E-Storage and Data Domain help KPN to simplify storage management

For KPN’s Wholesale & Operations department a stable backup and recovery system is crucial for providing the right service to customers. To simplify the management of this rapidly growing system, KPN asked E-Storage for help. E-Storage found the right compression and deduplication solution for KPN by implementing the Data Domain Gateway Series.

For backing up data we used to work with a number of tape robots, including one large unit with five-hundred slots and twelve drives,” says Kees Oudijk, storage manager at KPN Wholesale Operations. “Over time, this traditional approach restricted us more and more. First of all, tape is time-consuming. You need tape administrators who need to manage a variety of tapes. This requires an effective workforce planning, which is not always easy, especially in the holiday season. In addition, mistakes are easily made when handling tapes and technical failures occur regularly. As our data increased steadily, it was clear that we had to act. We already had bought a Virtual Tape Library (VTL) as a replacement for tape. However, this system did not offer sufficient capacity and did not support hardware compression and deduplication. Therefore, we started to look for another solution.” “For backing up data we used to work with a number of tape robots, including one large unit with five-hundred slots and twelve drives,” says Kees Oudijk, storage manager at KPN Wholesale Operations. “Over time, this traditional approach restricted us more and more. First of all, tape is time-consuming. You need tape administrators who need to manage a variety of tapes. This requires an effective workforce planning, which is not always easy, especially in the holiday season. In addition, mistakes are easily made when handling tapes and technical failures occur regularly. As our data increased steadily, it was clear that we had to act. We already had bought a Virtual Tape Library (VTL) as a replacement for tape. However, this system did not offer sufficient capacity and did not support hardwarecompression and deduplication. Therefore, we started to look for another solution.”

Deduplication Demonstrates Value
KPN asked E-Storage to jointly determine an approach for simplified storage management that would not lead to increased cost. E-Storage advised to combine compression and deduplication. Deduplication is a process in which sub-file level segments are compared for redundancies, and only unique segments are backed-up. In this way, storing backup data becomes very efficient, by not taking up unnecessary capacity. Kees Oudijk and his colleague Durk Jilderda, who coordinates the storage team at KPN, concluded that this approach would lead to a less complex storage management. “We evaluated several suppliers of deduplication solutions,” says Oudijk. “Ultimately, we selected the Data Domain DD690 gateway, as advised by E-Storage.” An important reason for this choice was Data Domain’s proven technology. Deduplication is a complex activity. In these circumstances it counts that a supplier has much experience and that there is no learning curve.” Jilderda points out that Data Domain supports replication at a remote location at low bandwidth. “You do not need expensive lines to replicate data. Besides, Data Domain does not affect the existing infrastructure. Some solutions require adjustments to the clients or impact connectivity or security. Thanks to the Data Domain architecture we have not had any problems in those areas. The system can be seamlessly integrated in our existing environment.” KPN asked E-Storage to jointly determine an approach for simplified storage management that would not lead to increased cost. E-Storage advised to combine compression and deduplication. Deduplication is a process in which sub-file level segments are compared for redundancies, and only unique segments are backed-up. In this way, storing backup data becomes very efficient, by not taking up unnecessary capacity. Kees Oudijk and his colleague Durk Jilderda, who coordinates the storage team at KPN, concluded that this approach would lead to a less complex storage management. “We evaluated several suppliers of deduplication solutions,” says Oudijk. “Ultimately, we selected the Data Domain DD690 gateway, as advised by E-Storage.” An important reason for this choice was Data Domain’s proven technology. Deduplication is a complex activity. In these circumstances it counts that a supplier has much experience and that there is no learning curve.” Jilderda points out that Data Domain supports replication at a remote location at low bandwidth. “You do not need expensive lines to replicate data. Besides, Data Domain does not affect the existing infrastructure. Some solutions require adjustments to the clients or impact connectivity or security. Thanks to the Data Domain architecture we havenot had any problems in those areas. The system can be seamlessly integrated in our existing environment.”

Proof of Concept
After KPN had made its choice for the Data Domain gateway, a Proof of Concept (PoC) was executed, which underlined the capabilities of the solution and - especially - the supplier. Oudijk: “Both Data Domain and E-Storage provided excellent support for this PoC. Data Domain checked the gateway regularly remotely and informed us of possible improvements in settings. This support has remained on this high level since. The solution went live in September 2008 and is rolled out in a phased way to support various KPN departments. Our own department has switched entirely to the new system.”

Advantages
According to Durk Jilderda the main advantages of the new environment are improved effi ciency and faster back up and restore. “We can do more with the same staff and have become more fl exible. In addition, we are better able to address growth, without cost getting out of hand. If we did not deploy deduplication, we would need many more storage systems than the two systems we now use. This leads to less operational and management cost. Furthermore, we did not need to change our infrastructure or back-up software as the Data Domain gateway could be integrated seamlessly in our existing environment.” Oudijk says many KPN departments have shown interest in the new storage approach. This will undoubtedly lead to a growth of storage related initiatives. “Therefore, we are already looking into more deduplication capabilities. At this stage, we use VTL that actually emulates tape storage. We may take a next step in the future and skip VTL. For now, we have a strong basis for further improvements. We look back on a fruitful relationship with E-Storage and Data Domain, that both provided the right support when it was needed.”