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Why Information Backup System Uses Microsoft Structured Storage
Related Links: Microsoft Structured Storage and Slack Space with Information Backup System
Structured Storage is a more efficient storage mechanism than the standard Windows file system. Here's why:
We chose Microsoft Structured Storage (SS) for its Information Backup System product for a number of reasons including:
· Ability to manage versions more efficiently since the SS file acts as a mini file system - This greatly reduces the IO and programming overhead compared to working with discrete files written to the file system.
· Ability to identify file corruption more quickly - Scanning discrete files for integrity would require substantially more time and processor overhead - (Example: you have 60,000 SS backup files from a user that performs a daily backup (assume all files change). Using discrete files on the file system, and a 30 day restore window would result in close to 1.8 Million files that had to be scanned.
· More rapid Disaster Recovery since there are far fewer files to recover.
· File pointers (index), histories, and encryption key changes are all maintained in a stream within each SS file (File becomes self-describing). This eliminates the need to run a high-level Relational Database Management Service (SQL, Oracle) found in competing solutions.
· Storage architecture is more efficient than the file system approach - Unlike standard disk geometry that dictates that no two files can occupy the same cluster, which is typically 4KB in size; SS uses a MiniFAT permitting just that...
- If, for example, you have 30 versions of a small 1K text file stored on your hard drive as discrete files, you would find that those 30 files would actually occupy 120KB on your file system (30 * Cluster Size of 4KB), while the same 30 versions contained in a SS file would occupy just 32KB (almost 75% less)
Of course, if a user has a large number of small files that never change, then the SS slack will result in slightly larger storage use, but we think the benefits of SS far outweighs having a small increase in storage since, as a rule, the bulk of the storage on your server is a result of much larger files and, over time should not be an issue. The only time this is really obvious is if a user performs an initial backup of only small files (less than 1 to 2K - Which is unlikely).
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