Select the best data storage solution

Sooner or later your small business will need more data storage space. Data such as e-mail, documents, slideshows, databases, graphics, audio files and spreadsheets are vital resources of most companies today, while applications are used to Maintaining and protecting your business needs a lot of storage space.

In addition, some emerging trends are affecting 'hunger' for storage:

• Government regulations require businesses to retain or back up data instead of removing them.
• For many legal reasons, many small businesses have to store e-mail for a period of 5 years or longer.
• The prevalence and spread of viruses and spyware make data backup more important than ever. Of course, this will require much larger storage space.
• Each new version of the software application or operating system requires a larger hard drive space than previous versions.
• The increasing demand for storing large media files to share with users on the network will require more complex storage solutions.

Store information and manage information store is very important to the success of each business. Fortunately, there are many options for storing information for small businesses, and often combining different storage options will be the best solution.

So how can you decide what is the best solution for you? First of all, you need to determine your storage needs to meet both aspects: capacity and physical location. Then consider the storage options that best suit your needs. Finally, you need to devise a plan to implement selected storage solutions.

What is your hosting needs?

Small businesses need to first assess the storage needs associated with applications, data, and how and where to retrieve that data. The following questions will help you start this review process:

• Which application creates the largest files?
• Which applications run on servers?
• Life cycle of data?
• Deployment costs?
• Costs of related components?
• How long does it take to retrieve data (fast or slow)?
• Where to retrieve data from?

Only when you solve the questions regarding how, when and where to retrieve data, will you clearly define your storage needs.

Review hosting options

From flash memory to network storage, businesses today have more options to store data than ever before. Here are some reviews and reviews about these options:

Flash memory: This type of storage is often used for mobile devices because it consumes less energy, is small in size and has no moving components. You can connect a Flash drive to the laptop's USB port to back up files on the go. Some USB drives even provide encryption capabilities to protect documents against lost or stolen hard drives. Some USB drives also allow you to store Outlook data (e-mail, calendar logs), Internet Explorer browser bookmarks, files, and even desktop applications. This capability brings a lot of convenience, you just need to leave the laptop at home and carry the USB and plug it into other PCs that can work.

External hard drive: There is a cost-effective way to expand storage capacity is to connect your PC to external hard drives. However, connecting the computer directly to the external hard drive also brings some inconveniences. That is, any file saved on this drive (but not on other media) must be backed up. In addition, when you travel far away and still want to access files on an external hard drive, you must bring your hard drive, or copy the files you need to use to USB drives, laptop drives, CDs or other storage media Other storage. Finally, if there is a fire or other disaster in your workplace, the data will not be protected.

Online storage: Services that provide remote storage and backup capabilities through the Internet will help bring your business competitive benefits. When backing up your important data to secure servers, you can be assured of doing business without worrying about other standing risks.

This backup method also allows you to share large files with customers and partners by providing them with access to online storage services, and therefore can eliminate the need need to e-mail large files. And in most cases, you can access your account from any computer with a Web browser - extremely convenient to use data that you are not sitting on your computer. However, remote storage can be very slow in the first sessions; With large files, you need to invest in a faster network.

Network-attached storage: The network-attached storage (NAS) method provides you with a faster, simpler, and safer way to access data in an IP network environment. NAS solutions are suitable for small and medium-sized businesses that need large storage space but cost savings for many customers to share via the network. And even if businesses do not have technical expert resources, deploying NAS solutions is relatively easy, easy to manage and synchronous.

In its simplest form, the NAS solution can be a hard drive with an Ethernet port or integrated Wi-Fi connection with prices ranging from $ 200 to 300GB or more. At a more complex level, NAS solutions can provide additional USB and FireWire ports, allowing you to connect to an external hard drive to enhance overall storage. Other NAS solutions can also provide print servers that allow multiple users to easily share a common printer.

A NAS solution may include multiple hard drives saved as a first level RAID. RAID level 1 storage system consists of two or more corresponding hard drives (such as 2 250GB drives) in a networked device. The file recorded on the hard drive will automatically be recorded in the second drive in case the hard drive case is malfunctioning and can still be used on the second drive.

Development plan

Before investing in a hosting solution, you should consult a trusted IT advisor about which options or options best meet your current and future needs. Then, you need to work out the chosen storage solution deployment plan, as well as the time and location to develop these two solutions.

In addition, you also need to consider the possibility of deploying a managed hosting service, to provide on-demand storage capacity and optimal storage management capabilities. A management service will mean that you will have to pay a fee (usually by month) but it is very suitable for small businesses.

There is another issue that you need to consider is to consult with your network provider about financial options for NAS solutions. Don't wait until you 'feel' need more storage before deciding what to do. Plan now for your future storage needs, so you won't have to spend time and money later.