Metallic Cloud Storage Service Expands Commvault’s Storage Portfolio

Metallic Cloud Storage Service (MCSS) from Metallic, a division of Commvault, is the latest expansion to the company’s storage portfolio, the vendor announced Wednesday.

MCSS is based on Azure and is designed to simplify cloud for data management. More specifically, MCSS is a fully integrated cloud storage target for Commvault Backup and Recovery software and HyperScaleX appliance. The new MCSS is managed with the Commvault Command Center for management and is integrated with Commvault software.

Commvault’s Ranga Rajagopalan

“Commvault’s storage portfolio is evolving to meet the full spectrum of customers’ data storage needs,” Ranga Rajagopalan, vice president of products at Commvault, wrote in a blog. We now offer Hedvig for primary storage, HyperScaleX for our integrated secondary storage solutions and MCSS as our cloud storage solution.”

The new cloud storage option makes it a backup target, the same as disk or tape — all of which are handled through Commvault software. And MCSS management through Commvault Command Center makes it easy to onboard, configure, manage and protect, the company said.

Security

Data backup and security are top of mind for companies. The pandemic has raised the stakes.

According to a 2020 survey released by the Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) and Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG), cybersecurity professionals have seen a 63% increase in cyberattacks related to the pandemic.

ISSA’s Candy Alexander

“While it’s promising to see that the majority of organizations were able to handle the COVID-19 pandemic fairly well, it is surprising that we are not seeing an increase in cybersecurity spending or prioritizations following this event,” said Candy Alexander, board president, ISSA. “If anything, this should serve as a wakeup call that cybersecurity is what enables businesses to remain open and operational. Organizations prioritizing cybersecurity as a result of the pandemic will likely emerge as leaders in the next wave of cybersecurity process innovation and best practices.”

According to Metallic, secure data backup of copies for critical data is a vital defense against malicious attacks. More than half of organizations that recover data do so from backup copies. But even cloud backup varies across providers.

Capabilities

That’s why Metallic provides what it calls a comprehensive “cloud shield” against ransomware. MCSS capabilities include the following, according to Indu Peddibhotla, senior director, market and product research at Metallic:

• Detection — Modern security measures driven by advanced algorithms and machine learning.
• Prevention — Any access of your cloud backup data should go through increased scrutiny and additional security measures; for example, zero-trust restrictive access controls, encryption and secure key management.
• Recovery readiness — Air-gapped copies are a must. Immutable copies of your data with object locks guard against malicious attacks. Offline copies with the ability to shut down connectivity can contain an attack quickly.

Additionally, MCSS’ hardened infrastructure is built on Azure Blobs with multilayer security and monitoring operations powering the service. Metallic SaaS is ISO27001, GDPR and SOC 2 compliant. It encrypts all data and metadata on the network and at rest while enforcing security controls.

Partners

There’s a partner opportunity in the new MCSS.

“Partners can now offer an easy way to begin using the cloud as a secure, scalable, air-gapped backup target for their critical data,” said Manoj Nair, general manager of Metallic. “MCSS can be positioned by partners to new customers looking for a comprehensive data management solution with cloud storage included. This is in addition to existing Commvault customers who want to enjoy the benefits of a fully integrated, secure cloud storage target with predictable costs.”

MCSS is transacted just like any other Commvault software or HyperScale X, following the same quoting, purchasing and licensing workflows.

“We are compensating both distributor and reseller partners on MCSS deals. And, we already have an established margin for services that we are applying to this solution as well,” said Nair.

MCSS is available in North America, EMEA and APAC.