[BBLISA] Network-based backup in the Boston metro area?

[R Gary Cutbill]

I've use the Crashplan Pro service at work, but haven't setup the local
storage option.  I'd have to go back and read their material to be sure,
but I think that local storage is on your own equipment, not on an appliance
that they provide.  (There are companies that do it that way, I just 
don't think
Crashplan is one of them.) Trying that out is on my eventual "todo" list.

We back up both linux servers and personal workstations/laptops (mac & 
windows)
using Crashplan. For workstations, users can manage their own backups 
and recoveries,
and I can jump in when they need help. For servers, I take care of it 
myself.

I haven't had to do any disaster-level recovers, but I've lots of small
recovers for accidentally clobbered files and a handful tests on the 
order of 100G just
to be sure it all works.  I probably keep around 2TB of data backed up.

I've been very pleased with the service.  Recovery has always gone 
well.  Backups
are pretty much invisible.  I get automated email telling me that status 
of the
backups on a regular basis.  Every few months some system gets a wedged
process and I have to go restart it.  The backup processes keep a local 
cache
directory. I've found that putting that on it's own filesystem helps 
keep things
running smoothly because the backup process will let the cache fill the disk
and that can be problematic.

$7.95 per system per month (with unlimited storage) The price is right. My
only real complaint is administrative. They insist on a credit card as 
payment
and they don't (e)mail invoices, so you have to go on to their website 
and fetch
the invoices if your billing department requires them.

Without going into details, I'll say that I used to use Iron Mountain 
(acquired by
Autonomy). I was very unhappy with them and would recommend avoiding them.

-R. Gary


On 5/29/13 12:05 PM, Michael Tiernan wrote:
> Out of curiosity, have you looked at the CrashPlan appliance?
>
> I think they call it CrashPlan Pro (or something like that) but they
> put an appliance of their's on site and it is part of the overall
> cloud storage done for speed.
>
> I haven't and I'm just wondering what opinions on it are. (Only out of
> a bystander's curiosity.)