CRU-DataPort Offers Data Backup Solutions

By Arun Satapathy

TMCnet Contributing Editor

 

CRU-DataPort reportedly has released several high-speed, high-capacity Serial Attached SCSI/Serial ATA desktop and desk-side storage enclosures for professional and personal applications, such as “Disk-2-Disk Data Backup” and “Disaster Recovery.”

 

The enclosures will be available in professional quality 2 and 4 drive bay models, CRU-DataPort says.

 

They’re also available in DataPort 10, Data Express DX115 and Data Express DE110 removable drive carriers. Each drive carrier supports any capacity 3.5-inch SAS (News - Alert) or SATA hard drive and supports RAID configurations, including RAID0 for pro A/V editing, RAID5 for business database reliability and JBOD. Other applications include offsite disaster recovery and massive data portability.

 

“SAS is compatible with SATA, which enable users, such as IT managers, to combine high-performance and high-capacity storage applications, allowing them to choose the most cost-effective solution for their needs,” says Bob Bentley, senior electrical engineer for CRU-DataPort. “SATA drives can communicate over the same SAS hardware giving the customer a choice. For instance, our Dual Port SAS enclosures support 24/7 high-availability systems such as web server appliances, while routine backups can be offloaded to higher capacity, lower cost per GB SATA drives. This flexibility also enables migration to more space saving and energy efficient solutions.”

 

Bentley added, “In addition to flexibility, another key advantage is speed. SAS and SATA both provide max transfer rates of up to 3 (gigabits per second), but with SAS full duplex architecture you get simultaneous bi-directional data and command transfers, providing effective bandwidth of 6Gb/s. Therefore, CRU’s new 4 Bay enclosure, featuring a unique 4-Port host connector, can provide a speedy 24Gb/s aggregate throughput.”

 

Since hard drives can overheat, the new CRU SAS/SATA enclosure features low-noise cooling fans assigned to every removable drive and a large rear exhaust fan for overall ventilation.

 

All drives connect to the host through a single InfiniBand Multilane 4x SAS/SATA cable, sold separately. If a host connection isn’t available, CRU offers Host Adapter kits, which include an SFF-8470 PCI Host Adapter bracket and internal SATA Data cables.

 

CRU-DataPort provides data security and data mobility devices. DataPort, Data Express and RhinoJR brands of removable hard drive enclosures are used for physical data security and safe data transporting in government, education and business markets. CRU products, now including WiebeTech data storage and forensics products, are used in media rich data environments including A/V production, digital cinema, video security capture, D2D backup and archiving applications.