"With the HSTC, I have the best of time and capacity. I have a whole new level of trust in my backups."
Ryan Delbridge, USCG
At the largest training command center for our US coastal guardians, Ryan Delbridge oversees the backup of countless critical files for locations scattered throughout the country. His group provides instruction for company-wide operational programs, so the ability to backup and restore files within a reasonable amount of time is vital to his the sucesss of his organization. Prior to installing a Cybernetics High Speed Tape Cache (HSTC) virtual tape solution, his organization had been using Cybernetics AIT-1 tape drives. While there were zero complaints with the technology itself, it had been 6 years since the purchase of their original library. With the 10GB/hour native transfer rate of the AIT-1 drive, the time required to carry out backups had become unacceptable. Should a backup have failed mid-process, it would have been impossible to complete within the requisite target time because it necessitated around 50 hours - more than an entire weekend. When performing a restore, it would take the better part of an hour before the library was even ready to begin the task. Clearly, they needed to find a new answer to their dilemma. Ryan fully explored his options, but ultimately found his solution with Cybernetics. The outstanding reliability demonstrated by his older tape library exemplified the high level of quality Cybernetics strives to maintain. The outstanding track record that Cybernetics had, coupled with the extremely competitive cost of the new unit was not something he could afford to ignore. Comparable products from an eminent competitor left them reeling in shock, whereas, "the price of Cybernetics was so cheap, he could not say no." Another feature that helped Ryan make his final decision was the fact that the HSTC offers options for modification. The scalability ensures that the eventual obsolescence of the technology can be offset. A Cybernetics HSTC is a disk-to-disk-to-tape backup solution, incorporating tape virtualization for high-speed backup with redundant, removable media archival. With iSCSI connectivity, the HSTC connects directly to the Ethernet network and provides centralized, shared storage for multiple host platforms. The integral virtual tape drives of the HSTC are accessible to each server on the network with independent, simultaneous backup stream for each host. After the backup is completed at disk-to-disk speed, the data is archived to tape in an offline mode directly to a locally attached tape device at maximum streaming rate, with no impact on any server operations. According to Ryan, the best feature has been the speed of the backup and restores. The purchase of a Cybernetics HSTC and complementary LTO tape library allowed for backups that are concluded within a fraction of the time it took previously. Instead of taking the entire weekend to finish a backup, it now requires a half-day at most. Where a restore formerly took 45 minutes before it could even begin, it now takes mere seconds to complete. The entire process is streamlined for maximum efficiency, while being completely hassle-free, all due to Cybernetics products. Commenting on just how much a Cybernetics HSTC has impacted his site operations, Ryan says, "With the HSTC, I have the best of time and capacity. I have a whole new level of trust in my backups."
More Testimonials from Other Satisfied Clients
