Automated Data Archiving & Offline Storage

Automated Data Archiving & Offline Storage System

Olympus 4-Drive CD DVD Blu-Ray Advanced Publishing Systems
Olympus 4H AE Archiving System
DS-900
DS900 Disc Storage System

Olympus Archive Edition – Automated Optical Data Archiving & Offline Storage Solution / System

Archiving & Storage Workflow Diagram     Why Archiving & Storage Solution

One of the biggest problems today in Law Enforcement especially, is the storage and security of sensitive information. Today, digital data is expanding without limits opening the door for increased cybercrime, ransomware, lost/stolen data, and terrorism alike.

  • Protect classified top-secret information & identity of undercover agents.
  • Combat against Ransomware by going “Dark” with offline storage.
  • Removable “Library” – Quickly grab discs with high-value intelligence in an emergency
  • Maintain chain of custody of critical evidence.

All Pro Solutions has the Best Solution to strategically protect important sensitive data. The Solution is an automated Archiving System that will archive all your sensitive data to archival Blu-Ray discs, paired with an advanced Disc Storage System that will store the archived discs offline and out of danger. Once the information is on the disc, it cannot be hacked, cannot be altered, and cannot be removed. It’s there forever. This is the safest and most secure way of storing data long-term, as “cloud” storage has proven to be extremely unsafe and expensive for long-term preservation of sensitive information.

Data Archive Graphic Banner

The extreme growth of unstructured data is one of the most important challenges which companies have to face within the coming years. Simply expanding primary storage will no longer solve this problem because of economic and technical reasons. Based on the fact that most of the unstructured data is inactive (“cold data”) companies are looking increasingly for solutions to solve this dilemma.

Companies have large amounts of data, and a large percent of it needs to be retained. Only 25% of the data within an organization is freshly created; the rest is redundant data, or data that was created in the past and must be preserved for future reuse. This situation has created a high demand for information storage, a demand that carries both monetary and logistic concerns. Data archiving allows organizations to efficiently retain this mass of redundant data, often for very long periods of time, so that it can be accessed when necessary.

Law-Enforcement-Archiving-Diagram

The solution is to archive data to suitable secondary storage systems designed for long-term data preservation and archiving, i.e. Blu-Ray Disc archiving and storage systems. Olympus Series – Archive Edition provides an easy to install and intuitive software for automatic policy-based migration of cold data to data to be archived from primary storage to Archival Blu-Ray Discs and stored offline in the DiscStor 900 smart disc storage cabinet.

Preserving digital data for the long-term is extremely important as the amount of content generated increases each year. Optical disc-based systems play a vital role in offline data archiving when cost effective solutions are required. Optical discs are also a great fit for long term storage or safety copies of data.

Regardless of what kind of data archiving is needed, All Pro Solutions has the right solution. We have systems that allow you to archive emails and office documents, store software source code, archive log files, and store captured video or medical images. Whether this information is archived to fulfil legal requirements or to protect business assets, the data will be safe and secure if it comes from All Pro Solutions Blu-ray Disc archiving systems. All Pro Solutions archiving and storage solutions reduce archiving costs and simplify recall, while securely storing and preserving critical data for decades, all offline.

Managing large amounts of information efficiently is paramount. Check out automated data collection and offline storage systems, sophisticated solutions designed to streamline data collection and storage processes while ensuring security and accessibility.

A data archiving system involves moving data not actively used to a different storage medium for long-term retention. This process optimizes primary storage space, increases data retrieval efficiency, and facilitates compliance with regulatory requirements.

A fundamental component of these systems of offline data storage is providing a secure repository for stored data that is not constantly accessed. Commonly known as cold data storage solutions, this method involves storing information on offline devices such as tape drives, optical discs, or magnetic tapes.

By leveraging offline storage, organizations can keep sensitive data safe from cyber threats, unauthorized access, and data breaches, boosting overall data security and compliance standards.

These systems play an important role in digital evidence storage and backup for legal and regulatory purposes. Organizations can confidently conduct legal proceedings and investigations by ensuring the integrity and authenticity of digital evidence through strong data chain-of-custody mechanisms.

Offline data disaster recovery capabilities provide an additional layer of resilience against unexpected events, enabling rapid recovery of critical data in the event of system failures or cyber-attacks.

Automated data collection and offline storage systems provide a comprehensive solution for long-term data management, security and access, empowering organizations to effectively navigate the complexities of the digital.

Benefits

  • Security against Ransomware.
  • Offline Secured Storage.
  • Efficient use of primary storage.
  • Reduced risks of data loss.
  • Fulfillment of archiving requirements.
  • Low cost, low power consumption and minimal carbon footprint.
  • Reduced Costs – Lower costs per decade than storing on HDD.
  • Long-term data retention, compatibility and durability.
  • Increased productivity
  • Faster than tape – Random access and rapid recall.
  • Easy installation
  • True WORM (Write Once Read Many)
  • Intuitive usage
  • Save for 100 years – Blu-Ray Disc last much longer than tape or other media.
  • 1 Cabinet = UP TO 980 Dual Layer Blu-Ray Discs (BD-DL) = approx. 50TB Data
  • 1 FULL SYSTEM supports up to 16 cabinets – approx. 800TB Data
  • Security Peace of Mind!

Storage Manager – Archive Edition Features

  • Policy Based File Archive
    PoINT Storage Manager – Archive Edition offers policy-based file archiving. This is fully automated archiving directly to an optical storage device such as an Olympus Series Blu-Ray Disc Archiving System – no user action is needed.
  • WORM File System with CIFS Access
    Most applications do not natively support archive storage systems (like tape and optical) and require a standard storage access interface like CIFS. The VFS (Virtual File System) is an integral module of Storage Manager – Archive Edition and implements a native Windows file system. It provides standard CIFS file system access to archive storage systems. This means applications can make use of the benefits of the Olympus Archive Systems without adaptations.
  • User-Defined Archiving by Web Client
    Besides the automatic process of file archiving, Storage Manager – Archive Edition offers user-defined archiving supported by a Web Client. The Web Client is aimed at environments in which particular users need to be able to perform archiving operations by themselves. Usage of the Web Client is protected by a user authentication mechanism.
  • Archiving Methods
    Storage Manager – Archive Edition provides multiple archiving methods. This comprises copying of files (Copy Mode), moving of files (Data Mover Mode), and stubbing of files (HSM Mode – not on optical media).
  • Use of Standards
    Storage Manager – Archive Edition strictly adheres to standards for storing data on secondary storage systems. This ensures independence from a specific hardware vendor and protects customer investments. Furthermore access to all archived data is provided by standard operating system methods. UDF (Universal Disk Format) is supported as the standard format for optical disc.
  • Software Development Kit
    The Software Development Kit (SDK) can be used by system integrators to incorporate the functionality of Storage Manager – Archive Edition into applications by a suitable API. This API provides the control of policy-based archiving as well as comprehensive query and administrative functions.

Source Systems: 

  • PoINT EMC FileMover Agent
    The PoINT EMC FileMover Agent allows EMC VNX systems to be integrated into the PoINT Storage Manager’s tiered storage architecture. The agent runs on the PoINT Storage Manager server and makes use of the EMC FileMover service which is a fixed component of the EMC system’s software. This agent supports the migration and archival of (e.g. inactive) data from EMC systems to any downstream storage system.
  • PoINT NetApp FAS Agent
    The PoINT NetApp FAS Agent allows NetApp FAS systems to be integrated into the PoINT Storage Manager’s tiered storage architecture. The agent runs on the PoINT Storage Manager server and makes use of the FPolicy functions service which is a fixed component of the NetApp system’s software. This agent supports the archival of (e.g. inactive) data from NetApp systems on any downstream storage system.
  • PoINT TAFS Agent
    The PoINT TAFS Agent allows Windows file servers to be integrated into the PoINT Storage Manager’s tiered storage architecture. The agent runs on the file servers to be monitored and supports the migration and archival of (e.g. inactive) data from the file servers to any downstream storage system

Target Systems: 

  • Optical (Single Drives, Jukeboxes, Libraries),e. g. All Pro Solutions Olympus – Archive Edition.
  • NAS with File System and special WORM functionality,e. g. NetApp FAS with SnapLockTM, FAST LTA, PoINT Jukebox Manager based NAS Jukeboxes
  • Tape (Single Drives, Libraries),e. g. HP MSL Series, Quantum Scalar Series, Sun StorageTek ACSLS based Libraries

HSM (Hierarchical Storage Management) with Optical, Hard Disk, and Tape Storage

PSM_Main_GUIRules-Based File Archival

As part of the HSM architecture created, and the associated transfer of data from primary storage, the PoINT Storage Manager – Archive Edition provides rules-based long-term archiving (file archiving) within secondary storage, where it can be protected against modification. In the case of Windows NTFS, this protection also involves the primary storage system’s file system, in that (depending on the rules provided) files in the primary storage system are protected against deletion or editing by users or applications.

Long-term archiving with the PoINT Storage Manager – Archive Edition also involves managing various versions of a file, where changes to a file can be tracked through archived versions of files.

Offline Media ManagementPSM_Policies

The PoINT Storage Manager – Archive Edition includes an offline data management system for managing removable media such as tape and optical drives. An extensive set of functions is available to locate objects within offline media. This functionality is of particular interest for the energy savings that come with organizing data using offline storage devices such as the DiscStor 900 smart disc storage cabinet.

Why go with All Pro Solutions Data Archiving and Storage Solution

All Pro Solutions offers a truly unique data archiving and storage solution. Data is automatically archived to discs, usually Blu-Ray Discs, then indexed into a storage database allowing every single file on the disc to be searchable. The discs are cataloged and stored in a secure offline cabinet. The cabinet contains a touchscreen allowing searching and other functions. The only way the data on the discs can be accessed is if someone physically takes the discs out and accesses them through another PC. The benefits of this solution include:
1. Physical Data Security
2. True WORM Format (Write Once Read Many) – Data on discs cannot be removed or altered.
3. Fire Safe – Metal Cabinet
4. Long-Term Storage – Lifespan of Archival Blu-Ray Discs is approximately 100 years.
5. Catalog and Track Discs – Maintain Chain-of-Custody through extensive logging
6. Easily Retrieve and Present Discs when required as Evidence

Why should you consider a secure offline archiving and storage solution from All Pro Solutions over the following types of storage?
• Cloud Storage
• Local Servers – Hard Drives
• Tape Storage
• The answers are clear.

1. Cloud Storage – Not safe and not nearly as secure as you are led to believe. Expensive, and costs change each year causing difficulties in forecasting and budgeting. Can’t be 100% sure where exactly the physical servers are hosted, or even in which country, posing a security risk nightmare. Data is generally owned by the storage company NOT the customer. Can’t be 100% sure who is accessing your data internally or externally, throwing any hopes of maintaining Chain-of-Custody into disarray. If the Pentagon is constantly being penetrated and hacked, how safe is another company’s cloud?
2. Local Servers – Hard drives are always running, regardless of HDD or SSD. Servers generate lots of heat and consume lots of power. Government regulations and/or policies require replacing hard drives generally every 3-5 years. Constant data migration can result in data loss. General wear & tear deterioration of the hard drives can also result in data loss. Data on hard drives can be easily accessed, removed, or altered, both accidentally and intentionally. Hard drives can generally fail or become corrupted randomly and without warning in most cases. Average lifespan of hard drives is 3-5 years.
3. Tape Storage – Many similarities with hard drive storage. Electro magnetic based. Regulations and/or policies require replacing tape drives generally every 5-10 years. Constant data migration can result in data loss. Tape drives are similar to VHS tapes and can be easily damaged if handled often or improperly. Data can also be easily removed or altered. Takes a longer time to find data due to the need to spool the tape to the proper location (think VHS tapes rewinding or fast forwarding). Average lifespan of tape drives is 5-10 years. Tape formats generally become obsolete after 10 years, resulting in the need for a format change, risking further data loss or data corruption.

What is one thing all three storage options above have in common?
An Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) will destroy the data in each case. EMPs do not affect optical discs like Blu-Ray or DVDs.

DiscStor 900 Disc Storage System Features

DS-900-open-closed jpg
  • Standalone Optical Disc Storage System
  • Rugged Metal Construction
  • 34”W x 77”H x 14”D dimensions
  •  Embedded Touchscreen computer w/ Windows OS & Disc Manager database software.
  • 980 total disc capacity – 490 Slots w/ 2-Disc Cases included
  • Roughly up to 50TB Storage Space per cabinet (considering 50GB BD-DL)
  • LED lights to identify location of discs.
  • Ethernet connection.
  • Expandable – up to 16 units can be operated from one master unit.
    • Up to 800TB total data storage
  • Door locking mechanism included.
DS-900-LED pictures

Olympus Archiving System + DiscStor 900 Disc Storage System

Storage Manager Video Presentations & Tutorials

PoINT Storage Manager – File Tiering and Archiving
PoINT Storage Manager Product Presentation
Tutorial 1: Installation
Tutorial 2: Configuration
Tutorial 3: Archive Device Configuration
Tutorial 4: Storage Vault Configuration
Tutorial 5.1: Policy Configuration
Tutorial 5.2: Recovery Policies

.

Tutorial 5.3: Archive Device Migration