BACKBOX® Virtual Tape Controller

BackBox is an external hardware controller that is managed by NonStop-resident software. BackBox attaches to one or several NonStop servers via FC, HVD SCSI or iSCSI and emulates to up to dozens of tape devices. The NonStop-resident software component, supplied with BackBox, integrates the emulated tape devices and BackBox-attached storage with unmodified HPE backup utilities and tape catalog systems.

Unlike traditional virtual tape systems, every BackBox is context-free and depends upon the NonStop server for its meta-data and configuration. Should a BackBox require replacement there is no critical data at risk of loss in a single failure event. More important, multiple BackBox systems work together to supply an array of tape devices to an individual NonStop node, across multiple channel paths and with no risk of operational disruption should a single BackBox be taken off-line. A pair of BackBox systems presents sufficient connectivity and performance to provide high-availability support for an entire data center of NonStop servers. BackBox can connect to the Virtualized NonStop and supports Large Block Mode to optimize data transfer.

BackBox supports different storage appliances, including deduplication units, and various CIFS-based protocol storage add-ons:

Supported Storage Software Version 
BackBox Dedupe Software Powered by QoreStor™ 4.11
HPE StoreOnce 3.18.17 or earlier
DDos 7.9.0.0-1011258 and earlier (for BackBox E4.08 or later)  with BoostFS – client 7.9.0.0-1010595 and earlier 

BackBox is the superior solution for NonStop users requiring performance, availability, remote replication, deduplication and encryption.