Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ncar!ames!amdahl!pacbell!indetech!david
From: david@indetech.UUCP (David Kuder)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: quest for breakthroughs (long)
Summary: fast backup
Keywords: architecture, breakthrough, technology, backup
Message-ID: <1809@indetech.UUCP>
Date: 19 Feb 89 03:10:59 GMT
References: <740@tetons.UUCP>
Reply-To: david@indetech.UUCP (David Kuder)
Organization: Independence Technologies, Inc. Fremont, CA
Lines: 45

In article <740@tetons.UUCP> bb@tetons.UUCP (Bob Blau) writes:
>  What are your assumptions?
>End Product: Embedded controller, PC, Workstation, Mini, SuperMini,
>             MiniSuper, Mainframe, Super, ... 
	Backup: fast and plentiful!
>Architecture:RISC, CISC, Vector, Massively parallel, VLIW, Shared memory
	Anything
>Application: Home, Business, Engineering, Scientific, Manufacturing, ...
	All of the above!
>Timeframe:   Next year, in 5 years, in 10 years, ...
	Yesterday, today I can have a ton of disk under my desk and no
	way to back it up easily.
>  What problems are you trying to solve?
>- Performance, Cost, Complexity, Size, Reliability, ...
	Time and space of backups.

Every other suggestion under this topic has involved more memory and
processing it faster.  Any concern for the permanence of the results
that are done bigger and faster should lead to backup.

I can currently stick one GB of disk on my workstation with little trouble
but the small form factor backup devices that I could then use (removable
diskette, 1/4" cartridge, 8mm cartridge) are either incapable of holding
that much data or transferring it in a small portion of a workday.  Various
optical disks aren't any better.  A tape drive that could transfer the
data at a decent rate would be a little large to put in my office and still
couldn't do the job without tape hangs.

Now when we consider real world (tm) applications where a database with
tens to thousands of GB of data backup is THE problem.  How many 6250 tape
drives and tapes would it take to backup 25GB in an 8 hour shift?  What
happens when you have to have your database online 24 hours a day?  My bank
has enough problems with its database and ATMs with out having to worry
about backup.  I understand from one go 'round with them that ATM backup
is paper printout in the machine -- this isn't just audit, it's backup!
If the computer goes down the transactions are recovered by entering the
paper printout by hand.

Solve the backup problem and you'll be the next (NeXT) Jobs.  Build another
fast CPU and you'll be one of the guys in the Silicon Valley.
-- 
____*_  David A. Kuder              {sun,sharkey,pacbell}!indetech!david
\  / /  Independence Technologies
 \/ /   42705 Lawrence Place        FAX: 415 438-2034
  \/    Fremont, CA 94538           Voice: 415 438-2003