Storage area networks provide manageable, centralized storage capacity for systems offering vast amounts of disk space via a dedicated network link. SANs can offer servers much more disk space than they might be able to utilize locally, often spanning dozens if not hundreds of terabytes of data. Because of their complexity, however, SANs are not ...

Establishing proper timeframes for storing sensitive or private documents is essential to efficient company guidelines. Keeping documents for too short a period of time may negatively impact business operations or customer interactions. On the other hand, retaining documents for too long may violate rules or legal requirements and expose data to risk. The purpose of ...

Selecting a network attached storage device and configuring it for your company’s needs requires careful evaluation and planning. This comparison chart from TechRepublic Premium is blank and to be filled out by the user. However, it will help you target the most important details. Notes on NAS selection: For prosumers and SMBs, using dedicated NAS ...

Data without an associated backup is only as reliable as the system upon which it is stored — and every system has a finite life span or may be susceptible to malware or hacking efforts. This form from TechRepublic Premium provides a simple method for end users to submit data backup requests. (The Appendix comprises ...

Every organization relies on data that must be protected and backed up in a reliable and secure way by authorized personnel. While the content or criticality of the data may vary, the processes behind a successful backup strategy are universal. This checklist from TechRepublic Premium will help you establish a standard framework for backing up ...

Whether your organization uses Amazon S3, Dropbox, iCloud, OneDrive or another option, cloud data storage services enable collaboration, simplified governance and compliance responsibilities and provide built-in off-site backup advantages. Cloud storage accounts require regular administration and maintenance. As a best practice, someone should regularly review the organization’s file storage accounts. There’s much to remember. Periodic ...

Third-party cloud-based file storage applications such as Dropbox, OneDrive and Google Drive have all contributed to the success of business cloud data storage. The purpose of this policy from TechRepublic Premium is to provide guidelines for secure cloud data management to ensure the integrity and privacy of company-owned information. This policy can be customized as ...

Properly deploying new servers for clients requires managed services providers to carefully plan and execute such initiatives. Keeping those servers running properly is an even bigger challenge. MSPs need to adopt methodic maintenance practices to help spot issues early and prevent problems from resulting in unplanned downtime and lost data. Servers present so many fronts ...

Backup routines are the lifeblood of information technology. Protecting an organization’s data is a computer professional’s highest priority. Whether it’s hackers, disgruntled or confused users, a fire or flood, hardware failure or just thunderstorms threatening the information you’re charged with protecting, a solid backup routine is at least a best practice if not a best ...

Amidst the growing landscape of data storage methods and functions, keeping up with the terminology used to describe the technology has become challenging as well. This quick glossary from TechRepublic Premium is intended to serve as a guide to defining common storage terms and noteworthy storage service providers. From the glossary: ASYNCHRONOUS REPLICATION Asynchronous replication ...

This policy from TechRepublic Premium will help you implement the backup environment that is appropriate for your company. It factors in onsite, remote and cloud operations and covers issues such as storage capacity, network bandwidth and access controls. From the policy: Defining criticality of data Identifying the criticality of data is a key component in ...

Storage engineers take ownership and responsibility for the smooth operation of an organization’s communication and storage networks. This hiring kit from TechRepublic Premium provides a workable framework you can use to find the best candidate for your organization. From the hiring kit: According to Glassdoor, the salary for a storage engineer in the United States ...