Why Tape Still Belongs in a Modern Backup Strategy

Tape has been written off more times than any other storage technology. It keeps coming back for one simple reason: data stored offline on tape is physically isolated from every network. Ransomware can't encrypt, delete or even see what it can't reach.

The air gap you can hold in your hand

Most air gaps today are logical: separate accounts, credentials and access paths that keep a copy out of reach. They work, but they're only as strong as the isolation around them. Tape that has been ejected from the library and stored is a physical air gap. There's no network path to attack.

That's why tape is often called the last line of defense. If every connected copy were somehow compromised, the offline copy would still be there.

Where it fits in 3-2-1-1-0

Tape helps with more than one number in the 3-2-1-1-0 rule:

• It's a second storage type alongside disk or cloud, so one media failure or one vendor flaw can't take every copy.
• It can be the offsite copy, stored far from your primary site.
• Offline, it's the air-gapped copy.

Built for keeping data a long time

Modern LTO formats are designed for long-term digital preservation, which makes tape a natural fit for archives and data you must keep for compliance. It also costs less to keep data on tape than on disk, and tape libraries use far less energy than disk. Libraries scale from petabytes to exabytes.

Modern tape isn't what it was

Today's libraries are a long way from a shelf of cartridges and a handwritten log. Spectra Logic libraries add hardware encryption for data at rest, native S3 and Glacier interfaces for cloud tiering, and proactive media management that predicts failures before they affect your data.

KELYN and Spectra Logic

KELYN has been a certified Spectra Logic partner and Commvault data protection specialist since 2007, combining tape with enterprise backup software in one strategy, with support staffed entirely in the United States.

The 3-2-1-1-0 backup rule guide shows how tape, cloud and immutable copies fit together.