Disclaimer: This isn't some kind of flame to say that a different product is better. I'm looking for a solution because it is important for me. So please be patient ..
We are currently using Simpana 8.0 for backup and we are evaluating NBU. One of the biggest differences between those two products is how they handle copies. In Simpana a copy is more like some kind of job - you say what you want to copy and when and the normal scheduler handles the job; you have full control over it.
Now we are using a disk device for first the stage then copy data to tape (second stage). With Simpana that's easy: run the backup job to disk @ night, copy them to tape in the morning.
With NBU there are inline copies (the normal "multiple copy" option) and the newer storage lifecyle policies. Inline copies aren't a good idea (no more staging - we need it because of speed). I know I can en- and disable a SLP with nbstlutil - but I have no control when a SLP copies to a specific device?!
Maybe it's just wrong thinking. How do you handle it? Most of the people I know can't backup directly to tape because of (network) speed and stage their data.
I'm grateful for every insight I get.
TIA,
ronald
