Let's discuss solutions to each of these issues by starting first with some traditional ideas about storage and how some new and affordable options have emerged to better meet the needs of businesses.

Busting at the seams

A growing company puts tremendous strain on existing storage solutions as new projects, additional people, and evolving applications produce a staggering amount of new content. Without a storage strategy, servers may run out of space. Since most servers use direct attached storage (DAS) to house their applications and data, the first step in any sensible storage strategy is to ensure that servers have enough capacity. If you are running low on hard disk space, you can purchase a new internal drive to increase capacity. But when considering this choice, evaluate all of your available options. For example, small businesses have the flexibility to choose external enclosures that have greatly enhanced features compared to storage solutions from a few years ago. These enclosures offer the performance, reliability, and scalability to meet your business needs and are flexible enough to be used with one or more servers. You can find an affordable solution that leverages either new SATA (ideal for large capacity) or SAS (ideal for fastest performance) drives, along with simple RAID solutions to help increase capacity, performance, and data protection.

Sharing files and collaborating

Small companies without a server-based network may find that sharing files and accessing critical information is a constant challenge. Productivity, flexibility, and the ability to grow can be impacted if important files are stored on one employee's system and others can't use them. And for small companies that already have a server-based network, a single server is being asked to do a lot. It can be asked to run applications, house the company's databases, store its files, and handle other operations such as backup and printing. To add file sharing capabilities without adding a second server, or to remove some of the load for a busy server already in a network, companies are turning to network attached storage (NAS) also known as a file and print server.

You can quickly deploy NAS servers (think of them as large hard disks attached to the network) to gain affordable access to large amounts of storage for file sharing and simplify the process for backing up critical data on the network or individual systems. A NAS device that uses Microsoft Storage Server 2003 R2 can seamlessly drop into an existing network and both Windows and non-Windows systems-including Macintosh, Linux/UNIXTM, and NetWare - will have ready access to folders or files on the storage server. What's more, it uses the same anti-virus and backup tools as other servers.

Integrating data protection

Your company information is valuable and often irreplaceable, so data protection and backup must be an integral part of your storage strategy. Every valuable file, every piece of content, should have its identical twin in a second location. Fortunately, the small business owner today has options that didn't exist in the past and can leverage tape drives or disk systems that almost run themselves to help protect important data. Many find that a removable hard-disk drive connected to a workstation or server can provide an efficient and fast way to quickly backup files throughout the day. Consider purchasing autoloaders that automatically rotate tapes to relieve the burden from staff who may forget to change the media. These are ideal solutions for remote offices that don't have someone dedicated to the task. You might also consider solutions that backup to hard disks quickly and efficiently.

Off-site storage

Big natural disasters aren't the only calamities you need to worry about. While hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, and even earthquakes do happen, a small fire or even theft can cause you to lose both your servers and your local backup. Off-site storage for disaster recovery is peace of mind and the odds are, you'll need to use it at some point to rescue your business. If you use tape backup, plan on rotating a copy of your saved data off-site. You can also backup to an external hard drive and lug it home on a weekly basis. Even better, a new breed of removable disk drives provides fast backups to smaller, rugged, more transportable media. You simply slide the cartridge out and throw it in your bag for transport off-site. You can purchase additional disk media when necessary, making the solution flexible for off-site storage and monthly or yearly archiving.

Conclusion

Small businesses have the opportunity to make good decisions on storage capacity, file sharing, data protection, and disaster recovery. Take the time to assess your storage needs so you can make the right decisions for today and the future.