I was talking to a customer yesterday and he asked what I think the best backup format is.
That's a loaded question because there's commonly 3 ways to do it.
- LTO
- Cloud
- Disk to Disk
Each has its own upsides and downsides. We'll dig into the different options and the ups and downs of using each one.
LTO
Upsides:
- Low Cost/ Terabyte
- Can be stored on a shelf or in a LTO library
- Low power consumption
- Perfect for incremental backup
Downsides:
- Slow to pull data from
- Hardware issues kill your speed
- Not a common piece of technology
Cloud
Upsides:
- Unlimited Storage Space
- Off-site storage
- Disaster recovery
Downsides:
- Always have to pay monthly for storage
- Data recovery dependent on internet connection
- Can be slow during upload/download
Disk to Disk
Upsides:
- Fastest Option
- Many options for data copy
- Low budget
Downsides:
- A more "Bootstrap" method for backup

Nathaniel Cooper
As Chief Operating Officer of ProMAX Systems, Nathaniel Cooper, runs ProMAX Systems day to day operations. Cooper has been working with Storage, Backup and Media Management for video and creative professionals since 2001. Cooper has lead the design and deployment of some of the largest media systems in the world including a range of customers from NFL, MLB & NBA teams, US Military operations, and many of the worlds largest PR agencies and consumer brands. Cooper has spent the last 9 years as part of the ProMAX team and specializes in translating complex technical issues and options into easily understandable concepts.