Mid-Continent Group Transforms IBM i Backup With Data Domain

EMC Corporation announced
that Mid-Continent Group, a
subsidiary of the Great
American Insurance Group, has used EMC Data Domain deduplication storage
systems to completely automate and streamline backup and DR processes for its
IBM i environment.

By leveraging native Data Domain support for IBM i operating environments,
Mid-Continent was able to achieve cost savings and operational
benefits, and manage their data growth without the need for tape.

Mid-Continent’s use of the EMC backup and recovery product portfolio
spans both its open systems environment and IBM i environment. For its open
systems, the company deployed Avamar deduplication backup software and
system, Networker backup and recovery software and Data Domain
systems. With the introduction of native support for IBM i environments,
Mid-Continent elected to extend the success it first experienced with EMC Data
Domain to its IBM i environment.

Customer Benefits:

• Improved IBM i Disaster Recovery Times – Eliminating tape helped
  Mid-Continent reduce its DR time from 4-5 days to approximately 4 hours. In addition,
  DR testing for IBM i systems and data is now simple, predictable, and
  repeatable.
• Automated IBM i Backup – IBM i environment now
  requires no human intervention for backup or recovery verification. Time is no
  longer spent managing tape-based backup processes or locating and transporting
  tapes for recoveries.
• Cost Savings and Tape-Free Backup and Recovery – With its
  implementation of Data Domain systems for IBM i backup, Mid-Continent has
  achieved savings on tape library hardware maintenance and tape
  transportation service costs, while eliminating physical tape across the
  enterprise.
• Scalability with Reduced Power, Cooling and Data Center
  Footprint – Mid-Continent is now able to address its 40% annual data growth and has
  replaced multiple racks of backup equipment with a Data Domain deduplication
  storage system, saving on power, cooling and space requirements.

Customer Challenges and Solution:
Prior to engaging with EMC to implement next generation disk-based
backup and recovery solutions, the Mid-Continent Group IT team was feeling the
pressures associated with protecting data that was growing at 40% annually. Its
tape-based backup infrastructure was expanding exponentially and hundreds of
tapes were constantly in a state of rotation between its data center and an
off-site 3rd party tape storage facility, requiring resources to manage and
cover offsite shipping and storage costs. The addition of a VTL provided some relief, but backup storage requirements continued to
mushroom as its data grew, while recoveries from tape remained a protracted
four-to-five day process.

Mid-Continent’s IBM i PowerSystem houses data and applications,
including rating, accounting and statistical systems that are vital to its
insurance business. The company currently uses EMC Symmetrix Remote Data
Facility (SRDF) software for synchronous replication of data to a DR site,
where backups are performed. Mid-Continent was able to use their existing IBM
BRMS software to back up their IBM i system data to a Data Domain deduplication
storage system to eliminate tape completely, realize improvements
in its backup and recovery processes and reduce capacity requirements.

John Pullen, IT development manager, Mid-Continent Group, said: "With tape being used, the DR timeline for
our IBM i series was 4-5 days. In our latest DR test with EMC backup and
storage technology, we were up and running in four hours. With Data Domain,
we’ve completely automated our [IBM i] backup. No hauling tapes. No misplaced
tapes. No costs associated with off-site storage. No chasing our data growth or
adding power and floor space. We back up about 9.5 terabytes of IBM i data
every night, and it’s easy for us to keep a year’s worth of IBM i data online."

John Gunnells, senior iSeries administrator, Mid-Continent Group,
said: "Four years ago, we were
backing up to a huge tape library. We were managing hundreds of tapes and were
always behind the curve in terms of backup. Then we engaged with EMC and began
to implement their next generation disk-based backup products. Our IBM i system
data, however, remained a challenge and we had to maintain these legacy systems
to address backup and DR for our IBM i environment. Thankfully, with the
availability of the Data Domain solution for IBM i systems, we were finally
able to go completely tapeless-and it’s been great. EMC has provided the right
solution for us every step of the way."

Brock Lyons, system admin manager, Mid-Continent Group, said: "The Data Domain solution has been one of the
most cost effective enhancements we have implemented in my time at
Mid-Continent. We were faced with expanding our data center footprint by 12%,
adding additional power, and adding a significant amount of heat at two sites.
With the Data Domain solution we were able to shrink our footprint, avoid
additional power costs, and reduce the amount of heat in our data centers."