10 Data Storage and Backup Trends 2018

May 21, 2018

    Only handful of things can match data storage when it comes to ripples in the tech industry. With every new gadget comes improved data storage. It’s essentially driving information processing because processors can only work on data held in their respective storage repositories. Increased data storage has increasingly triggered new developments in data […]

 

 

Only handful of things can match data storage when it comes to ripples in the tech industry. With every new gadget comes improved data storage. It’s essentially driving information processing because processors can only work on data held in their respective storage repositories.

Increased data storage has increasingly triggered new developments in data handling and management policies. In the past, being able to remotely access, sync and manipulate data was only a concept. Then came cloud technology and it revolutionized the whole business landscape. It has since grown from barely a boardroom suggestion in 2009 to a critical resource for the bulk of enterprises.

Currently, business and IT executives are shifting from perceiving cloud storage as just a tool. They are now leveraging it to achieve organization goals. And to effectually facilitate this, service providers have not only diversified but also holistically integrated PaaS and SaaS with IaaS.

These advancements in cloud tech have directly and indirectly influenced growth in other data storage technologies, as the volume and complexity of data increases at a steady rate. 2018 is expected to be quite fascinating since all industries are now beneficiaries of the resultant data storage trends.

Organizations are already warming up to this, as close to half of them will be increasing their IT budgets for the next 12 months.

So, what data storage and backup trends should we expect in 2018?

  1. Multi-cloud Storage

In 2016, a study by VMTurbo revealed that 57% of enterprises were yet to deploy a multi-cloud strategy. Their databases were essentially single-faceted, with organizations that had already migrated to the cloud leveraging either public or private cloud services.

 

Overall perception has substantially shifted since then, and organizations are now capitalizing on private cloud data storage for sensitive data while keeping some of their data in public cloud servers. 2018 is expected to experience a proliferation of this hybrid approach, as organizations also continue leveraging SaaS, PaaS and DraaS. This will see 70% of enterprises come on board by 2019.

 

  1. Software Defined Storage

Service providers are already integrating software-defined storage features in their data storage solutions, and we expect to see this trend picking up further through 2018.

 

SDS, as it’s popularly known, bridges the gap between current storage needs and legacy infrastructure. This fact alone, according to IDC, will see the market continue to develop at a rate of 13.5% from 2017, into 2018, all through to 2021. This translates to an approximate value of $16.2 by the time you are crossing over to 2022.

 

 

  1. Artificial Intelligence

Instead of implementing one-size-fits-all service providers are now using a more strategic approach to cater to varying data storage needs. System administrators will continue leveraging the power of artificial intelligence to align data to database capabilities, assess metadata across organization storage infrastructure, and refine management policies. With time, this will eventually lead to optimal performance and resource savings thanks to on-demand infrastructure use.

 

  1. Flash

Flash storage is another revolutionary technology that has drastically changed data storage. Its ripple effects will continue in 2018, as it becomes flashier thanks to SSD technology. The industry will see the production of even smaller flash drives with much larger storage capacities. And this will boost storage efficiency, speed, energy savings and overall performance.

 

The tech behind flash storage will also facilitate policy-based provisioning, storage automation, and integrated data protection.

 

  1. Cloud Spending

Increased adoption of the cloud means organizations will dig deeper into their pockets to acquire additional data storage resources. Typical enterprise spending is currently growing at an average rate of 16%, which is four and a half times the corresponding growth in IT spending previously witnessed in 2009. The next 12 months will experience a bump, as the rate increases to about 6 times the 2009 rate, which will proceed all through to 2020.

 

Compared to other resources, the cloud will take up about half the IT budget in a typical organization. The result is a market that will have grown to $390B by 2020.

 

  1. Data Intelligence

For long, data storage was only that. Holding data in repositories that only display file size and location. Enterprises were basically in the dark about what and how data is being used.

 

2018 is marking a revolutionary stage in data storage through increased adoption of metadata management solutions. System administrators can now leverage data intelligence in tracking their files, then subsequently view how, where and when data was accessed, modified, or changed. This is proving to be especially important in achieving full data control and equitable resource distribution.

 

  1. Data Legislation

As service providers grow, the data footprint is expanding to multiple locations worldwide with varying compliance levels and legislation. So far, we’ve seen the development of new laws like the European General Data Protection Regulation, and NIST SP 800-171 for American defense contractors.

 

Due to such trends, it’s becoming critically important for enterprises to understand exactly where their data is stored. This helps them establish the type of data to store, and how to manage it to avoid collisions with the law.

 

  1. NVMe

While flash will continue influencing data storage, the real impact will come from new developments triggered by the flash revolution. One of the most prominent ones in 2018 is Non-Volatile Memory express, otherwise commonly referred to as NVMe. It will continue being adopted as an alternative to SCI-based interfaces to capitalize on improved Solid State technologies.

 

 

  1. Hyperconverged Infrastructures (HCI)

As a driver for software-defined storage, Internet-of-Things will keep featuring prominently over the next 12 months. 48% of enterprises are already leveraging it, and 43% are planning to join the bandwagon in 2018.

 

If combined with data compiled from other systems, IoT could overwhelm data storage. So to solve this problem, organizations are taking advantage of HCI to put all their data in one place.

 

  1. Cloud Storage Capacity

Data centers will keep expanding in 2018 as service providers improve their features and overall cloud storage capacities. The subsequent data footprint will be further boosted with the emergence of new vendors eager to get a piece of the lucrative data storage industry. Consequently, competition is expected to increase, and place additional pressure on the industry players to further regulate the prices of their provisions.

 

 

 

Author: Davis Porter

By Team FileCloud