Nexsan is the most recent challenger to take shots at leader EMC/Data Domain’s backup storage systems portfolio.  Nexsan, in a joint venture with FalconStor, introduced its initial file-level deduplication storage product in August 2009, differentiating itself from other solutions with AutoMAID—its ability to idle or shut down inactive drives in order to consume less energy for power and cooling. 

In October 2009, ExaGrid introduced modular scalability up to 100 TB of capacity and 18 TBs per hour throughput. Unlike EMC/Data Domain’s throughput, which is gated by a fixed controller, requiring end-users to add incremental systems or replace systems to expand, ExaGrid’s architecture allows end users to scale-out modularly.  ExaGrid is competitive with pricing, too–including replication software at no charge.

In November 2009, Quantum introduced its DXi6500 family of disk storage systems, solutions that are directly aimed at competing with EMC Data Domain’s DD600 series appliances.  Quantum’s solutions include both NAS and Symantec OST interfaces, replication software, and backup software for VMware environments—at 10-30% less cost than comparable EMC/Data Domain offering.

Now, Nexsan has followed up its initial Nexsan Dedupe SG offering with a 2.0 version—increasing capacity (now 72 TB usable/1.4 PB logical), improving performance (via 10 GbE and Symantec OST interface), and increasing its replication fan-in ratio (to 150:1).  In another jab at EMC/Data Domain, Nexsan is introducing high availability.  Nexsan Dedupe SG 2.0 can be configured as an active-passive pair for automatic failover in the event of a failure—a feature EMC/Data Domain has been talking about supporting for some time.

Data Domain’s competitors are banking on the post-acquisition confusion and disillusionment of Data Domain VARs to create an opportunity for themselves… and it seems like they’re ready with compelling offerings.  EMC has had its hands full over the last few months, readying a combined EMC and Data Domain sales force to present a united front with its backup and recovery portfolio in 2010, which includes EMC Avamar, EMC Networker, and EMC DL line, in addition to the Data Domain storage systems.

One thing these challengers won’t be able to match?  EMC has the opportunity to introduce deduplication features at multiple points in the backup data path: at the client (via Avamar or Networker), media server (via Networker), or target storage (Data Domain).  This level of flexibility will be appealing to end-users who want to distribute the deduplication workload to maximize efficiency.

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Tags: Avamar, Data Domain, deduplication, EMC, Exagrid, FalconStor, Nexsan, Quantum