Best Deduplication Solutions

The process of deduplication involves creating and comparing different “chunks” or groups of data. Deduplication software allows you to run both inline deduplication and post-processing deduplication.

No matter which option you choose, the deduplication steps operate in the same way. Every deduplication system decomposes data into chunks, after which the process of analysis can begin. An algorithm is then used to create a hash (a specific set of numbers and letters used to identify the data that acts as a unique signature) for each chunk. When a change is made to the data, large or small, it causes the hash to also change. If two different chunks have the same hash, they are considered identical, making one of them redundant. When a chunk is identified as redundant, it will then be replaced by a small reference that points to the stored chunk.

The goal of deduplication software is to delete extra copies of the same data, leaving only one copy for storage.

Deduplication is critical for businesses because it provides a way to effectively and efficiently manage backup activity, ensures cost savings, and creates load balancing benefits. Because the same byte pattern can occur up to hundreds or thousands of times, reducing the amount of data that is transmitted across networks can significantly improve backup speeds in addition to saving money on inflated storage costs. In addition, data duplication effectively decreases how much bandwidth is wasted when transferring data to or from remote storage locations.

The way deduplication is performed will depend on the task:

• Query-based: Repeating values are common in a relational database which can be removed via a query or a script.
• ETL (extract, transform, load) process: In this process, data is held in a staging layer after being imported and is then compared to other available resources.
• File-based: This deduplication performs direct comparisons of both imported and existing files.

There are several different types of deduplication, including:

• Source-side deduplication: This is the process of deleting duplicate data and thereafter transferring that data to a backup device.
• Target-side deduplication: In contrast to source-side deduplication, this type of deduplication transfers the data to a backup device before deleting the duplicate data when storing.
• Inline deduplication: Removing duplicate data before it is written to a disk.
• Post-processing deduplication: Just like it sounds, this method of deduplication starts after data is already written to a disk.
• Adaptive data deduplication: Online deduplication is used when an environment has low-performance requirements and post-processing deduplication is adopted for high-performance requirements.
• File-level deduplication: This type of deduplication is also referred to as single-instance storage (SIS). It is used for storing files according to the index and is compared to the existing stored file. If no similar file can be found, it is stored and updated in the index.
• Block-level deduplication: Files are categorized into blocks and compared by fixed or indefinite lengths or by hash values of the stored block.
• Byte-level deduplication: This form of deduplication is sourced and deleted from the byte level. It compresses and stores data via algorithms.
• Local deduplication: Duplicate data is only compared with the data that is in the current storage device.
• Global deduplication: When searching for duplicated data, this method of deduplication compares data in all devices within the entire deduplication domain.

The benefits of deduplication software span beyond just improving data and maintaining a database. They include:

• Improved ROI: The need to buy and maintain less storage helps generate a faster return on investment.
• Flexibility: Deduplication software works with almost all backup programs and allows you to perform backups from anywhere.
• Improving data quality: Deduplication effectively increases network bandwidth since duplicate data is not transmitted across networks.
• Saves storage space: Removing redundant data and reducing the amount of data transit makes it possible to free up 30%-95% of storage space.
• Reduction in cloud storage costs: As companies move their data over to virtual cloud environments, deduplication saves both money and time.
• Ease of compliance: Complying with data regulations is easier and completed in less time.
• Faster backup recovery: With redundant data eliminated, backups can be recovered quickly, ensuring business continuity and minimizing downtime.

• Data deduplication: It is important to make sure the data deduplication tool you choose can accommodate the data capabilities you need.
• Storage use reduction: You want a solution that will maximize your storage. By eliminating redundant data, deduplication software can significantly impact your organization, opening up further opportunities for storage usage.
• Storage management: Deduplication is a powerful technology to help manage data growth.
• Data backup: Deduplication software should include the specific data backup requirements that your company needs.
• Pricing: When choosing a data deduplication tool, pricing can depend on what features are offered. Many tools can be packaged with large data management or data backup suites. Price factors can also vary based on the number of terabytes or servers that are stored and supported.

It may be obvious, but a deduplication tool is only capable of detecting and deleting data if it can read the data in the first place. For this reason, any deduplication process must happen before any encryption. If encryption were to occur before the deduplication process, duplicate data would not be found.