues associated with acquiring CommVault. However, Dell has the money and a bigger buy out could be just what they need to climb out of the valley they’ve been in. At any rate, the debate continues and only time will tell what the honchos over at Dell will do.

For a more complete reading of the story, check out the article on Channel Web.

LTO (Linear Tape-open) drives have been around since the early 90’s. They were first developed as an open standard or “open source” form of other tape formats that existed. These other tape formats were controlled by Quantum and Sony at the time. The companies that saved the day are IBM, HP, and Seagate who ventured on creating a more open form of tape drive that would be affordable and still possess the storage capabilities of other competing formats.

The first LTO was released in 2000 and could hold 100GB of data in one cartridge. The most recent, the LTO-4, was released in 2007 and can hold up to 800GB. Its predecessor, LTO-3, was released in 2005 offering 400GB of native data capacity in addition to its new WORM capabilities.

Throughout the LTO generations, a common theme has presented itself over and over again. That theme can best be described in one word “double.” A popular flavor of chewing gum brought us the tagline, “double your pleasure, double your fun,” but it is the LTO, generations 1 through 4, that offers the greatest statement for businesses looking for affordable high capacity storage solutions. This is because each generation that has unveiled itself has doubled its storage capacity from the previous generation. The most important aspect though, is that, though the storage capacity continues to increase with each subsequent release, the size of the drive remains essentially the same.

If the above descriptions have not sufficiently informed you of the many benefits of using linear tape open drives at least as a supplement to your business’s storage and backup solution, browse through the list below for a more comprehensive understanding of the many features of LTO drives.

Outstanding Speed:

From the first generation HP 215 LTO Ultrium tape drive with a transfer rate of up to 15MB/second to the latest HP 1760 LTO4 that offers a transfer rate of nearly 160MB/second (576GB/hour), linear tape open drives  always provide lightning fast transfer speeds for the best price.  Couple this with a maximum rewind time of only 98 seconds and an average tape seek/filemark search time of only 75 seconds, and you’re left with less time dealing with your data backup and more time to focus on those things that really make your business succeed.

Great Durability:

Most lto tape drives are good for anywhere from 15 to 30 years worth of archival. Obviously this will depend on the number of cartridge loads and unloads as well as the number of file passes you require from your system. On average, linear tape open drives can handle at least 5000 cartridge loads/unloads and approximately 260 full file passes. A file pass refers to the amount of data written to fill a whole tape. These numbers are simply averages and will very depending on the generation of lto drive and the extent of wear and tear placed upon it by the user.

WORM Capability:

The third generation LTO-3 tape drives brought the write once read many (WORM) capability to the table for tape drives in 2005. WORM prevents data that has already been written from being re-written, reformatted, or erased. This is particularly useful for keeping legal records and records involved in IT transformation in the health care industry.

Easy Cleaning:

It is well known that using traditional cleaning cartridges for tape drives can cause damage and limit the lifespan of the drive. LTO limits the potency of this problem with its internal cleaning mechanism that takes care of cleaning tasks based on time and error rate criteria. This helps prevent the drive from using the cleaning tape if it is not needed.

The list goes on and on with ways LTO drives can provide an inexpensive yet quality way of storing data. If you would like to learn more about how an lto system can help your business, please fill out any of our forms with your inquiry. We will respond to your questions and can offer you price quotes on a system that will work best for your company. You can also check out the product details of some of our lto systems on our website at www.cpuinc.com/lto-tape-drives/.

A press release article about our recent updates to the site has been distributed by PRWeb, a popular online newswire. This is obviously big news for us, and is also big news for our customers. We are dedicated to becoming the top provider of new and reconditioned systems for storage and backup solutions, and are pleased to have our name being distributed to those who are seeking what we have to offer.

The release, in addition to informing others of our new website, discusses a little about our company, how we started, our focus, and emphasizes some of the major products we provide. All of which can be found right here on our site. The news article that was released can be viewed by clicking on the link below.

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/03/prweb2263264.htm

While we are excited about the attention, our number one concern is that we provide our customers with the best possible products and services. So, in regards to our website, if there is anything you see here or notice that needs changing, please let us know. Also let us know if you don’t see something that you would like to find here. For information on any of our products or to receive a quote please fill out any of the forms on the right sidebar or on the “request quote” page. We hope you enjoy your stay with us and look forward to serving you for all of your storage and backup needs.

Well we’ve done it. The “pass the time” hobby of newlyweds and mothers has quickly become the most popular source of new information for even the largest corporations. The blogging scene has exploded and we couldn’t let the ship pass by without jumping on board.

Here at Computer Peripherals Unlimited Inc., we’re dedicated to providing you not only with unprecedented customer service and quality products, but also with the latest and unbiased information about our products, brands, and even our competitors. We desire that our customers have the most positive experience possible in visiting our site and working with us to improve the storage and backup systems of their business(s). This is the reason for the changes you’ve seen in the past few months with our website.

We’ve worked with our professional web designers and programmers to create a more user friendly and visually appealing website for our customers. A lot of change has taken place here at CPUInc and there will be more to come in the near future. However, one thing that has not changed, is our vast inventory of quality tape drives and tape library systems.

We welcome you to our blog, and trust you will find value in the entries posted frequently in the future. We promise to work tirelessly to make it a helpful resource to you and your business. We encourage feedback and participation from you in order to help us make CPUInc.com an online destination that fulfills the needs of it’s customers and viewers.

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