This article is more than 1 year old

HDS soups up sync 'n' share offering with extra protection

End-point protection for non-shared files? Wait, isn't that standard for everyone?

HDS has extended its file sync and share offering, HCP, by adding end-point protection.

HCP is HDS’s Hitachi Content Anywhere. It is a file sharing app for enterprises and service providers and is based on the HCP (Hitachi Content Platform) object store.

Peter Sjoberg, cloud and mobility CTO for HDS, said: “The newest release is the first HDS product to sync, share and protect users’ data.”

It evolves, HDS says, beyond file sync and share with new data protection tools for end-user files. There are also enhancements in security, ease of use, and intelligence of underlying storage and network resources.

This protection idea seems odd, given that HDS says “all files are stored deduplicated, compressed and backup-free in a private cloud object store.”

An object store inherently includes data protection; that’s part of the base attraction for object storage.

HCPA was launched back in May 2013, and then we wrote: “The Hitachi Content Platform Anywhere product is the sync 'n' share version of the original Hitachi Content Platform (HCP). With the Anywhere product, data is kept on HCP, where it is secure, protected and compliant … HCP stores data as objects which are deduplicated, compressed and 'backup-free'.”

So, what is this new data protection?

An HDS spokesperson said: “What we have introduced with HCP AW 2.1 is the ability for users to select folders beyond the HCP Anywhere … folder to protect and restore from. This takes the burden away from IT and allows users to choose the files and folders they wish to protect and do so without also synchronising those files/folders across all of their devices.”

So HCP AW 2.1 becomes a general backup/restore facility separate from its file sync and share capability. It provides continuous backup of protected folders, with backup by syncing to only the server and not across devices. There is a visual indication to show it as a backed-up folder versus “sync” folder.

Restoration is via access to protected data from the User Portal. Users can restore files/folders to a point in time, with restore points based on enhanced versioning settings of daily, weekly and monthly versions.

There is also the ability to search for files within the context of the selected restore point and download multiple files and folders.

HDS says HCP AW v 2.1 also adds;

  • Secure external data sharing with uploads from contractors, 3rd party vendors, etc,
  • Collaborative workspaces with separate roles for viewer, collaborator and manager, and shared, collaborative workspace not owned by a single user,
  • Full auditability with admin and audit/chargeback reporting APIs, and reports in JSON format,
  • Data Exclusion Policy (Content blacklisting) based on file type with, for example, exclusion of MP4 files if believed to be employees’ personal music collections,
  • Registration of new users via desktop/mobile with new users’ registration not limited to User Portal.

All-in-all this is a pretty substantial set of additions for what is nominally a minor, point release. ®

More about

TIP US OFF

Send us news


Other stories you might like