With the passage of time, data storage has become more expensive and sophisticated. The cost of data storage is influenced by two different elements. Enterprises require more data, which has resulted in a surge in data generation, while more storage devices are required to store this digital information.
In addition, the coronavirus pandemic has caused businesses to work from home. Given that all work procedures are done online, cloud data storage is highly in demand. Data is also generated by companies from their central data centers and branch offices. Naturally, admins find it challenging to store and secure this information when they do not have adequate storage resources.
What is data storage?
Data storage is the process of collecting, keeping, and using data in a safe, secure, and efficient way. It is the modern way of having access to all the information you require for your organization and its operations. Only those who are given access to the stored data can retrieve it.
In the past, physical copies of receipts, client information, and files were retained in offices and corporate buildings. With the growth of digital storage, big data, and the cloud, organizations now have access to a significantly larger volume of high-quality data. The purpose of intelligent data management is to preserve your data, manage backup and recovery and delete inactive data, among other things.
What is data storage management?
Why has reducing costs become a priority?
Reducing the costs of operations has always been a business imperative, and now that data storage is part of our economic environment, companies have to decide whether they externalize their data center or invest in a server room and all its implications (storage resources, storage managers, etc.)
This has had significant repercussions for IT organizations since they are compelled to adjust their budgets in response to unexpected and unforeseen fluctuations in demand. Reducing IT expenditures is crucial not just for aligning costs and revenues, but also for retaining vital resources that will be required in the future.
Faced with these demands, businesses are scrambling to rethink their cloud spending and look for practical storage solutions to cut costs without increasing risk or needing complex, disruptive infrastructure modifications. The checklist below focuses on strategies to lower your cloud infrastructure costs both now, and in the future.
5 Tips to Reduce Your Data Storage Cost
Here are 5 key tips to reduce your data storage costs:
- Centralize your storage
- Use software-defined storage
- Classify your data
- Use SRM tools
- Combine data protection and data storage
1. Centralize Your Storage
Traditionally, data was dispersed among networks. Good managed service providers (MSPs), on the other hand, are now using converged infrastructure (CI). They are attempting to put all of the relevant information together. Converged infrastructure ensures that you can manage all of your storage from a single location.
You can manage your storage with only one piece of software. However, if you choose this cloud strategy, you will only be able to work with one provider for your equipment. The upgrade’s costs will rise as a result of this. You will have to spend a significant amount of money to upgrade your infrastructure to a converged solution. As a result, some businesses have yet to centralize their storage.
2. Use Software-Defined Storage
Using a centralized infrastructure has numerous advantages but you have less flexibility because only a few vendors are allowed to work with you. If you want greater flexibility, hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) is the way to go. All of your storage devices will be treated as a storage pool by HCI storage.
Companies can make use of their existing storage equipment. You can use whatever storage device you have to add more storage if you need it. Hyper-converged storage is a great way to make storage administration easier. It ensures that you can continue to use your current storage devices. When scaling up, you won’t have to worry about hardware refresh. This will assist you in extending the network’s life.
3. Classify Your Data
Companies have access to vast amounts of information. They collect client information utilizing CRM and ERP systems. Companies must also comply with regulations such as HIPAA and GDPR. Consumer data is standardly safeguarded by these regulations. You should therefore make sure that your customer data is secure.
You should work on segmenting your data into discrete layers. For example, 20% of your information could be private. You must keep this information safe from intruders. Additionally, you may have 30% of the data that is critical for your operations. This data should be backed up regularly!
4. Use SRM Tools
Storage resource management (SRM) technologies can assist you in dealing with complex storage settings. These tools will assist you in locating duplicate information or cold data. You can also locate old copies of your data and files. This will assist you in reducing storage growth through better monitoring. It can be quite beneficial to businesses, as duplicate data can take up a lot of storage space.
The fundamental issue is the need for secondary storage. Data mining, disaster recovery, and backup solutions are all things to consider. You should use the greatest SRM tools available on the market if you want to manage your storage. These tools will make it simple for you to manage your storage.
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5. Combine Data Protection and Data Storage
Data storage is only the tip of the iceberg. You must also create several data backups, which must be stored both on-site and off-site. In the event of a data breach, this will ensure that you can swiftly recover your data. Creating a solid and speedy recovery strategy is the best way to protect your business from data disasters.
For disaster recovery and backup, you should seek software-defined solutions. These solutions will also assist you in backing up your data rapidly. This ensures that you can manage storage pools and back up your data with a single tool. In the event of a data breach, these tools will assist you in recovering your data.
Find Your Solution
Data storage and management is becoming increasingly complex. Thankfully, DataIntell can help you find the best solution for your needs. DataIntell is an application designed to help you better understand your data and storage utilization. This analytic tool helps identify old and unused files and gives better insights into data changes, file duplication and used space over time.
It is designed to help businesses manage large amounts of stored data and provide detailed, user-friendly, and accurate analytics of their data use, storage, and cost, to optimize their storage and monitor its usage, whether it be in-prem or in the cloud!
Our application is the best solution to:
- Discover the true cost of storage, analytics, and insights
- Track and monitor your storage usage
- Monitor specific projects, groups, or folders scattered through your infrastructure
- Know what to charge your clients based on their storage usage
- Integrate with your existing workflow through our API
