Maximizing Efficiency Through Data Replication Manager Data Movement Application Notes

About This Document
4 Application Notes - Maximizing Efficiency Through Data Replication Manager Data Movement
About This Document
DRM is a storage-based data replication and workload migration solution that copies data online and
in real time to remote locations via an extended Storage Area Network (SAN). With a DRM solution
and the peer-to-peer functionality of the HSG80 controller software, data can be moved for several
useful purposes.
These Application Notes discuss four services that are possible using the built-in functionality of DRM
with HSG80 Array Controller Software (ACS) Version 8.6-1P. After an overview describing some of
the benefits of these services, you will find procedures and examples that demonstrate how each
service can be accomplished within DRM. This document is not meant to be an exhaustive discussion
of these services, but simply shows some of the possibilities available. These four services are:
Data Backup—incorporating a backup strategy, with or without the use of third-party software, to
protect your valuable data.
Data Distribution—pushing copies of data to other geographic locations to make it locally accessible
to customers.
Data Migration—moving data to a new location or to one with a larger storage capacity.
Data Mining—making copies of data available so undiscovered and useful information can be
extracted, analyzed, or tested. These copies are created and used to prevent performance impacts with
your working or production data.
The core applications to perform these services reside in DRM, with the exception of specialized
backup applications. The examples in this document make use of Command Line Interpreter (CLI)
commands that can be cumbersome with long or involved procedures. Consider the use of script files
for frequently run procedures to provide some automation. SANworks Command Scripter is
application software that provides command-level control of HSG80 controllers. You can use this
application to create, edit, and run script files that contain the CLI commands necessary to automate
your procedure. Refer to the Compaq SANworks Command Scripter Version 1.0 User Guide for
additional information.
Data Backup
Even with data replication, there exists the need for implementing a solid backup strategy to protect
valuable data from human error, misdeeds, and unforeseen disasters.
A DRM environment offers two advantages to data backup:
• Third-party software applications, though available, do not have to be used.
• Media transportation and handling can be eliminated using remote copy sets.
Remote copy sets in a DRM configuration maintain two copies of a data volume: one at the initiator
site and one at the target site. This lends itself to a strategy of using the remote copy set function of
DRM to backup data from numerous initiator sites to one target location. This “concentration model,”
as depicted in Figure 1, allows an organization to set up a central backup site to collect backup data
from other primary sites. The target site has a choice of backup media to employ to best meet their
needs.
Tape backup has been the traditional backup method because of its low cost. This method is inherently
slow and subject to breakage, which can result in data loss. Disks as a reusable backup media have
become affordable, and with the features of the HSG80 controller, offer the safety of RAID datasets
and a much quicker backup time. With a DRM environment, backup to disk is simple, though not
automatic.