19 October, 2014

7321 Cantrell Road

Little Rock, AR 72227
Connie Wagner
Cantrell Drug Company
7321 Cantrell Road
Little Rock, AR 72227
Dear Mrs. Wagner,
I appreciate the opportunity to research a possible upgrade for our current tape backup system
by utilizing cloud services. Enclosed, please find the culmination of my research and
recommendations, Recommendation for Replacing Current Tape Backups with Cloud Services.
I feel that the proposed solution is suitable for Cantrell Drug Company that will meet our needs
and continue to grow with the business. In this report I recommend taking advantage of the
cloud backup services offered by Zetta.net.
If you have any questions I can provide you with anything you might need, please feel free to
meet with me at any time. I look forward to hearing from you on this matter. I hope that I have
provided enough useful information to see the project put into effect.
Sincerely,
Christopher Dolan
Computer Specialist

Recommendation for Replacing Current Tape Backups

with Cloud Based Services

for Connie Wagner

Cantrell Drug Company
IT Director

by Christopher Dolan
Cantrell Drug Company
Computer Specialist

19 October, 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract ...iii
Introduction .....1
Background .....1
Viability of a Cloud Backup System ....2
Data Security in the Cloud ....2
Cost Effectiveness of a Cloud Based Backup ...3
Conclusion ......4
Recommendation ...4
References .....5

Abstract
The purpose of this report is to outline the benefits of a cloud backup system offered by
Zetta.net as a replacement for our current tape system. Reduced cost, downtime, and
possibility of human error as well as an increase in productivity and recovery options in the
event of a disaster are the key advantages to such an upgrade. The antiquated nature of our
current process has led me to research such a replacement, and the following report will show
that Zetta.net offers a replacement that will suit us for now as well as the potential growth that I
am sure we will see in the future.

Introduction
Data is a critical asset of pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, in the form of patient
records, order history, or lot information, it is absolutely necessary that the data is safe at all
times by utilizing proper backup methods. Due to requirements put forth by the federal
government, such as HIPAA, the data must be retained for years in a world where disasters
occur. Cantrell Drug Companys backup method is quite dated and is quite unreliable,
especially compared to current offerings available. The current process involved is
cumbersome and leaves room for human error and hardware failures. In the age of the internet,
a new solution has been introduced that offers excellent disaster recovery features, high
reliability, and high availability. Cloud storage and backups are becoming a standard for
companies with large data sets. This report proposes strategies to replace current tape backup
methods with cloud backups. The proposed solution looks at overall cost and viability of of
utilizing cloud services and includes my findings after reviewing the offerings of various service
providers and the benefits of utilizing these features.
Background
The amount of data produced by companies is growing exponentially. Backing up so much data
and retaining it for extended periods of time has become quite a chore for IT departments in all
fields. Generally, backup processes include local storage in the form of large hard drive arrays
that are replicated to magnetic tape drives. The tapes are then taken off site to protect against
disasters that may occur at the place of business. Currently, we have daily, bi-weekly, and
monthly tape sets. A member of the IT staff has to change these tapes out accordingly, every
day, and the monthly tape at the end of each month to ensure multiple data sets are available at
any given time.
The tapes themselves are quite delicate and the drives themselves are highly volatile.
Mechanical failures are rather common and tapes have to be replaced every few months.
When the tapes are off site they are susceptible to being lost or stolen. These factors lead to
considerably high risk resulting in loss of the data or even records being compromised by a third
party. Compromised patient records violate HIPAA regulations and can lead to fines up to $1.5
million.
This proposal is an assessment of the current offerings by Zetta.net as well as the viability and
benefits in utilizing such a service. The goal of this proposal is to show that cloud backups are a
viable, secure, and cost effective solution to replace our current tape backup method.

Viability of a Cloud Backup System

One benefit in switching to the cloud for backups is that no additional hardware is required.
Current tape systems can also be removed freeing up resources on the servers and network.
Internet bandwidth is one possible bottleneck in cloud backups, but we recently upgraded to a
100Mbps fiber optic connection, which is sufficient for maintaining fresh data sets, while taking
future growth into account. Once the system is set up, time required to maintain it is minimal
due to scheduling and automation. The IT department will be able to reallocate resources to
maintaining and improving other systems.
The services offered by Zetta.net also provide versioning so that multiple versions of each
individual file can be maintained transparently. Recovery is performed seamlessly and with
ease from any version of the backup so that unintended changes or deletions can be reversed.
In the event of a disaster, data can be recovered from any location with internet access. If
something happens at one location, business can continue at any other with the ability to
access all records and information that may have only been stored at one other location.
Zetta.net also provides integration with most systems available today. Because each system
utilizes different architecture, backups must be performed differently. All of our systems are
already supported and setup will be very simple, running within minutes of installation.
Data Security in the Cloud
Security of the data transmitted is critical. The information is traveling through the internet
across the country and with the possibility of someone intercepting the information along the
way. The data is encrypted before transmission utilizing a 256-bit encryption scheme, which is,
in theory, uncrackable. Because the data is encrypted before transmission, even if it is
intercepted along the way, it is absolutely useless without having the keys used to perform the
encryption.
The backups are stored in geo diverse data centers to minimize the possibility of disasters
occurring on Zetta.nets premises. All data uploaded to one location is automatically mirrored in
the data center on the opposite end of the country. Because of this the possibility of downtime
is nearly 0. In fact, Zetta.net is at a 99.99% uptime rate since day one in 2009. This translates
to 52.56 minutes per year that the service may not be available. Reliability is key to maintaining
proper backups in the event of disaster.

Zetta.net follows standards put forth by SSAE16 guidelines. Companies must follow the
following guidelines to be considered SSAE16 compliant:

1 - Rigid change control process: This ensures that any change to the production
environment has been vetted in a controlled test environment and that any production
change has been reviewed by at least three engineers.

2 - Security: Zetta.nets production environment is strictly controlled. All access has to be

reviewed and granted by Zetta.nets security committee which follows clear guidelines,
including a responsibility matrix that governs the technical environment. Data is also
encrypted in flight and at rest.
3 - Backup methodology: Zetta.net has built-in redundancy at every level of its
infrastructure. This redundancy is tested monthly to ensure that if a component dies the
secondary component can take over seamlessly. And our recovery processes are tested
weekly from customers successfully restoring their mission critical data without fail.
Audits of the safeguards are done on a regular basis and can be requested at any time.
Cost Effectiveness of a Cloud Based Backup
Initial savings will be realized almost instantly. Because of the lowered hardware requirement,
maintenance costs will be reduced considerably. Tapes will no longer have to be purchased
and the specialized equipment to use these tapes will no longer be required. The current hard
disk storage array can also be utilized in the cloud backup process as a local storage medium.
This provides instant access to backups and previous version if the required data is time
sensitive. There is also no extra cost for the software required to perform the backups as it is all
included with the regular service agreement. Currently, we are utilizing a third party solution to
backup to both hard drive array and tape. With the solution from Zetta.net it is all included and
managed by a single web based application that is accessible from and internet connected
device.
Cost savings can also be attributed to less human interaction to maintain effective backups.
Once the system is setup, all information is backed up automatically and detailed reports are
generated on a daily basis to ensure it is working properly. Because of this, resources can be
allocated towards other projects and services. With the overall time requirement cut following
installation and configuration of the Zetta.net backup, maintaining the system will require very
little effort.

Conclusion
In conclusion, the advantages to adopting a cloud based backup solution are significant. A
reduction of cost and manpower while ensuring that data and records are safe and secure are

necessary benefits when comparing it to standard tape backup solutions. The flexibility in
recovery options provides excellent availability in the event of a disaster.
No other service provider offers the level of security and availability that Zetta.net does do
ensure our data is safe. Reduced opportunity for human error further solidifies the effectiveness
of cloud backup solutions.

Recommendation
I propose the utilization of services offered by Zetta.net to replace our current tape backup
process. Our data will be safe and secure, existing in multiple versions and accessible from
anywhere in the world if need be. Data integrity is key in both the healthcare and manufacturing
industries and because of strict standards put forth by the like of HIPAA and Sarbanes-Oxley,
utilizing a service provider that is compliant is paramount.

References
Backup Over 2TB: Best Practices for Cloud Backup and DR with Large Data Sets. zetta.net. Web. 25
September. 2014.
Benefits of Disaster Recover in Cloud Computing. onlinetech.com. Web. 28 September. 2014.
Lori, M. "Data security in the world of cloud computing." Co-published by the IEEE Computer And
reliability
Societies (2009): 61-64. Web. 7 September. 2014.
Rahumed, Arthur, et al. "A secure cloud backup system with assured deletion and version control."
Parallel
Processing Workshops (ICPPW), 2011 40th International Conference on. IEEE, 2011. Web. 7
September. 2014.
Rudy, Melissa. Cloud vs. Local Backup: Which do you need? techopedia.com. 5 July 2013. Web. 14
September. 2014.
Shavit, Yuval. Predicting data storage growth. techtarget.com. 2 May 2008. Web. 28 September. 2014.
What Does Faster Cloud Backup Really Mean? zetta.net. Web. 25 September. 2014
Wood, Timothy, et al. "Disaster recovery as a cloud service: Economic benefits & deployment
challenges."
Proceedings of the 2nd USENIX conference on Hot topics in cloud computing. USENIX
Association,
2010. Web. 7 September. 2014.