No More Tears?

We have been asked recently by a number of interested parties if MatrixStore can be used as a nearline device as well as a deep archive. The short answer is yes, absolutely.

The longer answer:

Traditional Tiered Storage

For the majority of its lifetime data is fixed, it is highly unlikely to change after it has been created. Fixed or Reference Data is traditionally stored against a tiered architecture that is expensive to maintain and by its nature reduces the availability and thus the value of the data being stored.

As mentioned above, the vast majority of the data held within this tiered monster is reference or fixed data (google for it and digest the deluge of statistics). Often expensive disk as seen in most  SAN environments is used to keep reference data available despite the inherent costs involved. The drop in disk price also seems to correlate directly with such architectures being used more and more inappropriately.

Once the administrators have started to move the data through the tiers that data is taken off-line and is, as such, useless to anyone. 

Keep your Archive Alive

MatrixStore is designed to keep reference information alive and available throughout its lifetime. As you can see below the SAN-like environments can be kept to a minimal, more effective and manageable size by migrating data onto MatrixStore the expensive disk is allowed to do what it does best, fast uncluttered access to data. An organisation benefits from reduced operating costs brought about by reducing the management and expertise required to keep the data in a tiered architecture whilst leveraging the value in their digital assets that will now be available 24/7.

Softer, less tangible benefits arise from increased productivity both in terms of quicker, more reliable restores when required and members of the team having the data they require at their finger tips.

You can use MatrixStore as the sole tier for your assets once they are no longer classed as working data. To abuse an already overworked play on words, using MatrixStore in this way is, in fact, here it comes … tearless.