Storage primer
Jan 1, 2011 12:00 PM, By Ciprian Popoviciu and Mohamed Khalia
Further optimization of storage can be achieved through proper design. Instead of using a “one size fits all” setup, which has to support the highest performance needs, the design should tier storage to match the right disk and access protocol to the right (usually three) group of applications or services. Recently, dynamic mechanisms and technologies for tiering have emerged. For example, fully automated storage tiering (FAST) moves data from one tier (slow/cheap) to another (fast/expensive) based on how often the data is accessed.
Cloud storage for video content
Nowadays cloud computing and cloud-based services are on the minds of technologists and business people alike. This overview would not be complete if we would not discuss the cloud-related trends in storage. Object storage organizes data in flexible-sized (unlike block storage) containers along with metadata that helps not only locating data but also applying policies to it. Compared with complex, difficult-to-manage, antiquated file systems, object storage systems leverage a single flat address space that enables the automatic routing of data to the right storage systems, specifies the content lifecycle, and keeps both active and archive data in a single tier with the appropriate protection levels. This allows object storage to align the value of data and the cost of storing it without requiring significant management overhead typically created by manually moving data to the proper tier. Object storage is also designed to run at peak efficiency on commodity server hardware. More importantly, object storage provides the scalability necessary to support the on-demand capacity delivered by cloud storage.
Cloud storage is changing the way companies think about storage in an era of runaway growth of unstructured data (video is a typical example of unstructured data) by enabling capacity on-demand and other benefits. While simple and scalable, object storage makes it easier to search data, and it enables administrators to apply policies that enforce data lifecycle and prioritization. Going forward, object storage will enable true cloud storage, the most efficient and cost-effective option for storing content. While the technology is relatively new, several cloud storage offerings are currently available. The migration, however, should be carefully planned and implemented.
Ciprian Popoviciu is the director of the infrastructure/cloud group and Mohamed Khalid is chief architect at Technodyne.
| Want to use this article? Click here for options! |  |
