A tape library, sometimes called a " tape robot "
or "tape jukebox"
is a storage device which contains:
- one or more tape drives,
- slots to hold tape cartridges,
- a barcode reader to identify tape cartridges
and
- an automated robot for loading tapes.
For large data-storage, Tape Libraries
are a low cost data backup solution.
Their estimated cost per gigabyte is as low as 10 cents,
which is at least 60% less than most hard drives.
Due to such huge capacity,
tape libraries are primarily used for data backups
and restores.
Smaller tape libraries with only one drive are known as autoloaders.
The term autoloader is also sometimes used synonymously with stacker,
a device in which the media is loaded necessarily in a sequential manner.
DLT and SDLT
DLT (Digital Linear Tape) s a magnetic tape data storage technology developed by DEC in 1984.
Quantum purchased the DLT tape drive technology in 1994.
A variant of DLT, called Super DLT (SDLT), offering with higher capacity sizes. SDLT tape technology adds a reader system called “optical servo” in order to keep data tracks correctly aligned with read/write heads.
All SDLT tape drives support hardware data compression.
Then in 2005, a new set of names: DLT-S and DLT-V came out.
By 2007, Quantum started focusing on LTO tape drives.
LTO Ultrium
Linear Tape-Open (or LTO) is a magnetic tape data storage technology originally developed in late 1990s.
LTO Ultrium re-designed the ½ inch cartridge form facto to make it easier for
Robotic tape libraries. There are many generation of the LTO technology
With each generation improving speed and capacity.
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| Product Summary |
Best-in-class performance, throughput, and scalability |
Scalable and flexible to fit an array of storage needs and budgets |
Outstanding capabilities at an affordable price |
File sharing with RAID protection in a compact, portable form factor |
File sharing in a compact, portable form factor |
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| Best Fit For |
Growing businesses with high performance storage needs |
Growing businesses with balanced performance and capacity requirements |
Departments or workgroups with up to 8TB of storage |
Remote offices or locations that require shared storage and data protection |
Remote offices or locations that require shared storage |
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| Form Factor |
2U rackmount |
1U rackmount |
1U rackmount |
2-drive desktop |
1-drive desktop |
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| System Scalability |
1.2TB - 144TB |
1.2TB - 176TB |
2TB - 8TB |
1TB - 4TB |
500GB - 2TB |
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| Drives Supported |
SAS / SATA |
SAS / SATA |
SATA |
SATA |
SATA |
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| RAID Levels |
0, 1, 5, 6, 10 |
0, 1, 5, 6, 10 |
0, 1, 5, 6, 10 |
0, 1 |
n/a |
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| Network Connectivity |
Up to 6 x GbE |
Up to 4 x GbE |
2 x GbE |
1 x GbE |
1 x GbE |
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| Capabilities |
Remote Management, Instant Capacity Expansion, Unified Storage, Snapshots, Replication, Backup Interface |
Remote Management, Instant Capacity Expansion, Unified Storage, Snapshots, Replication, Backup Interface |
Remote Management, Unified Storage, Snapshots, Replication, Backup Interface |
Remote Management, Unified Storage, Snapshots, Replication, Backup Interface |
Remote Management, Unified Storage, Snapshots, Replication, Backup Interface |
Network-attached storage (NAS) is a data storage device, usually a SAS disk array,
SATA disk array or SCSI disk aray that is connected to the network.
The disk array enclosure usually contains a backplane to connect a number of hot swap drives,
RAID controller / RAID Host Adapter, and redundant power supplies.
Network Attached Storage provides both storage and file systems.
Data can be grouped together across multiple NAS disk arrays and abstracted to be viewed
over the network as a logical volume.
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