Rapidly increasing demand for AI solutions is – in turn – leading to exceptionally high demand for flash and hard disk drives. The result? Rising prices, longer delivery times and increasingly scarce resources. Discover how you can control your costs and reclaim valuable primary storage capacity with an intelligent tape strategy.
Imagine renting an expensive downtown penthouse and then using the largest room for the sole purpose of storing boxes of old files. That is essentially what is happening in many data centers. While rapidly growing demand for AI solutions is driving demand for flash and hard disk drives to unprecedented levels, rarely used data is tying up valuable primary storage.
The market situation is tight, with low inventories driving sharp price increases and longer delivery times. Leading manufacturers have already confirmed that they have virtually no production capacity left for the current year. For many companies, this makes expanding primary storage systems not only more expensive, but also more difficult to plan. At the same time, data volumes continue to grow relentlessly. The problem is that many companies do not actively use a large proportion of their data, or do so only rarely. Nevertheless, this “cold” data is often stored on expensive disks, which is precisely where the production applications and AI workloads should be running.
The idea is simple: not all data has to be stored on the most expensive storage
In this situation, Quantum offers an attractive alternative for maintaining cost control and ensuring the availability of storage resources. The approach is as simple as it is effective: frequently used data stays on disk, while rarely used data automatically migrates to lower-cost storage. Tape is not a substitute for disk, but a sensible and cost-effective addition.
StorNext as a bridge between high-cost and low-cost storage
With Quantum StorNext and ActiveScale Cold Storage, this approach can be implemented seamlessly. StorNext acts as an intelligent bridge, using predefined rules to automatically move data from high-cost primary storage to a Scalar Tape solution or ActiveScale Cold Storage with an integrated tape layer.
The standout feature is that StorNext is not tied to a specific storage vendor and integrates seamlessly into existing environments. As a result, you do not need to replace any existing infrastructure. Unlike conventional data movers, StorNext can reliably transfer data directly to tape from virtually any storage platform.
More than just cost savings
In addition to offering the lowest costs per terabyte, tape provides several other compelling advantages. Scalar Tape solutions are extremely energy-efficient and significantly reduce power consumption for data storage – a factor that is becoming increasingly important as energy costs continue to rise. Another key benefit is the air gap capability. Physically separating data on tape provides essential additional protection against ransomware – something that cannot be achieved with purely disk-based architectures.
Conclusion: future-proof your environment with the right storage strategy
Data volumes are not going to decrease and, in the long term, sole reliance on disk will become financially unviable. Quantum Scalar Tape Libraries are designed and developed by drawing on decades of experience, profound technological expertise and continuous innovation. They offer the most cost-effective and energy-efficient storage layer available, with nearline access – making them ideal for AI workloads, archiving and the long-term retention of large data volumes.
Do not let rising prices and scarce availability force you into expensive expansion of your primary storage systems. Instead, opt for an intelligent combination of disk, object storage and tape.