Hitachi Universal Replicator (HUR)

Maximize HUR performance and meet your RPOs over any WAN

Hitachi Universal Replicator (HUR) is an array-side software and journal disk caching solution that offers fast and efficient replication of small or large data volumes. It can help manage tight RPO times and supports replication across a three-data-center cascade or multiple data-centers.

Hitachi Universal Replicator can be subject to limitations created by the wide area network (WAN): longer geographic distances, packet loss,  and bandwidth contention with other applications. Poor replication performance can mean missed recovery point objectives (RPOs), exposing the business to additional risk in the event of an unplanned outage.

Case Study

A global logistics company based in Seattle needed to replicate 500 GB of data per day from its main data center to a disaster recovery site in Spokane, WA.  Their 100 Mbps WAN was being shared with other applications, reducing the amount of bandwidth available to HUR. The limited bandwidth caused extended replication times and missed recovery point objectives (RPO).  

  • The initial data synchronization took nearly 1 week.
  • Ongoing replication took up to 12 hours, and consumed all of their WAN bandwidth.

The company considered adding more bandwidth but decided to implement Silver Peak replication acceleration software instead. After installing Silver Peak, the company was able to complete a previously 12-hour daily replication job in under three hours, meeting their RPO and freeing up bandwidth for other applications. Read the case study

Environment:

  • Replicating between Seattle and Spokane, WA
  • Link: 100Mbps WAN
  • Data set: 500GB
  • Latency: 15 ms
  Throughput Daily replication time Daily replication data
Before Silver Peak 100 Mbps 12 hours 500 GB
After Silver Peak 677 Mbps less than 3 hours 150 GB
The Silver Peak advantage 7x higher throughput Replication time reduced by 9 hours 70% reduction in redundant data sent over the WAN

How Silver Peak Helps

Silver Peak software repairs dropped and out-of-order packets, overcomes the effects of latency, and provides real-time deduplication and compression of all data sent across the WAN. A built-in IPSec site-to-site VPN secures replication traffic across the WAN without impacting performance. When the problems on the WAN have been repaired, it is easy to meet, maintain, and even reduce RPOs. Use Silver Peak software with Hitachi HUR to:

  • Protect more data by increasing HUR performance by 7X or more.
  • Increase the geographic distance between the data center and the branch office.
  • Reduce replication time by 75%, while using 70% less bandwidth.
  • Reduce WAN costs by making more efficient use of lower cost networks. Silver Peak software corrects the network quality problems common to these networks in real time, increasing overall throughput. HUR replicates more traffic in the same, allowing IT to delay WAN upgrades.
  • Improve the performance of all branch applications sharing the WAN. Advanced QoS and traffic management features prevent applications from interfering with HUR and vice versa.
  • Secure data in transit with an AES-256 IPsec site-to-site VPN.

Once deployed, Silver Peak replication acceleration software enables any storage administrator to manage the Silver Peak implementation. Data is reported in storage-friendly terms, showing the data sent across the WAN in bytes instead of bits. Storage traffic is segmented by application, and device, to make management and reporting more intuitive. Reporting includes minute, hour, and daily intervals, and includes a 10 day chart to reflect performance data before and after any changes made during the weekend.
With Hitachi Universal Replicator and Silver Peak Replication Acceleration software, you can protect all of your business-critical data and replicate consistently, regardless of network problems or distance. 

Benefits

  • Meet Recovery Point Objectives (RPO). Replicate more data in less time to remote locations.
  • Replicate over longer distances. Eliminate distance limitations between source/target devices.
  • Improve business continuity. Maintain redundant data centers in distant geographies for rapid recovery from disasters.
  • Lower disaster recovery costs. Eliminate costly dedicated networks for replication; avoid bandwidth upgrades.

Resources

  • The global shipping company is headquartered in Seattle, Washington employing more than 12,000 trained professionals worldwide. The company’s employees and data are linked by a seamless global network and integrated information management system. Services provided include air and ocean freight forwarding, vendor consolidation, customs clearance, marine insurance, distribution, and other value added international logistics services.
  • This Hitachi datasheet describes how the Hitachi Data Ingestor (HDI) and Hitachi Content Platform (HCP) with Silver Peak’s WAN Optimization solution is proven architecture that enables remote offices to back up, archive and retrieve files quickly.