Dell DR series User Manual

• Symantec Backup Exec
Integration is done via a Dell OST plug-in developed for the DR Series system, through which NetBackup and Backup
Exec can control when the backup images are created, duplicated, and deleted. The major benefit of OST is that it
allows the deduplication operations to happen on the client side so that network traffic can be reduced.
OST via the Dell OST plug-in allows NetBackup and Backup Exec to take full advantage of such DR Series system
features as data deduplication, replication, and energy efficiency. DR Series systems can access the OpenStorage API
code through the plug-in, which can be installed on the media server platform choice you make (Windows or Linux). The
OST protocol allows the supported backup applications to communicate directly with the DR Series system and
determine whether a specific chunk of data already exists on the system. This process means that if the data already
exists, only the pointers need to be updated on the DR Series system, and the duplicate chunk of data does not need to
be transferred to the system. This process provides two benefits: it improves the overall backup speed, and also reduces
the network load.
When OST is used with the DR Series system, it offers the following benefits:
• OST protocol provides faster and improved data transfers:
– Focused on backups with minimal overhead
– Accommodates larger data transfer sizes
– Provides throughput that is significantly better than CIFS or NFS
• OST and DMA integration:
– OpenStorage API enables the DMA-to-media server software communications
– DR Series system storage capabilities can be used without extensive changes to DMAs
– Backup and replication operations are simplified by using built-in DMA policies
• DR Series System and OST:
– Control channel uses TCP port 10011
– Data channel uses TCP port 11000
– Optimized write operations enable client-side deduplication
• Replication operations between DR Series systems:
– No configuration required on source or target DR Series systems
– Replication is file-based, not container-based
– Triggered by DMA optimized duplication operation
– DR Series system transfers the data file (not the media server)
– After duplication, DR Series system notifies DMA to update its catalog (acknowledging the second backup)
– Supports different retention policies between source and replica
OpenStorage Technology (OST) API
The OpenStorage Technology (OST) API is an application programming interface that allows disk-based devices like the
DR Series system to natively integrate with the two supported Symantec Data Management Applications (DMA),
NetBackup and Backup Exec. For example, because the DR Series system supports both data deduplication and
replication, the OST API allows these supported DMAs to use the DR Series system appliance features and duplicate the
optimized data from one storage appliance to another.
The OST API enables the writing of data to disk and is illustrated in the following example where NetBackup (the DMA)
interacts with the DR Series system (the data backup and deduplication device) using the OST API:
• NetBackup needs to store a file to disk. To do this it notifies the DR Series system via the OST API which file it needs
to backup and what to name this file.
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Dell DR series Specifications

General

Brand	Dell
Model	DR series
Category	UPS
Language	English