FalconStor Software hopes to make backup and recovery easier with a new family of self-contained backup and recovery solutions based on its IPStor storage networking infrastructure software.
The company says its new Network Storage Server (NSS) Appliances provide data retention and retrieval services via turnkey appliances, and are “cost-effective, scalable, and easy to deploy and manage.” FalconStor says the appliances “address the needs of organizations ranging from small to medium to the enterprise with departmental requirements seeking intelligent backup and rapid recovery services to optimize business continuity and maximize return on investment.”
The VirtualTape Library Appliance (VTL) appears to third-party backup software over Fibre Channel or an IP/iSCSI SAN as an ordinary (virtual) tape drive or library. It centralizes the management and provisioning of backup resources and improves the reliability of backup operations and the speed of recovery.
FalconStor says the VTL product provides high availability via active-active clustering, expanded platform (NAS, IBM iSeries) support, seamless interoperability with leading tape drives, libraries and backup software, and backup consolidation through policy-based delta replication over IP.
The DiskVault Appliance – Server Edition, is policy-driven and collaborates with FalconStor’s DiskSafe and Snapshot Agent technology residing on the application server (Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Exchange or IBM Lotus Notes) to perform real-time delta snapshots with 100% database integrity. If the application server experiences data loss due to soft or hard errors, the DiskVault Appliance SE can provision the selected disk, designated by time, over an IP/iSCSI network. If the application server is equipped with a bootable iSCSI HBA, the DiskVault Appliance SE can boot the application server over an IP/iSCSI network when its boot disk fails.
The DiskVault Appliance – Workstation Edition collaborates with FalconStor’s backup agent technology residing on the workstation to deliver delta-based file backup and restore services. The DiskVault Appliance WSE maximizes availability by protecting the files in the workstation’s boot and data drive. Upon disk failure, the DiskVault Appliance WSE uses the industry-standard PXE protocol to boot the workstation and resume operation with minimal downtime.
“The nature of storage in today’s business environment puts new demands on business-critical data, and requires that storage systems deliver bulletproof backup capabilities, near-instant restore functionality, and constant data access and availability,” states Nancy Marrone-Hurley, senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group. “FalconStor’s VTL solution provides a compelling approach to data recovery and backup by bringing to market high-capacity, easy-to-use solutions that deliver enterprise-level storage services at a cost affordable to businesses of all sizes.”
NSS VTL Appliances start at $14,500 for the IP/iSCSI Edition and $19,900 for the Fibre Channel Edition. The NSS DiskVault Appliance starts at $9,000 for the Workstation Edition and $10,000 for the Server Edition. The appliances are available through authorized FalconStor solution integrators.