Podcast #121: Simplifying Data Protection with an Integrated Appliance

We recently spent some time with the Dell PowerProtect Appliance, posting an in-depth review that illustrates the operational simplicity often overlooked when securing mission-critical data. Dell put a lot of thought into ensuring simplicity in the setup, configuration, and management of the PowerProtect Appliance. The intuitive interface walks a user through the entire process, from installation to data protection.

Brian went to Hopkinson to get an up-close introduction to the new PowerProtect Appliance and was duly impressed with the design and the software that powers the appliance. As a follow-up, Brian invited David Noy, the Vice President of Product Management at Dell Technologies, to join him for a podcast and find out what went into the design and where the product is headed in the future. The discussion gives us a better understanding of this seamlessly integrated appliance that can be up and running in just 15 minutes, ensuring data protection from the start.

David has been with Dell Technologies since 2021, but this was an encore, having worked with Dell EMC between 2012 and 2017. His background covers data protection and storage, so this was a perfect fit. David spent time with Cohesity and Veritas in a previous life, and before rejoining Dell, he was the Vice President of Product Management At VAST Data. A solid history working with data storage and securing that data.

Securing data is a critical topic, and this podcast covers topics that help Dell stay at the top of its game. Give it a listen, but if you don’t have time to listen to the whole thing, check the timestamps below to jump to the topics that interest you.

00:00 Introduction

Product background
- Hardware
- Software
PDM -PowerProtect Data Manager
Protect Data Domain
Virtualization, cloud, containers

05:00 Reducing cloud backups

Storing images for security
Ability to scale
IDPA
Steps to a fully integrated solution
Keeping it simple

10:00 Consolidating functions

The litmus test to determine ease of use
Consistent results in getting PowerProtect up and running
Our interaction with PowerProtect Appliance
Disparate teams working together
Hardware descriptions
- Built on PowerEdge Server
- Future proof
Penetration testing

15:00 Cybersecurity

Integration with the cyber stack
Snapshots
Speed of backup and restore
Easier licensing model
Planned growth
Built to be containerized
Product focus
Expanding enterprise markets

20:00 What customers ask for

Targeting backup between 200-800 TB
Maybe up to a petabyte
Five PB versus five one PB backup
Cloud protection
Cyber protection vault
Driving cloud consumption
Ability to tier and replicate
AI and retail
Use case for internal cloud

25:00 Kubernetes integration

Next-generation data protection
NAS
Adding support for Hadoop
Workload support
On-prem vs. public cloud
Cloud Snapshot manager

30:00 Unifying management on a single product

Multicloud strategy
Protecting multi-availability zones, multiple regions
Make a plan and test it

35:00 Create and test the playbook

Integration with other Dell products
Better Together story
Giving customers choices

40:00 Data Mobility

How to orchestrate mobility
Simple, secure, modern, resilient
The importance of resilience
How to get hands-on

45:00 Conclusion

Podcast Video

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11 months ago

Harold Fritts

I have been in the tech industry since IBM created Selectric. My background, though, is writing. So I decided to get out of the pre-sales biz and return to my roots, doing a bit of writing but still being involved in technology.