subject: Disk Vs Tape - The Winner Is Tape Storage Technology [print this page] All of your business operations are being fueled by this data. Therefore, you cant compromise on data security. Worth of organizational data can be measured in dollars and is invaluable. So, the most reliable technology should be used for its security. There are many backup technologies available in market, but the topmost are disk and tape format. The readers might be confused as which technology can help create superior value for their investment, deliver superior cost-effectiveness and has longer life span.
This article will help data administrators in making a smart decision for their data protection as both technologies have been compared in terms of performance, security and many other vital aspects. RDX cartridge is the most popular format in disk storage industry, whereas the other famous technologies are SATA and RAID. On the other hand in tape industry, the leading format is LTO ultrium. Multiple LTO versions have been launched and LTO 5 tape is the newest version. In addition, the other best selling tape formats are VXA, AIT, DDS, Super DLT SDLT, SLR-MLR and Travan.
Tape storage solutions are economical and initial savings on system installation may reach up to 50% more cost-efficient than disk technologies. When using tape libraries, customers can benefit from the significantly lower operating expenses and superior automated performance. On the other hand, disk systems are more sensitive and their maintenance cost is also higher.
Tapes are portable and can be carried to remote sites or used for sharing sensitive corporate data without any risk of damage. The disk drives are not robust and require safe handling, whereas the tapes are ruggedized to withstand harsh conditions. Traditionally, the disk storage formats delivered higher transfer speed than tape systems. The fastest disk systems were RAID-6 and RAID-5. But the tape technology has taken the lead with an incredible data recording speed of 140MB/second. Such high speed is offered by the LTO 5 drives. The two disk system mentioned above can hardly achieve half that speed. Data compression is another advantageous feature that comes standard with tape storage solutions. This smart feature boosts the recording capacity of media tapes, while accelerating the tape drives speed to a staggering 200-300%.
Capacity is the most vital attribute. Due to the exploding data volumes, organizations demand more storage capacity within a smaller space. 2TB SATA drives helped the disk format to gain edge over the tape technology. LTO ultrium4 tapes were slipping behind with 1.6TB capacity, but thanks to LTO ultrium 5 tapes, this gap has reversed. This small tape can quickly and reliably record a magnificent 3.0 TB data. Majority of the tape storage formats feature error correction codes that enhance efficiency and ensure superior data accuracy.
Data security features are available in tape and disk formats, but the difference between these two is the cost efficiency. Tape media formats usually feature built-in technologies like W.O.R.M (write-once, read-many). In some tape solution like LTO5 and LTO4, hardware-based encryption mechanism has been introduced, thus making tape-based systems a smart choice.
