It was just this past April that Datto, Inc. launched its Datto ALTO storage tool for small business, and already its trophy case is threatening to run out of room.
That same month, ALTO snagged the ‘Best New Product’ Award from the ASCII group at its recent Boston Success Summit, and nabbed the same thing in Chicago.
Now an award for ‘Best Hardware Solution’ was given out by the Baltimore-area ASCII members at its recent event.
How ALTO Plays Out
Datto ALTO is a storage appliance and a service, and uses a similar architecture as the company’s other tools. Here there is a Datto backup appliance, in this case the ALTO, installed on-premises, which backs up the client data. This backup is then replicated to an off-site Datto data center. This is a hybrid cloud approach to backup and business continuity.
The system uses what Datto calls Hybrid Virtualization. “This feature is the combination of instant off-site virtualization and the single-click connectivity of instant local virtualization. A failed system can be spun up easily from the Datto ALTO interface, dramatically reducing downtime. Automatic VPN technology seamlessly connects the virtualization from the user’s local network to Datto’s secure off-site servers. In the event of a local disaster, entire networks can be recreated virtually and connected directly to the cloud,” the company explained.
The new ALTO is aimed at small businesses that thought they couldn’t afford proper backup or know how to manage it. “We believe that every business, of any size, is entitled to a robust solution to back up their critical business data and insure themselves against costly downtime and extended interruptions in business continuity,” said Austin McChord, CEO and founder of Datto, Inc. “We have built a product that eliminates complex overhead for end users and adds an unmatched level of service through our channel partners and our award winning support team.”
Datto ALTO is designed to be sold by managed service providers at an array of prices to meet different size customers.
Besides the Hybrid Virtualization, Datto uses Image-based backup, which is “not only the backbone of the Datto ALTO system but also adds significant usability in disaster scenarios. Users no longer have to pick and choose what files are backed up or worry about saving the most recent draft to a shared backup folder. In addition to protecting files, entire systems are backed up and virtualized so the applications and critical systems which keep a business running stay active, helping business owners avoid the hassle of securing temporary licenses for alternative machines,” the company said. “With Datto ALTO, a user can spin up virtualizations that are connected via VPN to their network automatically. This allows small businesses to cut downtime dramatically and employees can work without any special connections or software.”
Easy-to-use, reliable backup and restore services are much needed. “At least 15 percent of SMBs are doing absolutely no data back-up, according to IDC, and another 60 percent are only backing-up data on local, onsite storage devices,” argues a white paper from the FactPoint Group entitled “Best Practices for Backup Disaster Recovery for SMBs.”
The report goes on to say, “IDC’s annual Digital Universe study1 predicts that the amount of data being stored will more than double every two years and could grow by 50 times by the year 2020.”
FactPoint sees the cloud as solving many SMB storage problems. “The recent arrival of the ‘storage cloud’ allows companies to stash their important data away from their physical locations. BDR in the cloud opens the way for smaller companies to achieve two tiers of back-up disaster recovery. In two-tiered back-up, data is stored first on site (or at a nearby service provider’s secure facility) and then at a distant facility out of harm’s way, such as a back-up data center or the cloud. The onsite storage allows for quick access to key data if hardware fails (instant restore or ‘hot’ restore), while the off-premise site stores data that might take hours or days to recover, but at least it’s there,” argues the FactPoint Group paper. “Many cloud providers are enabling companies to create both onsite “hot” back-up matched with a secondary cloud back-up solution. This best of both worlds offers a best practice for BDR. Even small companies should consider two tiers for backing up their data.”
In other Datto news, the company recently added to its partner push including an enhanced portal, marketing support, and training. “These tools are something we have been working on for a long time,” said McChord. “Our partners are the life blood of our business and without them we wouldn't be able to function. Our new Partner Portal has been in development for over a year and is built with direct input from our partners. We are excited to see how partners put these tools to work, to grow their businesses and help their end clients succeed.”
Edited by
Alisen Downey
