Tape computer storage is a smart way to keep your company’s important data safe for a long time. It uses special cartridges called tapes to store data. Many businesses use tape computer storage for backups and archiving because it is reliable, secure, and less expensive than other methods.
Why Choose Tape Computer Storage?
- Tape computer storage can save large amounts of data at a very low cost.
- It is good for businesses that need to keep records for many years.
- Tapes are easy to store, move, and keep away from hackers, making them secure.
- Using tapes saves power and helps the environment compared to always-on systems.
Read on to explore how tape computer storage ensures assurance and stability.
1. Save large amounts of data for a very low cost
Tape computer storage is one of the most affordable solutions available for saving lots of information over many years. The upfront cost of the tapes themselves is low compared to other storage options, like hard drives or solid-state drives.
- If your business generates a lot of data that needs to be stored long-term, such as records, backup files, or video archives, tape storage allows you to do this without breaking the bank.
The reason is that tapes have a much lower price per gigabyte than most other storage formats.
For example, each tape cartridge can hold up to 15 terabytes or more, and the price per terabyte can be a fraction of what you’d pay for other media.
Even when you factor in the initial cost of a tape drive, the long-term storage cost remains significantly lower than most alternative solutions. Over time, the cost savings add up, especially for businesses that need to keep data for legal or compliance purposes.
For big companies, the difference in operation cost between storing hundreds of tapes versus equivalent amounts of online storage can be huge, making tape an attractive “cold storage” solution when quick access isn’t as important as affordability.
2. Businesses can keep records for many years
One of the main strengths of tape computer storage is its ability to keep data safe and readable for decades. Unlike some other media that can degrade quickly, tapes have a proven lifespan, often 30 years or more when stored in good conditions.
This makes tape perfect for businesses in industries like healthcare, law, finance, or government, where regulations require keeping records safe and available for very long periods.
Tape storage helps companies meet these requirements without constantly upgrading or migrating data to new formats. The durability of the tapes means your records are safe from digital decay, random failures, or technology changes that might make other storage obsolete.
3. Easy to store, move, and keep away from hackers
Tape computer storage is not just about saving space and money. It’s also about security. Unlike cloud storage or networked drives, tapes are physical items that can be taken offline, a feature known as “air gapping.” This implies that as long as a tape is not in a computer or a tape drive, no hacker or virus can access the information that is contained in it.
- Backup tapes can be stored by the businesses in off-site locations where they cannot be attacked by ransomware or cyberattacks or even affected by a disaster at the main office.
- Tapes do not need constant connection to a network or the internet, which dramatically decreases the possibilities of unauthorized access.
- You can recover your information using these uncorrupted backup files in case of a cyberattack.
Tapes are also very light and mobile compared to servers, and so one can easily move them to another building or town to provide them with additional security.
With the aid of tape storage, the businesses have an additional physical security and confidence of protection against online risks, as well as unintended data loss.
4. Saves power and helps the environment
Tape computer storage is also environmentally friendly and energy efficient since it consumes electricity only when data is being written or read on a tape. Tape cartridges do not require electricity at all when stored, unlike disk drives or cloud storage servers which have to remain powered on at all times to have the data available.
A tape does not consume energy when it is not being used and produces no heat.
Research has demonstrated that this solution is able to save up to 60 percent of the energy expenses of large data archives compared to other solutions.
Not only does this reduce the electricity bills of your company, but it will also help to reduce the carbon footprint of your business, which will ensure that your company achieves its sustainability targets.
There is also reduced electronic wastage since tapes take more time and are less frequently replaced compared to most other forms of storage. Tape computer storage is a smart and sustainable choice for companies that want to find solutions to make their companies greener and more cost-efficient, with reliable backups.
In summary
Tape computer storage is an intelligent alternative for businesses where data storage requires security, long-term, and low cost. It is ideal in terms of the storage of massive amounts of information at minimal costs. Tapes are simple to work with, not vulnerable to hackers, and assist in satisfying record-keeping requirements.
They also consume significantly less power than the always-on systems, hence being friendly to the environment. With the introduction of tape storage to your strategy, you will be able to have peace of mind, knowing that crucial data is safely stored for a number of years.