Affordable Enterprise-Class Backup in a small Package
Written: Apr 02 '04
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Pros: Installable internally, high capacity, SCSI interface.
Cons: Performance is not as robust as I expected.
The Bottom Line: Despite the less then admirable throughput, I am pleased with the performance of the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80.
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| vemartin's Full Review: Dell PowerVault 110 DLT Drive |
In the increasingly demanding world of Information Technology (IT) network/server management, the advantages of automating (fast) backup processes internal to the server, or across the network, are a necessity. More and more information (data) is the engine upon which corporate profits are driven, and that information needs to be protected by fast, reliable, backup tools (hardware as well as software), and high capacity media.
I am the Network Administrator of a medium sized server farm (25 servers), and utilize two Dell PowerVault 110T DLT ValueSmart 80 (VS80) Tape Backup Units to back up two high value file servers with some 50GB of data store and accessed therein.
The Product:
The PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 is a fully automated, high-performance, high-capacity, tape backup unit designed to provide unattended and on-line/off-line data storage, archiving, backup, and restoration of vital system files and data. The PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 is intended to be used with low and mid-range servers and networks. The PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 is compatible with operating systems (OS) and environments that support the SCSI Ultra 160 interface, requiring either direct OS support, or a suitable application program; i.e. tape backup program such as Veritas Backup Exec, or Computer Associates ARCServe.
The PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 is a Low Voltage Differential (LVD) device, and should be connected to a LVD SCSI adapter such as the 39160 Ultra SCSI 160 PCI card. The unit should not be connected to high voltage differential (HVD) cards such as the Adaptec 2944UW, such a connection will cause the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 to become nonfunctional. The PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 supports the DLT-IV 40GB (native)/ 80GB (compressed) tape backup media.
Technical Interlude: Digital Linear Tape (DLT)
DLT (Digital linear Tape) is a form of half inch magnetic tape and drive system used for computer data storage and archiving. A special compression algorithm, known as Digital Lempel Ziv 1 (DLZ1), facilitates storage and retrieval of data at high speeds and in large quantities, either internally or across the network.
Currently, there are two existing DLT formats: DLT4000/7000 and DLT1. The drive name will denote which format the drive accepts; i.e. DLT4000/7000 or DLT1. Both drives use the same type of data cartridges, but the newer drives write to the tapes differently, making the formats and drives and tapes non-interchangeable.
DLT1 Tape Drives: The DLT1 format uses the DLT Tape IV cartridge. It has a capacity of 40GB native and 80GB compressed. DLT1 drive units can read DLT4000 tapes; however, they cannot write to DLT 4000 tapes nor can they read, or write to DLT 7000 tape formats.
DLT 4000/7000 Tape Drives: The DLT 4000/7000 tape drives use a DLT Tape IV cartridge. The DLT4000 drives have a capacity of 20GB native and 40GB compressed. The DLT 7000 drives have a capacity of 40GB native and 80GB compressed.
SuperDLT (SDLT): looks very similar to the DLT Tape IV, but there is a tab on the cartridge that will prevent it from being used in the incorrect drive. The SuperDLT tapes have a native capacity of 110GB and 220GB compressed. SuperDLT drives can read, but not write to the older DLT Tape IV cartridges, and is backwards compatible to the DLT4000/7000 standard.
SCSI – LTO: Linear Tape Open (LTO) is a relatively new tape format. It was designed by a group of hardware and software manufacturers and is designed as an open standard to prevent the incompatibilities that occurred with the competing DLT standards, such as noted above. LTO is a cartridge based media very similar in look and feel to DLT. The LTO cartridges are of a different size, to prevent using the incorrect tapes in the drives. The first generation LTO drives have a native capacity of 100 Gigabytes and 200 Gigabytes compressed.
Dell offers a drive designated PowerVault 110T LTO. Dell also offers an LTO Autoloader designated PowerVault 128T. The cartridge used in the LTO drives is an LTO cartridge.
I use DLT Tape IV 7000 formatted tape to perform backups. As noted above, a single DLT Tape IV cartridge has a native capacity of 40GB (with up to 80 GB available through compressed). The data transfer rate is 5.2Mbps (up to 10Mbps compressed) utilizing a DLT-7000 drive.
Installation & Performance:
I use two Dell server platforms to host the two PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 Tape Backup Units:
(1) Dell PowerEdge 2500 free standing server with one Adaptec 39160 Ultra SCSI 160 card, Windows 2000 Advanced Server, and Veritas Backup Exec for Windows Server Version 9.1 Tape backup software.
(1) Dell PowerEdge 2600 free standing server with one Adaptec 39160 Ultra SCSI 160 card, Windows 2003 Enterprise Edition, and Veritas Backup Exec for Windows Server Version 9.1 Tape backup software.
As I pointed out above, the two servers that host the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80’s are high value, high availability file servers with some 50GB of data that requires backing up archiving. The two tape backup units provide back up service to only these servers, and serve as add redundancy to the overall backup schema of the server farm.
I installed the two PowerVault 110T DLT VS80’s in an available 5.25 inch slot on each server, made an internal connection to the Adaptec 39160 Ultra SCSI 160 card’s, and then powered up the servers. Once detected by the SCSI BIOS the units were ready to use. Windows 2000 Advanced Server & Windows 2003 Enterprise Ed. both automatically installed native drivers for the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80, and the OS considers them Removable Storage for backup purposes. Once the units are properly installed the native Backup.exe program that ships with Windows 2000 Server can be used to back up the host server, and other servers and or workstations on the network.
I then installed Veritas Backup Exec for Windows Server Version 9.1, which offers a much more robust feature set then that of the native Windows 2000 or Windows 2003 backup software, which in turn affords me more control over the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 units.
I use the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 to perform nightly (except weekends) full backup’s utilizing a single DLT-IV tape changed out on a monthly basis, generating a total of 12 tapes per server. Though rated to perform back-ups at some 5.2 Mbps (uncompressed), 10Mbps (compressed) actual throughput even of the host servers is considerably less; the two connected to my servers average 177MB per minute, some 10.6GB per hour. Not top notch, but not too bad considering the rich mixture of data that requires backing-up.
After loading the tape into the unit, all other manipulation of the drive; tape mounting, formatting, tensioning, erasing, ejecting, and tape preparing is easier handled by the tape backup software. The black PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 has few front panel controls, the only switch being the eject button to manually eject the tape. Along right face of the unit are LED’s for status, cleaning, and power on the front of the drive. On the back of the unit, two SCSI connections are present, allowing you to daisy-chain the units together if so inclined.
Maintenance of the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 is pretty straight forward; clean it and do it often. Dell recommends cleaning the unit at least once a month, but I clean them at least twice a month. Load a cleaning tape into the drive and the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80will sense the cleaning tape and automatically clean itself, ejecting the tape when the process is complete.
Conclusions:
Despite the less then admirable throughput, I am pleased with the performance of the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80. Utilizing a single tape backup unit can greatly simplifies the often complicated and time consuming process of backing up system and data files, especially on high value servers. Thought slower by far then advertised the PowerVault 110T DLT VS80’s still meet my diverse backup needs.
PowerVault 110T DLT VS80 Specifications:
Tape Backup Technology
• DLT7000 5.25 Internal (single) Tape backup Unit
Media
• One DLT-IV tape cartridge, or
• One DLT-IIIxt tape cartridge or;
• One DLT-III tape cartridge
Storage Capacity
• DLT-IV, Uncompressed: 40GB
• DLT-IV Compressed: 80GB
• DLT-IIIxt, Uncompressed: 15GB
• DLT-IIIxt, Compressed: 30GB
• DLT-III, Uncompressed: 10GB
• DLT-III, Compressed: 20GB
Transfer and Backup Rate
• Uncompressed backup rate: 5.2 MB/Sec
• Compressed backup rate: 10.0 MB/Sec
Recommended Server Capacity and Environment
• Between 10GB and 80GB
• Low-to-medium capacity departmental and enterprise servers
Interface
• SCSI-Ultra LVD; 39160 Ultra/LVD SCSI
Software
Dell-supported Tape Backup Software:
• Dell OpenManage PowerSuites for Veritas Backup Exec
• Dell OpenManage PowerSuites for Computer Associates ARCserve
Tape Backup Support Included In (Not Dell-supported):
• Microsoft Windows 2000
• Microsoft Windows NT
• Novell NetWare 4.0 and above
• Red Hat Linux 6.2
Model/Chassis
• DLTVS80 (Internal (half-height) and Tabletop (Full-height) )
Recommended:
Yes
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Member: Vincent
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