Storage Switzerland is attending Storage Networking World (SNW) again this fall and as in shows past we will be providing quick notes on our conversations throughout the show.

Imation is a name that’s very well known for recording media and data storage. They manufacture products and solutions that include (among others) NAND flash devices, Blu-ray disks, LTO tape and now RDX removable disk drives. Their research indicates that the SMB/SME user segment has some requirements around data retention, data retrieval and data recovery that aren’t being well served by traditional IT vendors.

This group typically needs flexible products that are very easy to use and easy to implement. They also must fit into typical SMB budgets. Imation has recently focused on developing a complete line of data protection and archiving solutions to address these needs.

For backup and recovery, Imation DataGuard is a line of purpose-built backup appliances that will be released in Q1 2012. They can provide a complete storage solution in multiple media formats that’s compatible with all major backup applications. They support traditional fixed disk backup as well as RDX removable disk cartridges to give the user flexibility in implementing a data protection solution.

The T5R is a tower form-factor unit with five hard disk drive (HDD) bays and a single RDX bay, designed to give small businesses a one-box solution for disk-based backup with the option to create a removable copy. 1U and 3U rack-mountable disk-only units are also available.

In addition, they’ll offer flexibility in the way they enable backups to be taken offsite, with local online copies made to removable disk or replicated to another appliance offsite. DataGuard appliances will also support APIs from multiple cloud storage providers, like Amazon and Rackspace.

Imation also offers a full line of LTO tape storage solutions for backup or archive. These units are available in configurations from a single desktop drive to a 48-slot, 2-drive, rack-mounted library. LTO-5 versions of these products will support LTFS (Linear Tape File System) which allows an LTO-5 tape to be formatted as a storage volume, providing users and applications direct access to files and directories stored on the tape.

For retention and retrieval Imation recently acquired the InfiniVault line from ProStor, the company that invented the RDX removable drive format. These purpose-built archive appliances can provide near-infinite scaling of capacity as the software can keep track of all cartridges, whether stored in the InfiniVault, on the shelf or taken offsite. RDX is ideal for data subject to compliance regulations since this WORM media is designed for long term data retention and can be safely handled outside of the vault.

The RDX dock is USB 3.0 compatible providing a simple restore method for cartridges that are removed from the InfiniVault. For DR use cases, the InfiniVault can replicate data to another appliance over the WAN or of course, cartridges can be simply carried offsite in a briefcase or backpack.

Storage Swiss Take

Everyone seems to be interested in the SMB/SME space. But many vendors are unknown to these customers, or are coming at them with mid-market solutions. Imation has a couple of strong advantages with their approach. They’re a familiar name with the users in the small business space and they’re offering appropriate-technology solutions.

RDX is a great example, as one of its benefits is that users can carry it offsite in a back pack. While there are more ‘elegant’ disaster recovery strategies, none is easier to implement. LTO tape is another. Companies in the SMB use tape and a complete product line aimed at these customers should include it.

These customers have certainly heard the cloud buzz, but are probably not ‘going all in’ with the cloud. That said, the cloud may be in their future, so the storage they buy should have a roadmap that extends to the cloud. Users in this space view IT as overhead. They want flexible solutions and cost-effective solutions. Most of all, they need products that do a job and don’t become a job themselves.