UBD is a Windows 2012 R2 x 64 rackmount appliance that connects to the iSeries via Fibre Channel. UBD emulates an LTO tape drive to your IBM i ( AS/400, iSeries, System i) allowing you to backup to local storage at speeds up to 409MB/second without changing your current backup procedures.

1. Universal Backup Device (UBD)

2. Frequent Asked Questions

3. What is the Universal Backup Device
(UBD)?
UBD emulates an LTO tape drive to your IBM i
( AS/400, iSeries, System i) allowing you to backup
to local storage at speeds up to 409MB/second
without changing your current backup procedures .

4. Does UBD need a special connection
to the iSeries host?
●
UBD connects through Fibre Channel to
the iSeries.

5. Will UBD eliminate the manual processes
that are required with tape backups?
●
Backups can be automated with UBD and
depending on whether you are continuing
to use tape for long term backups, most or
all of the physical handling of tapes is no
longer needed.

6. Is UBD as fast as my current tape
drive?
●
●
UBD will never be slower than your current
tape drive, no matter what tape drive you
have.
Most IBM i users will see significant
reductions in backup time with UBD.

7. Can I use my own hardware with
UBD?
●
UBD can be purchased as software only.

8. Where does UBD store the tape
images files?
●
UBD can store the tape image files to any
Windows folder, including your SAN, NAS,
HDD, USB HDD, flash drives and any
deduplication device.

9. My industry requires we maintain tape
backups. Can we still use UBD?
●
UBD can be used for onsite backups,
shortening your backup windows and giving
you instant access to your data, while you
continue to keep tapes for long term and
archival storage.

10. Can I copy the tape images for a
second backup?
●
●
You can copy the files to another server
device.
We offer an add-on product called UBD
Synch that will copy your backup tape
images to a second local or remote server,
a remote FTP device or the cloud.

11. Will I be able to restore my libraries on
future releases of OS/400 or I5/OS?
●
●
We are using IBM’s own software to do the
saves and restores.
We expect IBM’s software to remain
compatible in future releases of the
operating system, since they depend on its
use also.

12. Does UBD interface with BRMS or
Robot/SAVE?
●
UBD will interface with any backup program
running on the iSeries, including BRMS,
Robot/SAVE or any in-house backup
program.

13. How much training is needed with
UBD?
●
Because UBD uses existing IBM i tape
backup commands, most IT staff begin
using UBD with minimal training.

14. What releases of OS/400 and I5/OS
does it support?
●
Everything from V4R5 forward.

15. Can UBD compress and encrypt my
iSeries backups?
●
UBD includes in-line compression and
AES-256 encryption.

16. What sort of compression ratio can I
expect?
●
●
●
You should see at least 4 to 1 compression on an
average set of saves – more on databases, less
on program objects.
Our sample results have been 3.6 on run-time
objects, 8.0 on a library containing database
records, and 10.7 on program source.
Users have reported compression ratios in the 4x
to 12x range.

17. Will compression and encryption slow
down my other iSeries jobs?
●
●
Absolutely not.
Since both compression and encryption
occur entirely on the server side it does not
cause any overhead on the iSeries.

18. What are the limitations?
●
●
There are no limitations since the iSeries
sees the UBD as a tape device.
Everything you can save to and restore
from tape, you can save to and restore
from UBD.

19. How can I see what UBD can do?
●
●
The power and simplicity of UBD is best
seen through a live on-line demo.
To schedule your demo, complete our
Contact Us form and we will set up a time
that is convenient for you.

20. Contact
Inquiries:
For more information or to schedule a demo
Email: info@laservault.com
Phone: 800-444-6283 extension 1 for sales
Support:
Email: support@laservault.com
Phone: 800-444-6283 extension 2 for support