Creating the right targets for your backup

Data Protection is a significant expense for customers.

Data protection remains a critical investment for organizations, with each new influx of data requiring robust safeguarding. At HYCU, we understand that the costs associated with data protection can be categorized into four main components: the expense of backup software, deployment costs, ongoing operational expenses, and the expenditure on storage (commonly known as backup targets).

When we launched HYCU, a driving factor was our purpose built data protection solution for Nutanix needed to save customers money in every way possible.

We started by making HYCU extremely price competitive. We then practically eliminated the deployment cost because the software takes three minutes to deploy. Then, as HYCU is designed for exception- based management, the ongoing operational expense cost is also minimal. However, one area we did not have direct control over was the cost of the backup target.

So, we did three things for customers to address this:

• Enabled them to leverage their existing infrastructure. HYCU supports standard protocols like NFS, SMB, and iSCSI, allowing customers to utilize their current infrastructure investments seamlessly. This includes compatibility with scale-out deduplication appliances such as ExaGrid.
• Recognizing the dominance of Amazon S3 and Microsoft Azure in cloud storage, HYCU supports both platforms, alongside S3-compliant storage solutions like Cloudian and Scality. We are continually expanding our support for additional S3-compliant storage options to enhance flexibility further.
• As organizations increasingly adopt hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) to consolidate workloads and eliminate silos, HYCU encourages customers to expand their HCI environments rather than investing in separate backup infrastructures. By adding storage-dense nodes or clusters within their existing Nutanix setup, organizations can streamline management and reduce costs significantly.

To let customers leverage their existing infrastructure, we decided to support all of the standard protocols: NFS, SMB and iSCSI.

This allowed us to cover not just the breadth of traditional storage systems, but also scale out dedupe appliances like ExaGrid. When it comes to the Cloud, the industry standards are Amazon S3 and Microsoft Azure. We support both and in addition, we also support S3 compliant storage, which allows us to support solutions like Cloudian and Scality. In addition, we will be expanding to other S3 compliant storage shortly.

One thing we began to realize is that most customers are always adding additional capacity to their backup infrastructure. Traditionally, this means buying an extra Data Domain or Quantum box. But, as customers move to HCI, they need to seriously rethink this. A move to HCI is usually done to eliminate silos and create a consolidated, infrastructure that can manage multiple workloads. If that’s true then isn’t backup just another workload? Why would you create a separate island for it? If you need extra capacity, then just add storage dense nodes into your existing Nutanix infrastructure or add a storage dense cluster. This will not only eliminate silos and cost, but it will also make the entire management simpler. We are starting to see many of our customers do this.

Beyond the four initial data protection costs, another area we felt we could help was the operationalization of the backup infrastructure. Typically there are five areas that we see admins focus on the most. They are:

1. Make sure to assign the right target to the right policy
2. Make sure there is enough capacity in each of their backup tiers
3. Make sure the backup tiers are load balanced
4. Make sure to delete stuff from the targets to free up space, and
5. Make sure their backup infrastructure is still behaving well to meet the policy guidelines.

At HYCU, we automate these critical tasks, relieving administrators of manual workload and ensuring efficient operation through proactive monitoring and automated notifications. This approach reflects our commitment to delivering not just a software solution but a comprehensive, user-friendly tool that enhances operational efficiency and reduces overhead costs.

To see how easy and efficient HYCU is in maximizing costs and managing your backup targets,  give HYCU a try at tryhycu.com.