de-duplicationvendor Data Domain has become the first storage vendor to take advantage of a new interoperability feature built into Symantec’s Veritas NetBackup that allows data to be backed up to disk without the need to emulate tape (see Symantec Looks Beyond Virtual Tape).
The Veritas NetBackup OpenStorage (OST) API promises to ease management for IT administrators and simplify the backup process, eliminating extra steps required by virtual tape libraries (VTLs).
“The difference in ease of use is night and day,” said Brian Biles, Data Domain’s vice president of product management. “We’re a big fan of this kind of interface.”
Tyler Carter, senior product marketing manager for Veritas NetBackup, said other vendors will likely follow soon. “Most major hardware backup vendors have expressed interest and are in active development,” he said. “Over the next few months, we’ll see the fruits of that.”
He said Symantec is looking to expand this type of collaborative approach to other elements of NetBackup. Other plans for the platform include greater de-duplication and CDP for data centers.
The OpenStorage API lets administrators more easily manage key elements of Data Domain appliances from within the NetBackup interface and avoids the need to provision imaginary tape drives, slots and cartridges, as required by VTLs.
The new Data Domain OpenStorage software release consists of a software plug-in to the OpenStorage API that runs on the NetBackup Media Manager, which manages an optimized connection to Data Domain storage systems. The integration between the two lets administrators control the replication of backup images between multiple Data Domain systems from the NetBackup console. For NetBackup users, vaulting of data using WAN replication is now similar to vaulting a copy to tape.
Early user Interwoven found the new interface to be “incredibly fast and simple,” stated Raymond Lockley, the company’s core systems manager. The company now controls backups, restores and replication from within the NetBackup interface and manages backup services from within the new Data Domain interface.
Data Domain’s OST software option is available immediately for Solaris and Linux-based media servers. List pricing starts at $350 for an entry-level Data Domain system, which starts at $12,500 for the remote office DD120, and $19,000 for the DD510 entry-level system.
