The global need for data storage will continue to increase over the next decade — perhaps exponentially, thanks to the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (A.I.), the Internet of Things (IOT), and other data-reliant tech.  

That growth will present an array of challenges. However, the potential environmental impact is particularly profound. According to a report from Berkeley National Laboratory, data storage represented up to 1.8% of the U.S. electrical consumption in 2014. In 2017, Forbes estimated that U.S. data centers consumed 90 billion kilowatt-hours of energy that year. 

Of course, data centers have strong incentives to limit energy consumption: Less power generally means more profits. Over time, data centers will find ways to improve efficiency. 

And for many data centers, that process includes the utilization of high-capacity data tapes.

Tapes can reduce environmental impact while extending storage capabilities. 

Hard drives remain the predominant storage solution for data centers, for somewhat obvious reasons: They’re inexpensive and relatively efficient. Solid-state drives (SSDs) have captured a portion of the market, but they’re most ideal for situations that require an exceptionally high degree of data availability — and that’s not the case for the vast majority of data. 

Inactive (or “cold”) data represents as much as 60% of worldwide data storage. By 2025, that number is expected to increase to 80 to 90%. 

Here’s where tape makes sense: Modern formats like LTO-9 offer a much lower price per-terabyte than hard drives. And over time, the sayings increase: Unlike hard drives, tapes can remain offline without consuming significant energy.

How much energy can be saved? That depends on the application, but the quick answer is quite a bit: TechTarget estimates that tape consumes up to 1,500 times less energy than a comparable storage array utilizing disks. 

Related: Why Tape-Based Data Storage Is Winning the Storage Wars

Tape cartridges have longer lifespans than hard drives.

Tape cartridges can retain data for upwards of 30 years, while hard drives have an expected operating life of 3-5 years. That latter number may be a low estimate; we’ve certainly seen hard drives operate for much longer under perfect conditions.

But the simple fact is that tape media needs to be replaced far, far less frequently than disk-based storage. That means a lower carbon footprint, even if tapes are occasionally migrated to newer formats. 

And with proper data sanitization techniques, tapes create significantly less electronic waste (or e-waste) than other solutions. Properly configured tape systems can also provide fast access to data via Linear Tape File System (LTFS) and similar technologies.

Related: Virtual Tape Libraries: Advantages and Disadvantages

By prioritizing tape, data centers can reduce e-waste and limit operating expenses.

The advantages of tape aren’t restricted to data centers, cloud computing providers, and other enterprise-level organizations: Even in less intensive applications, tapes can improve security with a relatively low total cost of ownership (TCO). 

But as the need for reliable storage continues to grow, data tapes will play an enormous role in preparing the hyperscale cloud architecture for those changes. 

At Total Data Migration, we’ve spent decades researching tape to provide secure solutions for migration, data conversion, media sanitization, and data recovery. We’re excited to help organizations adopt sustainable architecture — and build resilient, flexible systems that are prepared for the future.

For a free consultation, contact us via email or call (800) 460-7599.