The software resides outside the library, in a dedicated server database and captures library, drive and media health metrics through an out-of-band process so that tape drives are never taken offline to collect the data. The metrics information is sent to a central collection point, where the data is analyzed for potential problems that could cause errors in the media. It looks for capacity limitations, intrusion entry points while also providing administrators with recommendations to help prevent data loss. The software is built on the Oracle Fusion middleware code base.

Oracle executives said the StorageTek Tape Analytics does granular drill downs into the health specifics of drives and the media. The software connects to each library through a single Gigabit Ethernet connection. StorageTek tape libraries use the SNMP protocol to pass drive and media health information directly to the analytics software through a dedicated IP port. The software can pull more than 100 attributes from the drives.

“We get all the informtion directly from the library and it’s done from the control path not the data path,” said Scott Allen, an Oracle senior product manager. “This offers a more secure approach.”