Advice/ suggestions for user storage management

[gwendes]

Happy new year all!

We currently have no limits on user storage and have found ridiculous amounts of data all over the place! Now looking at bringing in Veritas Storage Exec - is this a good idea or is there something else out there you'd recommend?

Thanks!

PS. I realise how ridiculous it is that we have no storage limits!

[Dos_Box]

Quite a few here have no storage limits, only file restrictions. Then again, I have a 4TB SAN.
It seems that a quick look at the Vertas product does nothing that a few policies won't achieve at no cost at all.

[torledo]

Happy new year all!

We currently have no limits on user storage and have found ridiculous amounts of data all over the place! Now looking at bringing in Veritas Storage Exec - is this a good idea or is there something else out there you'd recommend?

Thanks!

PS. I realise how ridiculous it is that we have no storage limits!

What are the features of Storage Exec that can help you with you're problem ? If it's merely a case of adding quotas then that can be accompished without the needs for storage exec.

I'm not sure i fully understand the situation. Surely better folder permissions would help with minimising the effect of file sprawl. Or do you have a lot of data islands, in which case that is the reason files are hither and tither. If that's the case go for centralized storage via SAN.

[GlennT]

The easiest thing to do is set quotas and also reorganise data into logical groups.
I would seriously consider looking at the amount of space you are using and put a plan together.
Remember, you don't want to either a) run out of space unexpectedly or b) discover your backup solution isn't capable of handling it all.
I know, I've been there and it ain't pretty!

[Ric_]

The quota and other file management facilities in Windows Server 2003 R2 are very good... if you're lucky you already have R2, otherwise you will need a new R2 Server license.

[Norphy]

I've used Storage Exec, it's a brilliant piece of software. Admittedly, I bought it before R2 became available and the R2 tool does 90% of what I wanted to do but even bearing that in mind, I personally think that Storage Exec is worth the outlay.

[m25man]

This year I chose to use HP320's with Storage Server 2003 R2

12 Disks 3 TB, Raid 6, R2 Storage Features and no user CALS reqd.

Use Backup Exec CDP to back it up to another one on a nother site.

Even if you had storage limits set, some tank top wearing lefty will go over your head and insist that your draconian rules are limiting their students creativty!
Which is good, because next year they will have to give you a bigger budget for even more storage!

[gwendes]

Even if you had storage limits set, some tank top wearing lefty will go over your head and insist that your draconian rules are limiting their students creativty!

We know that all too well!

The problem is that quotas don't just limit the size of a network area folder available to users - using a quota the computer looks at everything created by a user on the drive - this is a real problem for teachers that have done a lot of work adding resources to a subject area share or a particular media teacher!

We haven't got much of a file sprawl but we do have too many useless files and threats haven't made them go away.

Does R2 give better storage management? I have a server running it.

[localzuk]

Quota's in 2003 R1 are, as you say, limited to 'per desk' quotas. In R2, they are much more flexible and can be applied as and where you want them to be.

[gwendes]

Would it be possible then to restrict all folders within a directory (student home folders) to 100MB using R2? I don't want to limit by files that a user has authored.

[gshaw]

If I remember correctly R2 can set limits on folders rather than looking at every fie on a volume.

Storage Server has also been able to do this from first release (we've had to stay with the original release as Doubletake saw the R2 kernel as an Enterprise version and wouldn't activate, at which point we found their tech support was as much use as a chocolate teapot )

[Lithium]

It's done under File and Share Management or something to that avail.
You can use different templates etc...

Are you able to use a soft and a hard template using R2?

It can do that, or by what the user creates - I didn't realise there was a difference until a kindly edugeeker pointed it out

[Ric_]

R2 will add quotas to folders and will indeed do hard and soft quotas. Reports can be emailed to the user when they are approaching their limit so that they know it is the 1GB Publisher file using up their quota.

[markcuk]

another vote for R2 wish i had access to it 3-4 years ago

mark

[john]

Yup R2 FTW Best thing ever, self expanding quotas are great