Evaluating a Tape Management System › Introduction to Tape Management System Evaluation

Introduction to Tape Management System Evaluation

Evaluating a tape management system involves determining not only how a data center currently operates but how it should ideally operate, both now and in the future.

It is important for the tape management system to provide adequate protection of your tape data sets and effective management and control of your tape library. The following areas should be addressed when evaluating a tape system for a particular environment:

• Data Protection—Is it as close to 100 percent as possible?
• System Efficiency—Is there minimal overhead and maximum efficiency, while still providing that important protection?
• Installation and Implementation—How difficult and time-consuming a task is this?
• Flexibility—Are sufficient user options available to effectively tailor the system to any environment? Will operations, tape librarians, and applications programmers find the system easy to use?
• Management and Control—Can it manage all aspects of tape handling? Are the required capabilities provided?
• System Integrity—What preventive measures are available to prevent people from making critical mistakes?