BLOG: Dell Data Storage Services Backup Target: Secure Backup Storage Where You Need It

Bryan Samson
Strategic Alliances Manager

“Nobody understands the cloud! It’s a mystery!” That’s Jason Segel and Cameron Diaz’s take on “the cloud” in the 2014 Jake Kasdan-directed movie Sex Tape. That’s not too far from the truth when looking at it from the end user viewpoint since they don’t know whether a particular cloud service is private, public, or hybrid. And while there is an increase in workloads moving to “the cloud,” there are many environments that need to stay on-premises. But if you have those instances where you need to remain on-prem, why give up the agility, flexibility, predictability, and cyber resiliency in the environment?

Dell Technologies has many private and hybrid cloud offerings that they call APEX, but they have a new offering, Dell APEX Data Storage Services Backup Target (DSSBT), that makes a lot of sense for managing high-growth data protection environments that need to be reliable against cyberattacks.

The adoption of “as a Service” consumption is increasing by companies that are looking for agility and ease of capacity planning. Gartner predicts that by 2025, more than 70% of all enterprise-grade storage capacity will be sold on a consumption basis—up from less than 35% in 2021¹. This is exactly what Dell EMC is targeting with their APEX solutions. “With Dell APEX Data Storage Services Backup Target, you get the best of both public and private cloud worlds: scalable, agile, on-demand resources with the enterprise-class features, control, and security of infrastructure located on-premises in your own data center”.² Let’s unpack that statement.

What is Dell APEX DSSBT

Dell APEX DSSBT offers rapid scalability and simplified provisioning. Not only do you pick a committed capacity like a reserve instance in a public cloud, but also the reserve growth space. As you increase usage, you pay incrementally more, just as you would in a public cloud. Before you reach the max of the deployed capacity, using the management tools to project usage, you can purchase additional capacity in the console, and Dell is committed to shipping and installing within 15 days. Your contract will automatically be adjusted with the new committed capacity. This is a significant advancement in agility over a traditional capital expenditure (CAPEX) environment, where you would need to produce a PO and potentially amend lease or finance agreements, co-terminate, and coordinate installation. Dell APEX DSSBT provides cloud-like or private cloud security and offers a more stable environment on your organization’s chosen platform.

Getting Started

So, how do you start? It’s really no different than a traditional environment sizing engagement with your Mainline and Dell Account Executives and Specialists. The difference is in how the proposal is prepared and presented. Once the capacity needs, base, and projected growth are determined, a schedule of payments with variable costs is prepared. If you are short of in-house technical assistance, Dell Professional Services can be added to handle several tasks. The goal is a secure on-premises subscription environment that gives you all the agility and scalability of a public on-demand environment.

Business Continuity Benefits

While most of your users will certainly still exclaim, “No one understands the cloud,” you can be confident knowing your backups are securely stored and managed. Dell APEX DSSBT storage and data protection solution provides these benefits:

A powerful and unified console delivering a simplified experience.
Data Invulnerability Architecture to ensure data remains recoverable and accessible.
Start small and add capacity as you grow.
Achieve fast backups, high compression levels, and advanced deduplication.

More Information

For more information on how you can leverage Dell APEX solutions in your environment or for assistance with any technology needs, including modernization, hybrid cloud, automation, cybersecurity and data access, contact your Mainline Account Representative directly or reach out to us here with any questions.