NAB Show and ISC High Performance: Spectra Logic Unveils Spectra Cube LTO Tape Library for Cloud Deployments

Spectra Logic Corp. announced the addition of the Spectra Cube tape library to the company’s family of enterprise tape storage solutions.

Designed for clouds and optimized for ease of use, the Cube library can be deployed, dynamically scaled and easily serviced without tools or downtime.

Management of the new system is provided by newly introduced LumOS library management software, an intuitive and feature-rich interface that allows secure local and remote management and monitoring, and enables an optional assisted self-maintenance model for rapid component replacement without the need for service personnel.

Spectra Cube Library with Blackpearl Object Storage

The Cube library supports modern backup and archive applications through seamless integration with Spectra BlackPearl file and object storage systems to create highly cost-effective on-premises or hybrid cloud object-based tape tiers. Amazon S3 and Amazon S3 Glacier API access is supported. It is also a platform for the delivery of storage services by MSPs or CSPs.

Additionally, more than 30 custom integrations with media asset and production asset managers are available along with validated solutions for integration with object storage environments such as NetApp StorageGRID.

Managing capital budgets while responding to often unpredictable data growth patterns is easy with the Cube capacity-on-demand expansion model. Additional tape slots can be dynamically enabled via software while additional tape drives can be added to scale performance, all without downtime, tools or service calls. Cube environmental costs for power and cooling are substantially lower than object-based disk or flash systems while providing a storage density of more than 2.5PB of data capacity per square foot of floor space.

An optional loft enclosure can accommodate rackmount devices, including Spectra BlackPearl storage, industry-standard servers and more, simplifying connectivity and further increasing space efficiency.

Spectra Cube front, open, and rear
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The Cube library offers up to 30PB of native capacity, with a maximum compressed capacity of 75PB. Up to 16 full-height or 30 half-height LTO tape drives may be intermixed, delivering a maximum native throughput of 32TB/hour. Currently supported LTO technology generations include LTO-6, LTO-7, LTO-8 and LTO-9, with the ability to support future LTO technology generations as they become available. For shared or multi-tenant environments, the library supports up to 16 partitions.

Leveraging a combination of proven Spectra high-performance transporter technology and TeraPack magazines, the Cube library offers the highest tape cartridge exchange performance of any library in its class. This library also features a convenient front-panel TeraPack Access Port, enabling the selective import or ejection of 10 tape cartridges in a single non-disruptive operation, simplifying and reducing tape handling tasks.

Supported drive interfaces include FCl and SAS, while optional Ethernet-to-SAS bridges eliminate the need for dedicated storage area network connections, significantly reducing cost and complexity.

“As cloud data continues to grow rapidly, the escalating costs of public cloud storage have forced a reckoning, leading to significant interest in moving data to more economical locations including on-prem clouds and hybrid clouds,” said Matt Ninesling, senior director, tape portfolio management. “Compared to typical public cloud options, Spectra Cube solutions can cut the costs of cold storage by half or more, while providing better data control and protection from existential threats like ransomware.”

Lifetime-guaranteed Spectra Certified Media

Spectralogic LTO-9 certified media

To ensure the utmost reliability and extend the longevity of tape media, Spectra recommends the use of lifetime-guaranteed Spectra Certified Media with all its libraries.

When using Certified Media, Spectra libraries ⁽¹⁾ actively monitor tape health and usage, recording more than 40 metrics for each tape during its lifespan to aid in predicting, assessing and minimizing errors. Additionally, regular data integrity verification checks are automatically conducted to detect media errors, reducing the risk of data corruption or loss.

Every Certified Media cartridge is pre-cleaned using a patented CarbideClean process to ensure media is debris-free, reducing errors and extending tape head life. Certified Media cartridges also come with pre-applied standard or custom barcodes for efficient tracking.

Certified LTO-9 cartridges are pre-calibrated for immediate use, optimizing data placement and saving up to 30mn per cartridge of initialization time.

For convenience, Certified Media cartridges may be delivered pre-packed into TeraPack magazines for bulk loading or offsite storage, with optional dust covers for added protection during storage.

Availability
Cube libraries are available to order now with a 30-day delivery lead time.

Where to see demonstration
The company will demonstrate the Spectra Cube library at the 2024 NAB Show, to be held from April 14-17 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV, and at ISC High Performance 2024, to be held from May 13-15 at the Congress Center, Hamburg, Germany.

⁽¹⁾ TFinity ExaScale, TFinity Plus, T950 and Spectra Cube libraries only.