Back it up

The Surestore Tape Autoloader 1/8 from HP is meant for automated data protection. It is targeted at SMEs, has a DLT vs80 drive and can accommodate eight media cartridges. It can store up to 320 MB of native data and 640 GB of compressed data. The cartridges are mounted on a conveyor belt and when in operation, the moving cartridges look like a toy train.

To begin with, the autoloader needs to be connected to a server, which in turn is connected to a computer that has the Omniback backup software loaded on it. On the left-hand side of the back panel of the autoloader are two SCSI ports for connection to the server. Towards the right is a slot for the power plug. On the front panel is the power-on switch. It’s depressed within the body of the autoloader so that no one can tamper with it. It’s body is made of steel, while the cartridge slots are made of plastic. It weighs about 10 kg.

To start taking backup, you have to import media into the slots. You can choose to take backup on all cartridges or only one. Usually, one cartridge is meant for cleaning the drive, so effectively you’re left with seven cartridges for backup. Also, you can’t upgrade the autoloader by adding more cartridges. 

Insert the media into the slot by selecting Import from the small glowing LCD display screen–called the home screen, on the right, front panel of the autoloader. The ‘+’ button helps you jump between the command categories and the Enter button takes you to the sub-menu. Once you select the slot you want to insert the media into, the robotic arm comes into action and pushes the cartridge on to the drive. Here, the initialization of the media happens at a speed of about 3-6 MBps, which typically takes 30-40 secs. Once the media is read, the details of the backup come on to the computer connected to the autoloader. This computer is pre-loaded with the Omniback software. The software keeps track of all the activity, the slot number where backup was taken, the date when the backup was last updated, the content backed up, the space used.

To take backup on media, you need to specify the content you want to backup. You can protect your backed up data by assigning the number of days that you don’t want any over-writing on it. If you don’t want any tampering with the data once it has been backed up–as in case of highly sensitive or confidential data–you can assign it permanent protection.

The Omniback II single server edition for Windows 2000/NT comes bundled with the autoloader. However, the autoloader is compatible with other back up software like CA’s Arcserv, Veritas’ NetBackup and so on. 

The autoloader is backward read compatible with DLT 4000. It supports DLT IV, DLT1 or DLT VS media and DLT1 or DLT VS cleaning cartridge. However, no media comes bundled with the autoloader. 

Price: Rs 2,60,000 (3-year warranty). Media costs Rs 1,200.

Contact: Hewlett-Packard India, New Delhi. Tel: 011-6906130

Neetu Katyal in Delhi