THE EDGE ith its long history and proven track record , tape

It has thrived despite fairly regular predictions of its likely decline in favour of newer technologies . Back in 2004 , for example , tech industry writers were asking , ‘ Will tape survive in the long term ?’ At the time , the view was positive : ‘ Having answered many of the challenges it faced prior to 2000 , the tape industry has successfully positioned itself for success in the foreseeable future ’.

Fast forward nearly two decades and those prescient observations still hold true , with tape still widely used across a variety of important use cases . Global technology leaders , including the likes of IBM , HPE , Dell , Sony and Quantum are just a few of the companies that manufacture tape equipment and media . They work within a large and growing market which industry research predicts will reach US $ 9.42 billion in value by 2030 .

Indeed , given issues such as the rise of ransomware and cybersecurity threats in general , organisations are also reprioritising tape , not least because having access to an archive copy of critical data on tape provides a secure location to recover from in the event of a security breach .

The advantages of tape storage

Tape as a storage option can provide a multitude of benefits including high capacity , more compact storage and long-term storage capability and life span of up to 30 years , which trumps disk ’ s deterioration after five . A single tape cartridge can store more than 60 years of video recording running 24x7 and it ’ s around three to four times cheaper to use than disk for long-term storage . Given this , tape is ideal for storing vast amounts of data at the lowest price point .

Many enterprises and large cloud providers are turning to tape because of its three biggest benefits : energy efficiency ; cybersecurity ; and long-term cost-effectiveness .

1 . The energy efficiency of tape

Tape is a green storage solution , offering a way to greatly reduce power and cooling requirements because it doesn ’ t need to be powered-on during data storage in contrast to disk arrays . Tape cartridges sit idle in automated libraries , enabling them to consume no energy until they are accessed . Tape consumes

about one-fifth the power and cooling of HDD technology , which saves significant costs for an organisation archiving data with a long-term focus . With eco initiatives now a key focus for businesses , a tape infrastructure strategy built with ‘ going green ’ in mind can help tackle the large environmental impact of data centres .

2 . Tape is key for cyber-resilience

With data breaches and ransomware attacks becoming more common , tape has seen a resurgence in popularity . Tape is an air-gapped or ‘ offline ’ solution from the rest of the network and there have been more recent innovations in tape – like Scalar Ransom Block that automatically ejects the tape magazine so tapes cannot be picked by the robotic system until an operator physically re-inserts the magazine – that make tape an even more secure solution for ransomware recovery . This provides the strongest air-gap solution possible , making tape an ideal component of cyber-resilient infrastructure . And www . intelligentdatacentres . com

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