When You re Talking Data Storage, Media Matters by Pete Lorenco

You probably wouldn't think your organization could have anything in common with the operations of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), a particle accelerator in Switzerland with a circumference of more than 17 miles. But it most likely does.

Since it first opened in 2008, scientists have been using the accelerator to study everything from the so-called God particle to the nature of dark matter. To date, researchers at the facility, operated by the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), have analyzed more than six quadrillion proton-proton collisions. This is where your company comes in. Believe it or not, you're most likely using the same criteria for choosing a media storage partner as the collider's data specialists: dependability, cost and security.

The Many Benefits of Magnetic Tape

The thinking behind CERN's choices in storage media is particularly interesting with regard to tape-a format that's been around for more than six decades. For several key reasons, tape complements disk and cloud storage as part of an organization's total storage strategy.

Tape storage offers:

Inexpensive implementation and operation. Given the number of tapes that CERN has to buy on a regular basis, the affordability of the format is obviously a big selling point. Tape systems are an economical choice for an initial purchase and less expensive to maintain than disks.

Exceptional reliability. Whether it holds data from quadrillions of LHC collisions or your company's tax information, tape is the best format for long-term data storage. When preserved under the proper atmospheric conditions with a trusted partner, tape can last almost 30 years without failing, while disks can begin to degrade in as little as five years.

The comfort of offline security. The head of data storage at CERN claims that tape is safer from hackers than disk because the latter's memory can be deleted with a few keystrokes. Storing your tape with a secure partner can add another layer of protection because it will be offline and offsite, shielding it from both prying eyes and system failures.

Ultra-high capacities. Researchers at the collider also depend on tape because of the amount of information it can store. The tape cartridges they currently use have a capacity of more than 8 terabytes (TB). In the next few years, these numbers should go even higher.

Props for Disk and the Cloud

Despite their major dependence on magnetic tapes, CERN still uses magnetic disks and the cloud, and with good reason. By storing on an 83,000-disk system, concurrent users of CERN's enormous Data Center have speedy access to the information that the collider is constantly generating. Disks are ideal for those files you know you'll need in a flash.

As for the cloud, CERN uses an open-source cloud operating system that makes data readily available for dozens of authorized users. For businesses, the cloud offers equally easy access to data through secure Web portals. In addition, since most providers offer pay as you go plans that start at pennies a GB, the cloud is another economical option for thrifty organizations.

The LHC continues its research into the mysteries of the universe, but its storage specialists seem to have solved the storage riddle. While you may not be filling up 83,000 disks a year, the LHC model and a trusted vendor can help you create a similar hybrid strategy to fit your needs.

Want more information on Hybrid Backup solutions? Check out this infographic.

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