VIEW LARGER COVER
Member agencies of the intelligence community (IC) collect, maintain, and store large amounts of data. There is a profusion of sensors and communications options that has led to a dramatic escalation in the amount of data readily available for a wide variety of purposes. Much more data are being created than are being deleted. But a large fraction, as much as 30 to 35 percent of enterprise data, is data that are rarely accessed (with weeks to years elapsing between uses) and may sit for a long period of time. This poses a challenge because it means that, worldwide, a massive number of exabytes of data need to be securely maintained, managed, and administered in some sort of way. Additionally, the amount of data that will need to be archived for short- and long-term use will continue to rise. In particular, the IC has the potential to be one of the largest customers for cold data storage because of its wide-ranging need for information.
At the request of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), this Rapid Expert Consultation (REC) explores options for technologies for archival data storage, focusing primarily on current data storage technologies, particularly magnetic storage, Flash, MRAM, and optical storage. While not all of these technologies are well suited to archival storage applications, the ODNI indicated a desire to hear about all possible options. Brief overviews of emerging technologies are included. Finally, the REC offers comments on the importance of non-technological aspects of archiving, including policies and personnel, which should be considered in the design and acquisition of long-term data storage systems.
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