Introduction of esXpress Makes Quantum a One-Stop Shop for Protecting VMware Environments
A year ago, companies might have justified the introduction of a disk-based backup system into their backup infrastructure based on its deduplication merits alone. Today that is no longer the case. While companies are again beginning to spend, the feedback I am getting from the field indicates that before a company makes any new technology purchase, the technology must address and solve multiple issues within an organization, not just one.
Just because companies are starting to open up their pocketbooks again does not mean that we are returning to boom times anytime soon. Everyone is working harder than ever to best utilize what they have. If they are looking to make a purchase, they need a solid business case to justify the expenditure.
This change in buying behavior among companies is probably a big motivation behind Quantum's recent announcement to include esXpress backup software with its disk-based DXi-Series backup systems. While most mid-size companies and larger are looking to deploy disk-based backup that incorporates deduplication into their backup infrastructures (which the DXi-Series certainly addresses) it is not always that simple.
Many of these companies are looking to extend disk-based data protection and deduplication throughout their infrastructure. However, as they do so they are finding that they need two components to successfully execute on this strategy:
This eliminates the need and expense of backup software for these remote offices while enabling the organization to standardize on one backup software product across all of their remote offices and is available from Quantum on any DXi-Series backup systems purchased on or after July 20, 2009. However before you assume all of your backup problems are solved there are some considerations that organizations need to be aware of before implementing this solution.
First, esXpress is designed specifically to protect VMware virtualized server environments and will not protect any servers that are not virtualized using VMware. Taking advantage of esXpress will depend on the degree an organization's infrastructure is virtualized using VMware. However, if an organization is looking to virtualize servers company-wide, it may be able to avoid or minimize its need to purchase backup software in its new virtualized environment using esXpress.
Second, the DXi-Series includes a Professional version of the esXpress software which provides full functionality for up to four virtual backup appliances (VBAs) running on a single ESX server. It also includes free installation support. Additional esXpress Professional licenses cost $950 and also support up to four VBAs each. These licenses can be upgraded to esXpress Enterprise (MSRP $1,850) which supports up to 16 VBAs per ESX server.
Third, esXpress takes an innovative and new approach to protecting VMware ESX servers by creating VBAs on the ESX server. In this way, end users no longer rely on VMware's VCB infrastructure, resolving many VMware administrators' limitations with VCB. Here is how esXpress works on a VMware ESX server:
By packaging esXpress with the DXi-Series, Quantum has given customers yet another reason to virtualize their environments. As a point solution, esXpress does not replace backup software in the data center, but it does make the DXi-Series a central repository for all backup needs, including virtualization. That's a significant amount of value for a single technology purchase.
Just because companies are starting to open up their pocketbooks again does not mean that we are returning to boom times anytime soon. Everyone is working harder than ever to best utilize what they have. If they are looking to make a purchase, they need a solid business case to justify the expenditure.
This change in buying behavior among companies is probably a big motivation behind Quantum's recent announcement to include esXpress backup software with its disk-based DXi-Series backup systems. While most mid-size companies and larger are looking to deploy disk-based backup that incorporates deduplication into their backup infrastructures (which the DXi-Series certainly addresses) it is not always that simple.
Many of these companies are looking to extend disk-based data protection and deduplication throughout their infrastructure. However, as they do so they are finding that they need two components to successfully execute on this strategy:
- Companies need a solution that enables them to economically store and then replicate backup data from their remote offices back to their home office. Quantum is already delivering on this objective. Its DXi2500-D includes the four main features that remote offices need to get started with disk-based backup in these offices: deduplication, a file system interface, replication and sufficient storage capacity. Meanwhile the DXi7500 provides the ability to handle the different types of backup and replication loads that companies will have to manage in their main data center.
- Companies need backup software. Remote and branch offices sometimes have no backup software or the backup software they are using is out of sync with what the rest of the organization is using. (Even the main data center is not immune from these problems.) So even if an organization wants to deploy disk-based backup and centralize the management of its backup data stores, without backup software or the same backup software across these offices, it is difficult to effectively implement.
This eliminates the need and expense of backup software for these remote offices while enabling the organization to standardize on one backup software product across all of their remote offices and is available from Quantum on any DXi-Series backup systems purchased on or after July 20, 2009. However before you assume all of your backup problems are solved there are some considerations that organizations need to be aware of before implementing this solution.
First, esXpress is designed specifically to protect VMware virtualized server environments and will not protect any servers that are not virtualized using VMware. Taking advantage of esXpress will depend on the degree an organization's infrastructure is virtualized using VMware. However, if an organization is looking to virtualize servers company-wide, it may be able to avoid or minimize its need to purchase backup software in its new virtualized environment using esXpress.
Second, the DXi-Series includes a Professional version of the esXpress software which provides full functionality for up to four virtual backup appliances (VBAs) running on a single ESX server. It also includes free installation support. Additional esXpress Professional licenses cost $950 and also support up to four VBAs each. These licenses can be upgraded to esXpress Enterprise (MSRP $1,850) which supports up to 16 VBAs per ESX server.
Third, esXpress takes an innovative and new approach to protecting VMware ESX servers by creating VBAs on the ESX server. In this way, end users no longer rely on VMware's VCB infrastructure, resolving many VMware administrators' limitations with VCB. Here is how esXpress works on a VMware ESX server:
- esXpress enumerates the virtual machines (VMs) on the ESX host
- esXpress enumerates the disks (VMDKs) in the VM
- esXpress tells the ESX host to snapshot the VM which creates copy-on-write (COW) snapshot files for each VMDK in the VM.
- esXpress creates a VBA (or reuses any it already has that are not currently in use)
- esXpress attaches the now static/read-only base VMDK to the VBA
- esXpress powers on the VBA
- The VBA backs up the VMDK to the DXi NAS share
- The VBA powers down and returns a success/fail/status message to esXpress
- esXpress tells the ESX host to commit the snapshot on the VM.
- esXpress enumerates the VMs on the host again to see if any new VMs showed up during the backup process. If any new VMs are found, the above loop starts again for the new VMs.
- If there is time left in the configured backup window, esXpress will check if any VMs failed to back up properly and will try them again.
- Log file entries are updated and closed, emails sent if configured
By packaging esXpress with the DXi-Series, Quantum has given customers yet another reason to virtualize their environments. As a point solution, esXpress does not replace backup software in the data center, but it does make the DXi-Series a central repository for all backup needs, including virtualization. That's a significant amount of value for a single technology purchase.
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