Think LTO is an old technology?
Tape capacity shipments hit 152.9EB in Q4 2023, setting new record.
LTO Ultrium is the most successful tape format in history. Since the first LTO products were released, over 5.6 million drives, 371.2 million cartridges, and 517.9 exabytes of media capacity have been shipped.
LTO capacity shipments reached a new record in 2023. A total of 152.9 exabytes (compressed) of tape capacity was shipped in 2023, representing a 3.14% increase over 2022.
LTO Tape Capacity Shipments set a New Record & DCD – Tape capacity shipments hit 152.9EB in Q4 2023, setting new record.
LTO tape is energy efficient. Compared to constantly spinning hard drives, tape consumes significantly less power, especially for archived data.
LTO offers high reliability for data storage. Tape technology is known for its high restore rates, making it suitable for critical data protection.
LTO provides strong security through its air-gap design. When a tape is offline, it is not connected to a network, offering protection against cyberattacks.
LTO is increasingly used in the video surveillance market. LTO is being adopted to store the growing volumes of video data due to higher resolution cameras and longer retention requirements.
LTO can be part of a tiered storage strategy in video surveillance. It can be used for long-term retention of video footage that is accessed less frequently, complementing faster disk storage.
LTO tape capacity continues to increase with each generation. The latest generation, LTO-9, offers a native capacity of 18TB per cartridge (up to 45TB compressed).
The LTO roadmap extends to future generations, promising even higher capacities. The LTO Consortium has a roadmap aiming for 1.4PB of compressed capacity by LTO generation 14.
A primary advantage for video surveillance storage is the significant cost-effectiveness of LTO, offering a considerably lower cost per terabyte and contributing to reduced overall ownership expenses through lower energy consumption and less frequent replacements.
LTO excels in longevity and reliability, boasting a potential shelf life of up to 30 years and incorporating advanced error correction to ensure the long-term integrity of crucial video data, surpassing the lifespan and mechanical vulnerability of hard drives.
Scalability is another key benefit, as expanding storage capacity with LTO involves simply adding more tapes, offering a more straightforward and potentially less expensive approach compared to upgrading hard drive arrays.
Security is also a strong point for LTO, as its ability to be stored offline creates an “air gap,” providing robust protection against cyber threats, a security measure inherent to physically disconnected media.
LTO demonstrates superior energy efficiency and portability, consuming less power and allowing for easy and secure offsite storage for disaster recovery.
Therefore, organizations dealing with the demanding video surveillance storage requirements should reach out to Infinite Video Storage to explore how their LTO-based solutions can address challenges like managing large archives, reducing storage costs, ensuring data security and compliance, and providing scalability for future growth.