New Backup, Replication Tools Promise More Protection

A fresh round of storage tools for data backup and replication will debut this week from three midsize ISVs.

St. Bernard Software Inc. and BEI Corp.s UltraBac Software backup tools address user problems such as protecting open files and avoiding clogging networks. Meanwhile, provisioning and replication tools from Fujitsu Software Technology (Softek) Corp. target storage area networks.

St. Bernards OFM (Open File Manager) 9.1 has been made block-based—a method that lets an application transfer data in efficient chunks regardless of how its boundaries are defined in actual files. It also guards against hidden data being overlooked, which often happens with file-based products, according to company officials, in San Diego.

OFM supports most major backup applications and in the future will support Linux through St. Bernards work with partner Novell Inc., of Provo, Utah. OFM 9.1 also supports Microsoft Corp.s Windows Server 2003 Volume Shadow Copy service. "Were using it on a wide variety of servers. I like that it doesnt take up all that [many] resources" compared with competitive products, said Russ Beer, network administrator at Halogen Software Inc., in Ottawa. "I think theyve got the product pretty much solid."

At Comdex in Las Vegas this week, UltraBac will announce UltraBac Disaster Recovery Gold, which conducts system image backups and—unlike the prior Pro version—is now bootable. The new version also backs up to FTP servers and to IBMs Tivoli Storage Manager; early next year, it will back up to dissimilar hardware as well, CEO Morgan Edwards said.

Next month, UltraBac, based in Bellevue, Wash., will upgrade its file backup program to UltraBac Enterprise Edition 7.2 with a new central server index, Edwards said. In addition, a major release due in 12 to 18 months will support disk-based backup and tape management.

Meanwhile, Softek this week will announce Provisioner 2.2 for Linux, Unix and Windows. Due next month, the software will support Windows Server 2003, multiple management interface instances and unequal mirrored volumes, company officials said. In addition, Softeks Replicator 2.1 for Windows has a common remote console and performance management features; the Unix version has been updated with new resource loading and Oracle Corp. scripts. Replicator 3.5 for IBMs z/OS has new offline volume access, TCP/IP support and double buffering, officials said.

Despite the version numbers, the products are new, as they are expanded versions of features formerly in the Sunnyvale, Calif., companys TDMF (Transparent Data Migration Facility). TDMF itself has a new version, 3.5 for z/OS, now with double buffering and session validation, officials added.