Dell's EqualLogic PS Series is a line of storage appliances, from Dell.
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PowerProtect DD Series
Score 8.6 out of 10
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PowerProtect DD (a next-generation appliance replacing Dell EMC Data Domain) is a suite of hardware appliances used for
data protection, backup, storage and deduplication. PowerProtect appliance offerings are
cloud-enabled and vary by organization size, capable of supporting small
business and enterprises.
PowerProtect appliances are separated into two categories: entry-level
to midrange, and enterprise.
Entry-Level to Midrange Backup Appliances
PowerProtect…
Dell EqualLogic is well suited in a virtual environment where the ability to quickly create new volumes is important. Also, being able to back-up and restore data pools is a key factor, as well as automating your storage environment. Smaller businesses would be less suited in this scenario and would be better off with a less expensive NAS solution.
We have huge data coming in from different sources and also from multiple organizations in our Data centres. This data had multiple copies of the same data and was huge in size therefore, we wanted to have a solution in place which can help us with a good amount of deduplication at the deepest possible level to make sure that our ecosystem does not have multiple copies of the same data and is also efficient at the same time. Having said this, we wanted this solution to be secure and reliable since it had to be exposed to a huge critical set of data in the market. To add, backup and restoration was something that we were also keen on evaluating so that once we have efficient data within our system, the time it takes to backup and restoration also reduces. And all this was justified by this solution when we signed up with them. From the pricing perspective and the implementation side, the solution needs improvement to make it more efficient and user-friendly.
Be nice to use a hybrid of drives. Solid state and hard disk drives.
Configuration was easy, but the maintaining of it can be a little difficult. We are a small shop. The system runs great, but when it comes to increasing storage space, etc., it can be difficult because we aren't in it daily. Some options are buried pretty well, which makes it tough to find.
DD has performed flawlessly for almost 10 years as our backup/recovery storage with offsite replication. Given its track record and great support from EMC, we're unlikely to look elsewhere any time soon.
I have found PowerProtect DD to be very easy to use. The instructions are clear and the user interface is straightforward. I haven't needed to do any serious data recovery yet, however I found the process of backing up my data through PowerProtect DD to be relatively easy
Customer support has had some ups and downs here. We've had several issues with EMC support before and during the acquisition by Dell, but in the last 18 months support has been top notch. Quick and knowledgeable help is but a chat away, or they will call you back so you don't have to wait on hold. The team supporting us is responsive and is quick to assist with any request or issue.
Having used HP StorageWorks, I have found that the Dell EqualLogic works more smoothly in a VMware environment. There are plugins that work in vSphere that allow you to create volumes and provision new virtual servers with relative ease. The software and interface that the EqualLogic runs on is more straightforward as well.
I have used NetBackup, CommVault, Tivoli, and Actifio in my previous environments. With Data Domain I am not constantly babysitting my backup to make sure it is not choking and dying and we are not bound by the same channel lane path constraints most backup software and hardware works on. By far the initial cost has been more than made up for with the time not being dedicated to backup.
Data Domain says 20+ hours per week when compared to using a tape library. Once the unit is configured it basically takes care of itself.
With MTree replication we no longer need to send tapes to an offsite storage facility.
Having a second data domain at our DR site allows us to perform recoveries from any of our replicated backups. We do not have to order and wait for tapes to arrive.
