The Ghosts of Storage Past, Present and Future
“For it is always the person not in the predicament who knows what ought to have been done in it, and would unquestionably have done it too . . .” ~ Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
The Ghosts of Storage Past, Present and Future
While the ghosts of Christmas continue to haunt Ebenezer Scrooge in the various versions of Dickens’ Christmas Carol this time of year, we thought it would be fun to visit with the ghosts of data storage as we prepare to put a wrap on the first decade of the new millennium. As in Dickens’ story, the ghosts of storage past are much more pleasant to think of for most data center managers than the harsh reality of what they face today and their rather chilly future prospects.
The ghosts of storage past resurrect times of nearly limitless budgets and resources while countless regulations and compliance initiatives had yet to be conceived in some back office of the capital building. Yes, the ghosts of storage past remind IT managers of a time when they could continue to fill “boxes” with information without fear; if a box were full, simply buy another box, it was a blank check to your storage hardware vendor of choice.
The possibility of having too much data seemed inconceivable during this time. For data was a valuable resource and should be collected and saved with vigor. Too much data? Impossible.
But as time wore on, the ghosts of storage past grew weary and gave way to the gate keepers of storage present. A far scarier existence for IT managers. Suddenly, gone were the abundance of resources and un-scrutinized IT budgets of yester year. In their place now stand mountains of internal regulations and policies and titles such as “procurement.”
IT now finds itself haunted by government regulations and terms such as e-discovery, FRCP and Sarbanes-Oxley. While demands come down from up above to handle more requests for data than ever before with nary half the resources of IT’s glory days. While data stores continue to multiply within most organizations, funding for crucial projects to support the data onslaught is issued with the frequency in which Ebenezer handed out Christmas bonuses.
“More with less” has become the phrase uttered over and over by the ghosts of storage present and these words continue to send chills down the spines of the IT managers they haunt. Is there time to change? Or has the fate of IT managers and data center administrators already been sealed? Perhaps a visit with the ghosts of storage future will help shed some light on the situation.
The ghosts of storage future don’t represent the kindness of storage past or the harshness of storage present, but rather confusion as to what things may look like come the day when data reaches the point where it can multiply faster than technology can process. No, what is haunting IT managers is the uncertainty as to how they will continue to manage data in the face of shrinking budgets and resources and an escalation in the creation of information.
With new and more stringent regulations all but assured of becoming reality as the next decade commences, IT managers will continue to fear the great unknown. Will technology keep pace? Will compliance rules strangle the life out of IT? Will funding for critical projects ever become available again? Many questions for a ghost with seemingly few answers.
Will there be a Scrooge like revelation for data storage industry in the year(s) to come? We believe there is a change on the horizon that will lead to a happier and more prosperous year to come!
Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Your friends at Permabit Technology