Restoring Tape backup from NetApp storage to "Non-NetApp storage"

[Storage-Guru]

I want to find out it is possible to restore NetApp snapshots from tape to a non-NetApp storage device. 

I've often heard customer SAN being tied into Netapp due to the fact they use the Netapp snapshots for their backups to tape. Customers are often told that they won’t be able to do restores from their Netapp backups if they move to another storage provider e.g. EqualLogic. Is that the case? Customers using Symantec to do the actual backup to tape. (NetBackup or BackupExec)

Please advise

[Nicolai · Accepted solution]

True - not possible. NetApp snapshot can only be read by Netapp (netbackup does not perform "conversion"). The same is true with NDMP backup. NDMP is not a format - it's a control protocol. The data format is different from vendor to vendor.

But that actual not that different from backup software vendors. They mostly also use their own format.

Best Regards

Nicolai

[jim_dalton]

As per Nicolai...tho I might put it as 'it may work, it may not and even if it does now, it might not at some point in the future', certainly if we are talking NDMP. Possibly not what you wanted to hear.

Jim