2018 updated TCO Tool is here!

Late last year, the initial version of the FujiFilm TCO tool was released. It provided an easy way to quickly compare the cost of storing data on tape, disk and the cloud. Only three inputs were needed; the amount of data to be saved, the annual growth rate and the percentage of data retrieved each year. With this version, additional variables have been added to allow for a greater range of tailoring. These variables can be found on the “Advanced” tab. They include; the number of data copies needed, energy cost, the ratio of cartridges to drive, the % of copies stored off-site, the average vaulting cost for tape cartridges and the size of the average data request. It also includes a number of variables to tailor the cost estimates for networking; bandwidth requirements and cost. Also, on the advanced tab are cost breakdowns for each of the storage types. To give the new tool a try go to this link: Updated TCO Tool 2018

Tape storage continues to offer the lowest cost TCO for cold data

For the storage of “cold” data, that is information that is not going to be accessed frequently, tape storage continues to provide compelling cost savings. The linked presentation highlights the potential savings of tape storage versus high capacity, low-cost disk systems, cloud storage and flash. I used very conservative assumptions regarding the various costs, and tape storage was 74% less expensive than disk and 84% less than cloud. The presentation can be accessed here: TCO Presentation.