Oracle StorageTek SL8500 Number One in Big Tape Libraries

Several years ago at a crowded end user focused conference, the latest tape library innovation was unveiled from behind a waterfall curtain and throngs of attendees rushed the stage to catch a glimpse. Fast forward to today, and in spite of what some disk suppliers have been saying, tape is still necessary and projected to grow as the need for storage capacity expands in the new big data era.

Tape storage has long had notable advantages such as reliability, security and inherent cost savings, and with the release of the 2014-15 Big Data Tape Storage Buyer’s Guide, it is new and emerging innovations around hardware encryption, partitioning technologies, REST (Representational State Transfer) APIs and secondary cloud storage that are making tape more attractive to end users than ever before.

“There are many that may believe that tape is dead, and they are sorely mistaken,” said Jerome Wendt, president and lead analyst, DCIG, LLC. “Tape storage continues to shine for data at rest, and long term data availability continues to keep tape not just appealing but viable. The newest DCIG 2014-15 Big Data Tape Library Buyer’s Guide is the ideal tape library resource available in the market, and represents all the significant solutions. Like our other buyer’s guides, this one will be an indispensable aid for users looking to eliminate unnecessary research cycles and quickly find a tape library that best meets their unique needs.”

For the DCIG 2014-15 Big Data Tape Library Buyer’s Guide, DCIG evaluates more than 40 offerings from 8 companies. After an initial survey containing more than 100 questions was completed, product capabilities were assessed based on data provided by the vendor, prior DCIG research, and information available in the public domain. Products were then evaluated on more than 80 features. After scores were compiled, products were ranked Best-in-Class, Recommended”, Excellent, Good, or Basic across functionality and capability relative to the other products included in the guide.

The intent for this guide, as with all DCIG buyer’s guides, is to provide an ‘at-a-glance’ comparison from which end users can select the most appropriate solution for their existing needs. It also provides perspective on how solutions from less well known tape library providers compare against established and better known brands.

DCIG 2014-15 Big Data Tape Library Buyer‘s Guide Ranking

The Oracle StorageTek SL8500 ranked highest of the models evaluated in the guide, earning the Best-In-Class ranking. It scales to over 850PB raw (uncompressed) data and, assuming the LTO-6 2.5:1 data compression standard is applied, can store a staggering 2EBs or more of data. This coupled with its support for 10GbE and 8Gb FC networking connectivity; redundant robotics, fan and power supplies; active-active I/O controllers; and, support for advanced functions such as REST object storage and tape drive virtualization drove this model to the top of the guide’s rankings.

Oracle StorageTek SL8500 stood out in ollowing ways from other tape libraries:

Scales to over 2EB of data (compressed)
Scales to hundreds of drives and over one hundred thousand tape cartridges
Supports the majority of backup and archive software packages available
Supports 10GbE
Offers REST APIs
Offers tape virtualization

In doing its research, DCIG uncovered some interesting statistics about tape libraries in general:

100% support the LTO-5 and LTO-6 formats
100% support a 8Gb FC and 6Gb SAS interfaces
95% have customer replaceable tape drives
83% support hot swappable tape drives
67% are rack mountable
65% support at least 100 tape cartridge slots
40% support two different tape drive formats
38% support at least 1PB of storage capacity (70% more than the previous Guide)
38% support half-height tape drives
19% offer redundant controllers

DCIG 2014-15 Big Data Tape Library Guide achieves the following objectives:

Provides an objective, third party evaluation of tape libraries that evaluates and scores their features from an end user’s perspective
Scores and ranks features on each tape library based on criteria that matter most to end users
Provides a standardized data sheet for each of the tape libraries so users may do quick side-by-side comparisons of products
Provides insights into what features on a tape library will result in improved availability and increased storage capacities
Provides insight into which tape libraries are supported by popular archiving and backup software products
Gives any organization a solid foundation for getting competitive bids from different providers that are based on ‘apples-to-apples’ comparisons

“With nearly one out of every four models surveyed in the Buyer’s Guide supporting the ability to store data directly to tape using REST, and nine models supporting the ability to store data to secondary cloud storage, the combination offers a significant step forward for tape storage,” added Wendt. “We know our latest Buyer’s Guide will help end users cut both cost and time from the evaluation and purchase process as they look for solutions to best meet their long term archive, storage and secondary storage needs in a cost-effective way.”

Disclosure and Methodology
DCIG identified 8 companies that provide big data tape libraries, regardless of cost.

Each tape library had to meet the following criteria:

Support a minimum of 24 tape drive cartridge slots
Support at least two tape drives
Support LTO-4 or later technology
Sufficient information available for DCIG to make meaningful decisions
Shipping by October 31, 2013

No vendors, whether clients or not, were afforded preferential treatment in the guide. All research was based upon information provided directly by vendors, research and analysis by DCIG and other publicly available information.

It is worth noting that each buyer’s guide is not intended to be a substitute for internal testing. DCIG encourages any organization that is considering the purchase of any solution included in a Buyer’s Guide to do its own in-house testing.

To downloaded the guide (registration needed)