Secure storage appliances gain ground with added functionality

Networked storage offers plenty of benefits, but it’s a risky proposition for IT teams. Secure storage appliances can ensure the authentication and integrity of data in a hardware-based way, helping to meet regulatory or compliance requirements. Secure appliances include single disk-based systems that combine encryption with content-addressed storage (CAS), information lifecycle management (ILM) and other security features. Two-factor authentication may also be part of appliance access.

Secure storage appliances should support disk, tape and optical media. All-in-one appliances may be the future of storage hardware, as backup, replication, deduplication and encryption all come together into one box. Key management appliances also comprise secure storage offerings, though keys must be stored separately from encrypted data.
 

Best-in-Class Secure Storage Appliances Features:

• Offers support for all environments, including DAS, SAN, NAS, iSCSI and tape
• Protects data with easy management and little to no impact on performance
• Includes varied, comprehensive functionality and supports disk, tape and optical media

Top Considerations before Buying Secure Storage Appliances Products:

As secure storage appliances continue to mature, features may include wire-speed encryption, solid authentication tools and granular access controls. Management should allow for secure storage consolidation, secure backup and recovery and easy regulatory compliance. Appliances may move toward all-in-one devices, with included encryption and acceleration capabilities too.

Key Products:

1. GigaTrust provides Intelligent Rights Management, which enables secure anyone-to-anyone collaboration inside or outside the enterprise by protecting content at rest, in transit, or in use for PCs, laptops and BlackBerry devices. Customers include large commercial and government organizations as well as SMBs. GigaTrust’s technology is based on the XrML standard and deployed through Microsoft Windows and Office, and its GigaTrust Enterprise Plus uses Windows RMS to protect sensitive data. RMS protects actual data instead of using access restriction.

2. Data Span provides customers with a broad range of technology products and services designed to optimize datacenter operations and facilities. Their Tape Storage & Transport program offers media storage racks and media transport products or devices with certified tape. Data Span also offers tape labeling and initialization, tape cleaning and certification, tape library audits, tape disposal, disk storage solutions, SAN management, RFID tracking, data deduplication and disaster recovery.

3. NetApp creates storage and data management solutions. Their line of storage security systems delivers comprehensive protection across the enterprise. DataFort systems use secure access controls, authentication, hardware-based encryption and secure logging to protect data, including sensitive and regulated data. NetApp’s Lifetime Key Management is centrally managed to support encrypted data with two-factor authentication. And Brocade Encryption switches and blades provide advanced fabric encryption services for SANs.

4. i365 provides data protection for small and mid-size business (SMB) customers. Their data protection appliances include several EVault products. EVault Plug-n-Protect includes preconfigured hardware and software with a suite of data protection products. EVault for DPM uses Microsoft Data Protection Manager for integrated client and server protection. The EVault Express Recovery Appliance is a backup storage appliance that replicates backups to i365’s cloud. i365 also offers cloud storage and services for automated backup as well as disk-based backup and recovery software and more.

Secure Storage Appliances
Definition: A secure storage appliance is a standalone-computing device with security features whose purpose is to assume storage-related functions currently found on a general-purpose server. Storage appliances could perform backups, handle license management or storage management, implement a security model, and perform file and volume access control for the storage.