The volume of digital information is growing by 50-60% each year and many SMBs are not equipped the handle the terabyte tsunami. According to the findings of a recent survey conducted by Symantec, the average SMB only backs up 60% of customer data and doesn't even do that on a consistent schedule. Findings from the same survey estimate that outages and downtimes cost SMBs $15,000 per day on average.

Correlating those two data of nuggets of data points to an obvious need for data backup and recovery solutions that SMBs can not only afford, but manage with minimal or non-existent IT staff. Conveniently, the survey sponsor, Symantec, has teamed with Dell to offer a solution that should fill that gap for SMBs and larger enterprises with remote locations. Announced today, the Dell PowerVault DL2100 Powered by Symantec Backup Exec 2010 is a disk-based backup and recovery solution with available deduplication technology in a single server.

Simplicity of install for resource-strapped SMBs is a key value for the solution according to Brett Roscoe, Dell senior product manager, storage. He said, "There's a gap between customers wanting to move to a more advanced storage solution and the IT capabilities of the SMB. Those more advanced solutions are not manageable for businesses with part time IT staff or an IT generalist. This solution provides backup to disk that's easier to manage than tape backup is today."

Dell claims that fully integrated solutions can be installed and operating in less than 30 minutes. That's allegedly more than 500% faster than a non-integrated version of the same solution.

The out-of the box storage solution is ideal for environments with 5 or more servers according to Roscoe. It features automated setup and disk provisioning to expedite the backup process and up to 55% faster disk-based backups and 49% faster recoveries than backup with tape and integration Dell EqualLogic and Dell|EMC families of storage arrays and VMware vSphere virtualization solutions. The hardware is based on Intel Xeon E5520 processors and is expandable from 2TB to 288TB.

Speaking about the new solution, vice president and general manager, Dell Enterprise Storage, Darren Thomas, said, "Customers face exponential data growth and struggle with the amount of critical information they have to store, manage, and protect on a daily basis. They're telling us they need ways to automate routine tasks. Our response is to deliver intelligent data management solutions that drastically simplify storage. The PowerVault DL2100 is an example of applying this approach to backup and recovery, helping IT managers focus their time, people, and budgets on other critical projects."

The PowerVault DL2100 Powered by Symantec Backup Exec 2010 is available direct from Dell and Dell PartnerDirect channels with pricing starting at $8,600; adding deduplication capabilities kicks the starting price up to $11,500.

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