Slotted tape vaulting for total control & compliance

The overwhelming majority of IG2’s clients slot tapes individually at IG2. A little history is required in order to fully understand why many vendors recommend storing tapes in containers. Most vendors selling off-site data storage services have their origins in storing cardboard boxes in warehouses. These vendors store and move boxes without managing the contents of the boxes. Lacking the technology and processes to successfully manage individual media assets, these vendors have historically emphasized closed container programs for their data storage clients because it is easier for the vendor, not because it’s better for the client.

There have always been clients that would benefit from individual tape management, but they were at a loss until data-focused companies like IG2 emerged with systems and processes for managing and vaulting individual data tapes.

Auditors care about tapes, not boxes

IG2 clients harness the power of individual tape management. First, a complete third-party-verified audit trail is created for every tape movement. With a typical closed container program, the only item being tracked is the container, with no record of its contents. Clients are required to keep track of the container contents themselves, which compromises any audit trail. Further, in a restore scenario involving just a few tapes, all of the tapes in the container are compromised, rather than just those needed for the restore. In almost every case where IG2 has been hired by a client that was using a closed container program, the new client has transitioned to an individual tape management program.

IG2’s individual tape management benefits

The flexibility in IG2’s system allows us to completely automate tape rotation programs as simple as a routine two week rotation or as complex as a TMS synchronization with multiple data sets and retention periods. IG2’s individual tape management rotation programs remove a significant burden from our clients’ IT staff:

• IG2 can set automated return dates based on each client’s specific retention policies—when the tapes are scanned, the return dates are automatically set
• IG2 clients do not have to maintain spreadsheets to track return dates or description information—this information can be automatically updated in IG2’s system
• IG2’s system tracks and records detailed information about every tape movement, which can be exported into customized reports to satisfy audit requirements
• IG2 can synchronize with TMS systems to ensure that the required tapes are both received by IG2 and delivered to the client