Next-Gen Backup School
with Brien Posey

Data protection is still Job #1 for storage managers who struggle to cope with ever-increasing storage capacities. Traditional backup – at least the backup we knew five years ago – is no match for the new demands and stresses on corporate data stores. But the leading backup application vendors, backup hardware vendors, and a handful of startups, have evolved their products over the years to meet these new challenges.

Next-Gen Backup School will examine the most important new and emerging backup technologies and processes, and describe the specific benefits of each. Independent expert Brien Posey will provide practical tips and guidance that will leave end users better equipped to determine if and where any of these technologies can improve their backup operations. This seminar offers the following:

• An in-depth review of new backup technologies, including: cloud storage, deduplication and virtual server data protection.
• A fresh perspective on current technologies now playing a more prominent role in enterprise data protection:
  • Cloud backup – originally seen as an SMB service, cloud backup is now viable for enterprises as well; backup software vendors have built in hooks that treat the cloud as a normal backup target, and emerging vendors have introduced appliances that making linking to cloud backup services easy and convenient
  • Snapshots – used for many years to help protect data, learn advances in snapshot technologies now make snapshotting a viable alternative to traditional backup methods
  • Continuous data protection (CDP) – capturing and saving changes to data as they occur – although its been around for a while, CDP saw little adoption largely because it represented an additional process to manage; today, CDP has been incorporated into backup applications and may even suffice on its own in demanding virtualized server environments.

Visit the seminar homepage for complete program details, including the full agenda, speaker bio and much more!

Disaster Recovery Planning
with Jon William Toigo

The basic principles of disaster recovery/business continuity haven’t changed – storage managers have to ensure that business-critical data stores are available and accessible as soon as possible after an incident disrupts operations. But with the demands of needing to recover enormous amounts of data and having that data ready to use - perhaps in a matter of minutes - the rules of disaster recovery have radically changed.

Disaster Recovery Planning will cover “the old and the new” elements of DR planning. The “old” includes the unavoidable but tried-and-true steps toward constructing an effective DR plan - and the "new" is where we see the most change in how companies can prepare for service interruptions and recover quickly and gracefully. Prominent industry expert - and 30-year IT veteran Jon William Toigo offers invaluable insight into this topic by addressing the following:

• Essential tips to know before you start writing a DR plan
• Identifying what company assets are really critical – and how you protect them
• The "must-have" elements of a DR plan should include
• Proven methods for putting the plan in place – what hardware/software must be added
• The effects of server and storage virtualization – how it helps (or hinders) recovery
• Strategies for replicating data
• Assessing the physical resources – hot, warm, cold sites and regional data centers
• How, what and when to test a DR plan
• Tools to help ensure DR readiness

Visit the seminar homepage for complete program details, including the full agenda, speaker bio and much more!

Storage for Virtual Servers and Desktops with Howard Marks

Virtual servers place an increased load on storage systems, so the tried-and-true optimization methods may not be as effective as optimization methods aimed at storage for virtualized environments. Because most organizations have limited funds to spend on optimizations, it can be a challenge to determine how to balance the competing needs of optimizing storage system performance – while also maintaining cost.

Storage for Virtual Servers and Desktops offers vendor-neutral advice from leading independent expert, Howard Marks, who will present various approaches for making the most of storage systems in virtualized environments – all without breaking the bank. Attendees will walk away armed with the knowledge needed to make informed decisions on where to prioritize spending as well as choosing the method that’s best for their organization. Some of the topics addressed in this seminar include the following:

• Storage networking options – Fibre Channel, iSCSI, NAS, SAS
• Optimizing performance with the tools you have
• Virtualization's impact on the backup landscape
• Storage system features and hypervisor integration (VAAI, VASA, etc.)
• Using Flash to accelerate system I/O
• Virtual storage appliances

Visit the seminar homepage for complete program details, including the full agenda, speaker bio and much more!

New for 2012! Cloud Storage
with Marc Staimer

First used by small-to-medium organizations to provide low-cost storage for archival and backup operations, cloud storage services have now become a viable choice for enterprises. Cloud storage has evolved into content distributions, workflow sharing, content sharing, as well as long-term archival, email archival, and backup recovery and restore operations.

Cloud Storage, featuring independent expert Marc Staimer, will clarify exactly what cloud storage is and is not; the differences between cloud storage and storage in the cloud; cloud washing; the differences between public, private, and hybrid cloud storage; and cover cost/benefit analyses of each. He’ll also look at critical issues that must be resolved for a successful implementation of a cloud storage environment.

Visit the seminar homepage for complete program details, including the full agenda, speaker bio and much more!

New for 2012! Solid State Storage
with Dennis Martin

Once considered too pricey for the average IT department – solid-state storage has now moved to the forefront of the storage market, positioning itself as a viable alternative for enterprise storage. Today, SSD technologies aren’t only being deployed to boost application performance, but they are also yielding many economic advantages – in fact, more than 60% of IT shops are currently using, deploying or evaluating SSD storage for 2012.

Solid State Storage, featuring independent expert Dennis Martin – leading SSD authority with 30+ years of experience – will cover the key solid-state technologies and specs that users need to know, along with various implementation alternatives. Data is always growing and although SSD has traditionally been too costly – there are new innovations making SSD storage applications more affordable! You need to know what they are, how they work, cost vs. performance metrics, and strategies for integration. Find out why 55% of IT shops are planning to add more SSD in 2012 -- attend this complimentary dinner seminar and walk-away with the following:

• SSD technologies and data placement strategies
• Recent solid-state storage innovations – and how they work
• How & where SSD can be added into your IT infrastructure
• Specific SSD implementation methods
• Cost vs. performance ratios of solid-state disks
• How to use solid-state and automated tiered storage
• Success stories from SSD users and lab tests results

Visit the seminar homepage for complete program details, including the full agenda, speaker bio and much more!