Evaluating Backup Solution

In my extensive experience, I have worked with a variety of enterprise backup solutions, each presenting its own strengths and challenges. Financial institutions, in particular, have distinct needs—ensuring high performance, scalability, compliance, security, and cost efficiency are paramount in the selection of an effective backup storage solution.

Having successfully implemented Dell EMC Data Domain, Rubrik, and Veritas NetBackup Appliance within financial environments, I’ve witnessed firsthand how these solutions meet the rigorous demands of the industry. Most recently, I delved into ExaGrid, which I found particularly compelling due to its robust architecture and exceptional scalability.

Introduction

Today Industry has to handle massive volumes of sensitive data and operate under strict regulatory requirements. Choosing the right backup storage solution goes beyond just capacity—it must ensure high performance, scalability, security, compliance, and cost efficiency

Dell EMC Data Domain

1. Performance

1. Known for high-speed deduplication and efficient data reduction (deduplication key USP).
2. Uses global deduplication across all data.
3. Optimized for large-scale environments with high throughput.

2. Scalability

1. Scales up by adding more storage capacity to existing unit systems (more space and infra inside the DC)
2. Can scale out by adding additional Data Domain systems.

3. Cost

1. Higher upfront costs may offer better long-term value for large enterprises.
2. Licensing and maintenance costs can be significant.

4. Ease of Use

1. More complex to manage, especially in large environments.
2. Difficult to Get the Right skilled people hence always used to relay on Dell Support (The cost elevates ).

5. Support and Reliability

1. Enterprise-grade support with a global presence.
2. High reliability and proven track record in large enterprises and financial institutions.

6. Integration and Compatibility

1. Extensive integration with enterprise backup solutions.
2. Compatible with a wide range of applications and environments.

Veritas NetBackup Appliance

Performance

1. Optimized for NetBackup software with integrated deduplication and compression.
2. Supports large-scale enterprise environments with high-throughput backups.
3. The performance of the system was never an issue.

Scalability

1. Can scale up by adding storage, but compute remains limited to the appliance.
2. Supports multi-site deployments for disaster recovery and data replication.

Cost

1. licensing and maintenance costs add up over time.
2. additional hardware upgrades are needed for better performance and stability.

Ease of Use

1. Always need Specialized skilled people to manage and Maintain
2. Tight integration with NetBackup simplifies deployment for existing customers.
3. Traditional interface, Not to the mark of new generation Products.

Support and Reliability

1. Strong enterprise support.
2. Highly reliable, with robust data protection and disaster recovery capabilities.

Integration and Compatibility

1. Best suited for organizations using NetBackup as their primary backup solution.
2. Integrates well with enterprise applications and databases.
3. Compatible with cloud storage for offsite backups.

Rubrik

Performance

1. Uses a scale-out, cloud-native architecture with SAS/SATA disk for fast backup and recovery.
2. Provides instant recovery via Live Mount, minimizing downtime.
3. Leverages incremental-forever backups (this was key for Oracle DB) and global deduplication to optimize storage.

Scalability

1. Hyperconverged design allows seamless horizontal scaling.
2. Easily integrates with cloud storage for long-term retention and disaster recovery.
3. No reliance on controllers, avoiding performance bottlenecks.

Cost

1. The subscription-based pricing model has potentially higher long-term costs.
2. Eliminates the need for additional backup software, reducing infrastructure complexity.

Ease of Use

1. Simplified, policy-driven management.
2. UI is Great
3. The API-first approach enables automation and integration with DevOps workflows.
4. There is no need for separate backup software, as it’s an all-in-one solution.

Support and Reliability

1. Strong enterprise support with automated monitoring and proactive issue resolution.
2. High availability with built-in redundancy and self-healing architecture.

Integration and Compatibility

1. Native integration with AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and SaaS applications.
2. Broad compatibility with virtualization platforms like VMware and Hyper-V.
3. API-driven, allowing seamless orchestration with existing IT infrastructure.

ExaGrid

1. Performance

1. Uses a landing zone for fast backups and restores. front-end disk-cache Landing Zone (Performance Tier) for rapid backups and restoring long-term retention deduplicated data repository (Retention Tier)
2. Provides inline deduplication and compression. Since they write directly to the Landing zone hence the delay is very less. This is the key to faster backup.
3. Offers adaptive deduplication to optimize performance.

2. Scalability

1. Scales out by adding appliances, which also increases processing power. (which is not the case with DD).
2. Each appliance adds both storage and compute resources. Supports up to 32 appliances in a single system, accommodating up to a 6PB full backup with an ingest rate exceeding 516TB per hour

3. Cost

1. Typically lower upfront costs.
2. The pay-as-you-grow model can be more cost-effective for growing businesses.

4. Ease of Use

1. Simple to deploy and manage.
2. Intuitive interface and straightforward scaling.

5. Support and Reliability

1. Strong customer support with a focus on customer satisfaction.
2. Reliable performance with a focus on data integrity.

6. Integration and Compatibility

1. Has compatibility with various backup software.
2. Easy integration with existing IT infrastructure.

??