A Complementary Approach to Deduplication

Dell announced last night the acquisition of Ocarina Networks. As Dell gains traction in the primary space with EqualLogic, it's critical they deliver solutions to compete with the likes of EMC and NetApp. Deduplication is one such technology that's become a check box to being a credible vendor in a competitive space. If you don't have it, buyers will move on. Selection will be based on how elegantly the problem is solved, intersected with the cost to solve it; efficiency, performance AND cost.

What was once a taboo conversation by hardware vendors for fear of sales erosion, now deduplicating data on the primary copy is here to stay. Primary storage vendors are responsible – dare I say, obligated – to deduplicate on the front end. NetApp, for example, has proven to the market that primary deduplication with VMware is a significant need. Dell is now on a path to developing a story that addresses this market in an effort to drive more EqualLogic footprint.

But what about making copies? Copies of data for replication, backup, archive and compliance generate orders of magnitude more space than what's consumed by the original copy. Adding deduplication to all of these copies, across all storage tiers through to tape and cloud, will slash storage related costs. The economic impact of deduplication is profound.

Companies that create copies of primary data, like CommVault, are responsible for optimizing space, performance, recovery and security. Deduplication for us is a cornerstone in the process and our customers have shown up to 90% reduction in storage required to manage copies. Not in theory, but in practice. Why the software creating the copy is key to efficient deduplication boils down to 3 key aspects:

• Intelligence: data and application aware; hardware snapshot integration; optimized for virtual environments
• Scale: beyond the confines of a 'box' through all tiers – including cloud storage and tape
• Choice: no hardware lock-in

I'd like to hear what industry watchers think. I've had many conversations with folks who feel strongly that a combination of storage with built-in primary deduplication coupled with software that creates deduplicated copies for functions like DR, Backup and Archive, is the holy grail of end-to-end dedupe. Dell with Ocarina addresses the primary dedupe need, and with Simpana software, the combination delivers an end-to-end solution with deduplication through all tiers.

So, for those that have been emailing me with the question, "Where does CommVault fit in Dell's portfolio?" our answer is very simple: Dell is driving hard toward a primary active data storage strategy that includes deduplication and compression, while CommVault is helping Dell drive management of all backup and archive copies that are application consistent, encrypted and deduplicated across all secondary tiers, including the cloud. Bottom line, we remain strategically aligned because customers need both; primary (active data) and n-tier copy deduplication. Together, we can provide the market with a better value proposition than others, say EMC, with their collection of disparate, unintegrated point level products.

I applaud Dell for pulling in primary deduplication into EqualLogic.

Why a Practical, Hype-Free Approach to Cloud Storage is Necessary

With all the noise surrounding cloud computing, it's getting harder to separate the hype from the reality. After all, the term, which has become one of the most overused technology buzzwords, has different definitions with muddled meanings that make it difficult for organizations to determine how, why and when to deploy cloud-hosted solutions to best support evolving business needs.

So isn't it time for technology vendors to stop the hype and deliver practical solutions that work as promised? At CommVault, we have formulated a pragmatic strategy that extends our core competencies in data management to the cloud. We've also been very deliberate in pursuing MSP partners that can support our customers' growing interest in cloud storage by leveraging their own data center expertise and proven IT services.

We started this process by talking with customers to discover what they want from cloud computing. We learned they want to do more than just store data in the cloud; they want to manage it for data protection, archiving and eDiscovery, just as they do already with data stored on disks and tapes. We also surveyed our customers worldwide to find out their thoughts on the biggest risks and rewards of cloud storage. More than half of the 535 respondents to CommVault's cloud computing survey reported growing interest in cloud storage. Such interest by participants was attributed to a number of factors, including the ability to lower overall costs, reduce hardware expenditures, augment offsite disaster recovery as well as replace or supplement tape. Still, more than 75 percent of those polled expressed qualms over moving to a cloud storage model and cited security, privacy and reliability among their top concerns.

Change is scary, but vital for progress

As I was flying back from the Bay Area last week after a series of customer and partner visits, I came across an interesting article in USA Today, entitled "Stake claimed on Chicago housing project." What caught my attention was the fact that a group of current and former residents of Chicago's dilapidated Lathrop public housing project were fighting to stop the revitalization of the 60-year-old development. Not only is the 924-unit complex in desperate need of repair, it seems like an ideal fit for the new model of mixed-income public housing, at least according to the Chicago Housing Authority.

The proposed rehab effort, which is being met with much resistance, is intended to integrate the area into the surrounding neighborhood for the good of the residents, taxpayers and society as a whole. The reluctance to change reminds me of a capital campaign committee I'm on to raise $5 million to update my local church and school facilities with the addition of a new gym, pre-kindergarten classrooms and meeting rooms. We desperately need the overhaul to remain a competitive school and vibrant parish, yet all too often I hear parents and community members say "we can't afford this" or "the old gym is good enough."

Truth is, the old gym isn't good enough and families are choosing other schools and parishes with modern facilities and the latest programs we simply can't offer. It's clear that we must embrace change, no matter how scary, as it's the universal price we pay for progress–whether that means rehabbing a neighborhood, updating an aging school or upgrading an outdated information management infrastructure to keep pace with growing business demands.

Making it to the Big Leagues

We play close attention to perception. The labels that industry watchers use to describe us mean a lot. So it was important recently when an industry analyst stated how CommVault has "made itself into a Tier 1 vendor." It was significant because until now, we've been referred to as an "emerging" company.

It also was significant that CommVault landed on Goldman Sachs' coveted list of big-league players cited in a recent IT spending survey. CommVault ranked No. 5 on a list of the top 10 software providers gaining a share of limited IT spending dollars. Yep, we followed virtualization leaders VMware, Citrix and Red Hat while outpacing several other big names in software, including Salesforce.com, Cisco, Adobe and Oracle.

It's great to make it into the software big leagues, especially at a time when CIOs have lots of choices and fewer dollars to spend. As a result, they're making tough choices while struggling to lower costs and increase operational efficiencies. So, making it onto the "share gainer" list is rewarding–and somewhat surprising.

Don't get me wrong, we work really hard to add value to our customers' businesses and we believe we're the best at providing a singular platform for managing data. But, we also recognize there are much bigger players out there, not necessarily with better solutions but with longer histories, well-established customers and deeper pockets. And yet, CIOs picked us over them because they understand what we're trying to do. In fact, nearly all the top players on this big-league list have a strong story to tell when it comes to demonstrating solid economic benefits.

CommVault resides at the apex of a massive convergence that's taking place in data centers around the world as organizations seek new ways to reduce costs by redesigning their IT infrastructures and embracing new cloud and virtualization strategies. In his Open Road post on the IT spending survey, Matt Asay acknowledged the top 10 players for scoring highly with CIOs, calling them "cloud arms dealers." From our perspective, virtualization and cloud strategies are both driving major infrastructure redesigns, which is the perfect time for improving data management.

ILM: What's Old is New Again

I'm going out on a limb here to say it's time to bring back ILM (Information Lifecycle Management). After all, the idea of managing data throughout its lifecycle continues to make a great deal of sense, especially now that companies everywhere are going through massive IT transformations driven by today's tight economy and the increasing need to gain better control of escalating data.

The term fell from favor originally because all the over-hyped vendor promises came up empty. That doesn't mean the concept was flawed–though the products were. Stepping into the "wayback machine," I recall a presentation by Mark Lewis, who then was VP and GM of Compaq's Enterprise Storage Group. When he took the stage at an industry trade show to espouse the merits of this new ILM category, he energized the audience with the promise of an overarching strategy for effectively managing information throughout its useful life. EMC then applied enough marketing muscle to make ILM a household name, but as Tony Asaro described in a recent blog post on the big buzz around ILM, "the reality never matched the rhetoric." As he says, "the term ILM is rarely used these days and it is not going to open any doors for you."

Well, I think that's about to change. ILM is making a comeback. During recent travels abroad I came across a lot of ILM fans–especially in EMEA. The catch with the concept–and perhaps the reason for its initial false start–is it requires an extra layer of intelligence to move data effectively. This element was absent from the hardware-based ILM solutions that first were brought to market, so they ended up supplying tiered storage instead. As a result, people became disillusioned when none of the major ILM proponents delivered on the many promises they made.

Fortunately, next-generation, intelligent data management solutions now exist that might actually enable ILM to reach its full potential. So, it's time to start talking ILM again. Who knows, maybe now it really will open doors.

The content of this blog reflects the thoughts and opinions of the author, and does not represent the thoughts, opinions, plans or strategies of CommVault Systems, Inc. ("CommVault") and CommVault undertakes no obligation to update, correct or modify any statements made by the author of this blog. Any and all third party links provided by this blog are not affiliated with, nor endorsed by, CommVault.