Category Archives: Storage and Networks

There is a right way to do this and a wrong. There is faster and there is more faster. There are security issues and return on investment issues. 

Storage and Networks

Tandberg HH FC LTO-5 Drive Connects to Mac Through Thunderbolt

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Tandberg Data and PROMISE Technology, Inc. have tested and certified the solution to ensure compatibility to the user. SANLink provides a dual 4Gbps FC link that can be used to connect to external FC storage. Each adapter features full-duplex capable FC ports that automatically detect connection speed and can each independently operate at 1, 2 or 4Gbps.

 

Tandberg Data’s LTO-5 tape drives store up to 3TB (with 2.1 compression) per cartridge. Capable of data transfer rates of up to 280MB/sec, it dynamically and continuously adjusts the speed of the drive to keep drives streaming. This maximizes performance and reduces start/stops, which increases the reliability of drives and media. Tandberg Data also supports LTFS (Linear Tape File System), which allows the tape drive to operate like a hard disk with direct access without the need for tape backup software. The solution is also compatible with all major backup software packages.

Tandberg Data LTO-5 HH FC external tape drive features with PROMISE SANLink:

  • Capacity of 1.5TB / 3TB (native/compressed)
  • Performance up to 1TB/hr (compressed)
  • 8Gb FC connectivity
  • Thunderbolt connectivity with PROMISE SANLink
  • Low media cost
  • Low power consumption: 6.9 W (sleeping mode) and 20 W (operating mode)
  • Enterprise features and performance in a small desktop form factor
  • WORM and Encryption (AES 256-bit)
  • LTFS (Linear Tape File System) for Mac and Linux
  • Future-proof with eight-generation roadmap
  • Data speed matching reduces mechanical wear and extends tape life
  • MTBF of 250,000 hrs at 100% duty cycle
  • 30-year archival life
  • Three years Advanced Replacement Service Warranty

    • Availability
    Tandberg Data LTO-5 HH FC external tape drives and LTO-5 media are available through established channel of distributor and reseller partners. MSRP pricing for the LTO-5 HH FC external tape drive is $3,395.00, and MSRP pricing for LTO-5 media is $69.00. All Tandberg Data LTO-5 HH FC tape drives come with a three-year warranty and Advanced Replacement Service.

    The PROMISE SANlink is available through PROMISE’s network of distributor and reseller partners and from the Apple Store and Apple Authorized Resellers. SANlink is available for $799.

    Storage and Networks

    Tandberg HH FC LTO-5 Drive Connects to Mac Through Thunderbolt

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    Tandberg Data and PROMISE Technology, Inc. have tested and certified the solution to ensure compatibility to the user. SANLink provides a dual 4Gbps FC link that can be used to connect to external FC storage. Each adapter features full-duplex capable FC ports that automatically detect connection speed and can each independently operate at 1, 2 or 4Gbps.

     

    Tandberg Data’s LTO-5 tape drives store up to 3TB (with 2.1 compression) per cartridge. Capable of data transfer rates of up to 280MB/sec, it dynamically and continuously adjusts the speed of the drive to keep drives streaming. This maximizes performance and reduces start/stops, which increases the reliability of drives and media. Tandberg Data also supports LTFS (Linear Tape File System), which allows the tape drive to operate like a hard disk with direct access without the need for tape backup software. The solution is also compatible with all major backup software packages.

    Tandberg Data LTO-5 HH FC external tape drive features with PROMISE SANLink:

  • Capacity of 1.5TB / 3TB (native/compressed)
  • Performance up to 1TB/hr (compressed)
  • 8Gb FC connectivity
  • Thunderbolt connectivity with PROMISE SANLink
  • Low media cost
  • Low power consumption: 6.9 W (sleeping mode) and 20 W (operating mode)
  • Enterprise features and performance in a small desktop form factor
  • WORM and Encryption (AES 256-bit)
  • LTFS (Linear Tape File System) for Mac and Linux
  • Future-proof with eight-generation roadmap
  • Data speed matching reduces mechanical wear and extends tape life
  • MTBF of 250,000 hrs at 100% duty cycle
  • 30-year archival life
  • Three years Advanced Replacement Service Warranty

    • Availability
    Tandberg Data LTO-5 HH FC external tape drives and LTO-5 media are available through established channel of distributor and reseller partners. MSRP pricing for the LTO-5 HH FC external tape drive is $3,395.00, and MSRP pricing for LTO-5 media is $69.00. All Tandberg Data LTO-5 HH FC tape drives come with a three-year warranty and Advanced Replacement Service.

    The PROMISE SANlink is available through PROMISE’s network of distributor and reseller partners and from the Apple Store and Apple Authorized Resellers. SANlink is available for $799.

    Storage and Networks

    Mac OSX Deployment Package from Google

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  • Push security patches, whether the Mac is on an internal network/VPN or not.
  • Force mandatory installation of some packages, while allowing others to be optional.
  • Tightly manage Apple-provided updates.
  • Scale without deploying and maintaining additional server infrastructure.
  • Obtain reports on all of this and the fleet overall.

    • Today we are open-sourcing Simian, our solution to enterprise-class Mac OS X package deployment. Simian uses App Engine-based hosting to scale with the needs of your growing enterprise, and a Munki-based client which will continue to evolve through the outstanding work of Greg Neagle and the Munki community. We hope this to be the first of many announcements in sharing Google’s unique IT approach with the larger community.

    For more information, please visit our Simian project page, join the discussion list, and downloadthe code. For more information about Munki, please visit its project page.

    By John Randolph and Justin McWilliams, Google Corporate Platforms Engineering Team

    The Original Google Open Source Announcement is at: 

    Simian: Mac OS X package deployment via App Engine

    Saturday, January 29, 2011 | 4:15 PM

    Labels: , , , 

    Storage and Networks

    Disaster Recovery Plans: Top 10 Forgotten Items

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    1. Failing to identify everything that could potentially jeopardize the infrastructure and data that run your business. In addition to the obvious threats – viruses, Trojans, worms, etc. – you need to identify any forces that are unique to your geography. Do you live on an earthquake fault or in a flood zone? Does your region experience frequent power interruptions from storms or rolling blackouts? Make sure all of these possibilities are considered when creating your plan or choosing a location for a new DR facility.

    2. Creating a plan that depends on too few qualified personnel. It is not uncommon for businesses to create a DR plan that depends on just one IT person with a pager. What if that person is unavailable for some reason? You need to identify and cross-train a pool of employees that are capable of responding in an emergency. It also helps if this pool of resources is geographically dispersed in case of a large environmental disaster that affects all local employees.

    3. Relying on manual processes to notify staff during a disaster. If the power goes out in your facility and no one is there to report it, will your DR staff be informed? You need to create an automated system that will notify your IT staff of any disaster or disruption to service. You can also establish an arrangement with a third-party service provider to monitor your facility and notify a pre-defined set of individuals that are trained to execute your DR plan.

    4. Failing to procure adequate backup power. If your facility is affected by a wide-spread environmental disruption, you many find yourself without power for an extended period of time. Be sure to purchase the longestlife, most uninterruptible power supply available. Then obtain additional battery back-up for continued power.

    5. Forgetting to prioritize what resources need to be restored first. Which of your IT applications need to be accessed first? Are there some that can wait a day or two without affecting your business? You need to be selective about the order in which applications and services are brought back online first after a disaster. For example, you might choose to reactivate your company’s email application before you restore departmental file servers. There may be politics involved in this decision, so make sure you get buy-in beforehand, to avoid the “me firsts!”

    6. Failing to create adequate documentation of your DR plan. After creating a plan, be sure that you create detailed step- by-step instructions on how to execute the recovery plan. Ensure that every process is well documented. Describe the location of all system resources needed to accomplish the recovery. Be sure to store the documentation at multiple locations and verify that all key personnel have easy access to the manuals.

    7. Relying on back ups. It doesn’t matter how good your DR plan is if your data is out of date, is in a location also affected by the disaster, or has become corrupted. Perform backups at rigidly enforced, regular intervals to protect information integrity. Or, use a technology like VMware virtualization to implement a remote site with replicated virtual machines to speed recovery.

    8. Forgetting to test your disaster recovery plan. You need to make sure your recovery plan actually works in an emergency! While this seems obvious, many enterprises neglect to adequately test their plans. You should regularly conduct data fire-drills to test every possible scenario, from basic power failures to catastrophic events that could result in multiple months of devastation. Again, technology like VMware virtualization, and the ability to provision any server with the virtual machines needed, in minutes, make testing your DR plan fast and effective.

    9. Making passwords too hard to find. Though password protection is a key goal for data security, you need to store your system passwords in at least two geographically separate, secure locations. Make sure that more than one IT staff person has access to all passwords and codes. And be sure to change these passwords promptly if key personnel leave the company.

    10. Failing to keep your recovery plan up to date. You should never stop updating your DR plan. Once you’ve created your plan, revisit it at least on a quarterly basis. Determine a list of trigger points that should invoke changes to the plan, like personnel, equipment, location or application changes, to name a few. This will not only keep your IT staff’s skills fresh, it will also provide the opportunity to improve procedures as you uncover vulnerabilities in your plan or ways to streamline your procedures.

    Storage and Networks

    Deluxe On Ascent [Updated]

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    This weeks press release brings them not only the digital library services of Ascent Media, but many boutique post sites as well. If they can give each enough rein to do what they are good at, support them with assets that make each different, and not force corporate overheads that buy Jaguars for the VPs but inhibit innovations, they might get out of this transition in good shape.

    Brief Update: On 31 December, Deluxe issued a press release announcing that they have completed the transaction.

    Hollywood, CA November 24, 2010 — Deluxe Entertainment Services Group Inc. announced today that it has signed an agreement with Ascent Media Corporation (NASDAQ: ASCMA) to acquire Ascent’s Creative Services and Media Services businesses, including the well-known brands of Company 3, Beast, Method, Rushes, Encore Hollywood and Level 3 Post. 

    The acquisition will also enhance Deluxe’s services for clients that include life-cycle library management and digital asset management. Digital services include file based mastering, archiving, digital distribution, DVD and Blu-ray authoring. 

    Deluxe is the world’s largest processor of film for the motion picture industry and the industry’s largest provider of Blu-ray authoring services. Over the last few years Deluxe has significantly increased its service offerings in digital services and content delivery. The company’s pipeline includes 2D and 3D post production services from film or digital capture to digital intermediates with the proprietary EFILM® workflow, theatrical release (35mm and digital cinema), and home entertainment services for every digital media platform. 

    “Deluxe is well positioned to take our company into the future as technologies continue to transform how customers create and distribute content for films and television programs,” said Cyril Drabinsky, President and CEO of Deluxe. “We look forward to this talented group of people joining the Deluxe team,” adds Drabinsky. 

    The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close by the end of the year.

    Storage and Networks

    IRIDAS Certifies Facilis Technology’s TerraBlock for Complete Range of Stereoscopic Review and Real

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    “IRIDAS has always taken great strides to eliminate obstacles from our customers’ workflow. We know they don’t have a minute to spare wondering if the components of their workflow will perform well together, so we’ve designed a certification process that eliminates the guesswork,” said Patrick Palmer, chief operating officer, IRIDAS. “Our qualification virtually guarantees not only will TerraBlock work every time, it will deliver the levels of performance customers require in complex production workflow environments.”

    Editor note: Compliance, 64 bits, 3D, 4K – Who could ask for more? Certainly worth looking into.

    “Facilis has earned a reputation in the content creation marketplace for delivering high performance shared media storage solutions optimized for the digital media artist,” added James McKenna, vice president, Facilis Technology. “But as we’ve also witnessed, the advent of new stereoscopic 3D technologies and multi-format environments raises important questions among content creators about what tools work best together. IRIDAS’ certification for TerraBlock sends a strong message that our newest 64-bit platform is perfectly optimized for the IRIDAS workflow.”

    In September, Facilis announced a new 64-bit operating system as well as new high-performance SAS controllers to add to the available bandwidth for multi-stream uncompressed and 2K/4K DI workflows.

    About Facilis Technology

    Facilis Technology, Inc. designs and builds high-capacity, turnkey shared storage networks for television, film and all other aspects of post-production. Facilis Technology delivers cost-effective, high-bandwidth storage solutions that enable a more efficient workflow for content creators. For more information, visit www.facilis.com or contact [email protected].

    About IRIDAS

    For over a decade, IRIDAS has become world renowned for its innovations in the digital filmmaking industry, redefining the way artists view, manipulate, enhance and produce their digital creations. As the industry’s earliest pioneers of stereoscopic review solutions and real-time color grading and manipulation techniques, IRIDAS taps its legacy of engineering expertise to streamline production and post production workflows, from onset to finishing, and is making stereoscopic moviemaking an everyday reality. For more information, please visit www.iridas.com.

    Storage and Networks

    IEEE (MSST2010) Symposium on Massive Storage Systems Papers Available

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    The recently completed 26th IEEE (MSST2010) Symposium on Massive Storage Systems and Technologies Conference has made the papers available.

    Anyone interested in storage can benefit from one or more of these. [Your editor’s favorite is a proposed Linear Tape File System. Wouldn’t it be great to have an open standard in the LTO5 mechanics space, with attached RAIDs?]

    See the site: 

    26th IEEE (MSST2010) Symposium on Massive Storage Systems and Technologies

    Presentations and Papers

    Storage and Networks

    MULTIDYNE INTRODUCES FOUR-CHANNEL 3G HD FIBER OPTIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM

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    Read the entire story at: MultiDyne HD-4400
    “The MultiDyne HD-4400 designed under the openGear standard will continue to give broadcasters the flexibility they desire when it comes to selecting only the most advanced technology compatible with their existing equipment,” says Jim Jachetta, senior vice president of engineering and product development. “The HD-4400 is perfect to meet the demands for today’s high definition, on-the-go sports or news production environments. Nowadays, mobile production is so complex that often two or three mobile production trucks are required. Several dozen 3G HD video feeds need to be shared between all these production vehicles, and with limited space in these trucks, the HD-4400 is the perfect high-density solution for video pool feed distribution.”

    Ideal for high-capacity fiber trunking of 3G HD-SDI signals in a broadcast facility, the HD-4400 transmitter card accepts four multi-rate HD-SDI electrical signals with speeds of 5 Mb to 3 Gb per second as inputs. These inputs are equalized, re-clocked and converted to four optical outputs. The receiver card accepts four fiber optic inputs and converts them to four fiber optic electrical outputs, which are re-clocked and line buffered. Both the transmitter and receiver cards include a 4×4 matrix switcher to cross connect any of the four input and output channels.

    The HD-4400’s 4×4 switching and cross-connect feature provides 3G HD signal routing and automatic redundancy capability. The system can also transport four redundant 3G HD-SDI feeds with automatic protection switching, supporting SDI, HD-SDI, 3G HD-SDI, DVB, ASI and SMPTE standards 424M, 292M, 259M and 310M.

    Several model variations of the HD-4400 will also be available from MultiDyne, providing a variety of fiber transport and switching options for customers including the HD-4300, triple 3G HD-SDI option with a 3×3 switch for openGear, the HD-4200 dual 3G-HD-SDI with a 2×2 switch for openGear and a HD-4100 single 3G HD-SDI model with one 3G HD-SDI channel and no switch or protection switching.                       

    About MultiDyne:
    For more than 30 years, MultiDyne has been a leading provider of innovative and outstanding video and fiber-optic-based transport and routing systems for the broadcast, cable, satellite, production, digital cinema, pro A/V, corporate, retail, surveillance, teleconferencing, judicial arraignment, transportation, government, military, and healthcare markets. MultiDyne’s fiber optic transport and routing systems for video, SDI, 3G HD, DVB/ASI, VGA, DVI, HDMI, audio, AES, Ethernet, data, CATV, as well as the company’s other broadcast accessories are used worldwide by such industry leaders as ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, RAI, BBC and the Department of Transportation. MultiDyne provides a seven-year warranty on its core product line. For more information, call MultiDyne at 1-877-MULTIDYNE or 1-516-671-7278, visit the company’s Web site at www.multidyne.com, or send an e-mail to [email protected].

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    Photo Download:
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    Media Contact:
    Kate Lee
    D. Pagan Communications, Inc.
    +1 (631) 659-2309, ext. 21
    [email protected]

    Company Contact:
    +1 (516) 671-7278, ext. 302
    [email protected]