The beginning of the year is often a good time to change jobs. New years bring new budgets and new job openings, and for individuals thinking about a change, the time to move into data storage management is right.
Storage jobs are hot and trained storage personnel are in short supply, say industry analysts and IT managers. This combination is weakening the resolve of IT managers to hold out for experienced personnel, leaving them with few options other than to hire those who have or are willing to obtain storage certifications. Though IT managers and analysts differ on which specific storage certifications are best for advancement in 2007, they recommend that individuals prioritize and obtain vendor-specific storage certifications that businesses can use right now.
In the past seven years, I have gone from yahooing to googling. The scary part about that sentence is that statement actually makes sense in this age. For if you are like me, and according to the Web page view statistics, millions of you are, when you need to find information, you head out to Google Inc.'s Web site to look for it.
Microsoft took a big step back so Vista could take a big step forward. New storage features in the forthcoming Vista operating system reflect Microsoft's realization that its Windows operating system lagged competing platforms in storage management features. The new Vista sports an improved file system, native support for hybrid disk drives (H-HDD), volume shrinking, enhanced I/O prioritization and drive encryption features.
Imagine a PC with instantaneous boot up or storing 10TB of data -- 10,000 gigabytes -- on a device the size of a dime with data-transfer rates unhampered by any latency.
Virtual tape libraries (VTLs) are increasingly viewed as something akin to a modern day miracle for backup pains. Though VTLs are easy to implement, expedite backups and restores and free up time previously spent troubleshooting failed backups, users also need to recognize what new challenges VTLs introduce.
Tens of thousands of users are deploying open-source storage software in an effort to avoid pricey proprietary products such as array clustering and disk eraser applications and to get some long-term protection through the availability of source code.
Thinking about purchasing a storage analytics product? Then here's a good first question to ask any sales representatives who call on you. Ask them if their products can tell you how much storage you have in your environment. If their immediate response is yes, thank them for their time and hang up the phone.
Vendors often ask me, "What is it that prompts a storage manager to buy a new product for his storage network?" While I don't profess to know and understand why each one buys a product, a good place to start is by understanding why storage managers do not introduce new products into their storage-area network environment.
Users are about to start hearing a phrase from storage analytics vendors that they have longed to hear: "No agent required." It seems vendors are finally figuring out that the act of installing and managing their agents on tens or hundreds of servers is not trivial. And unlike Microsoft security patches, which result in corporate fire drills to update all Windows servers across the enterprise, bugs in storage software agents receive no such consideration and more likely result in them being turned off.
Mid-range arrays provide much-needed storage relief for organizations. They cost a lot less than their high-end counterparts.