Current version 2.0.6 & 2.0.7

ArGest® BRU Server™ Client/Server Software for macOS, Linux, UNIX, and Windows*

ArGest® BRU Server™ includes full support for LTO, disk, and cloud backup/archival/restore configurations. 
ArGest® BRU Server™ is also compliant with regulatory governance.  All major client system OS platforms

are supported, as well as live database backup on server and client systems.

Here is an example of a BRU Server™ workflow as used by TOLIS Group, Inc. for normal day to day operations.

 

For our M&E customers who ask should you use ArGest® BRU Server, ArGest® Backup, or both?  Here is a workflow example of what ArGest® BRU Server provides in addition to ArGest® Backup.

ArGest® BRU Server™ is TOLIS Group's premier network backup software solution that provides true client/server based data backup and recovery services across networks of any size and any customer industry type with unmatched data restore reliability.

Read about BRU and SUSE, together since 1996

*Windows support in BRU Server™ is available as a Client/Agent and Management GUI, BRU Server's Server Component must run on macOS, Linux, or Unix, or bruAPP™

June 30, 2020, macOS 10.15 Big Sur notice

Dear macOS users - at this time, Apple's macOS "Big Sur" is in very early beta and prerelease status. This means that some or all features of our ArGest/BRU application and tools might not work as expected.  While we are following this release progress very closely, please do not attempt to use ArGest/BRU within a Big Sur environment unless you are prepared for unexpected functional issues and even crashing of the application.

 

Once Big Sur nears its planned October release date, we will be more aware of what changes we may need to make in ArGest/BRU to function properly under the Big Sur. environment.

About ArGest® BRU™ Server

Options and Pricing

Supported Client Systems

System Requirements

Documentation

Because backup and archiving is not a one-size fits all solution, the BRU products are individually designed to meet all needs.  Out of the box, ArGest® BRU Server™ v2.0.7 software supports unlimited data amounts for backup with no additional fees in single BRU archives up to 16 exabytes each.  The BRU™ engine natively powers our macOS backup software solutions, our Linux backup software solutions, as well as providing the reliability, speed, and power behind our tape hardware and disk storage solutions.  FreeBSD 11 and 12 are supported both as clients of macOS or Linux BRU Server installations, and also as a BRU Server Server host for disk only operations.

 

ArGest® BRU Server™ v2.0.7 software supports users' existing hardware or cloud storage services, and is also available bundled with tape and disk RAID hardware with the TOLIS Group BRU Server™ standalone LTO, automation/library units, or expandable disk storage solutions.  ArGest® BRU Server™ is also available pre-configured on our bruAPP™ personal cloud-based backup appliance.  Our hardware/software bundles provide a single source of support help and warranty services for all items related to the backup/archiving task. 

Automated archival solutions for medical, law enforcement, government, and other business types who's needs require specialized archive services to access data from network storage locations to a central network archive and restore archived data back to the network storage locations are available as well.

 

ArGest® BRU Server™ v2.0.7 never assumes that the data you write to disk or tape is data that is actually recoverable and provides the assurance that the data you think you have backed up can actually be restored. BRU™'s error recovery algorithms used when writing to tape provide reliability mechanisms unlike any other backup product on the market. BRU™ can even restore data from the readable portions of a physically damaged tape.

 

These features are discussed in depth in our white papers titled: The BRU Advantage and Reliable Verification with BRU.

 

 

 

 

 

What makes BRU better than all other formats?

 

Speed.  BRU is the fastest software available.  Streaming SAS LTO-7 and LTO-8 at 322MB/sec (see more details about achieving this LTO-7/LTO-8 speed) and LTO-6 at over 160MB/sec with ArGest® hardware, BRU™ software.  Even better performance and lower latency is seen with BRU and Fibre Channel LTO-7 and LTO-8 tape.

 

True cross platform recoverability.  All BRU™ archives are verifiable and restorable on any OS BRU supports (there are currently 24 of those), and with any version of BRU regardless of the OS they were created on.  BRU™ is fully backwards compatible, and BRU™ will never leave you with archives tied to a data set, specific OS, version, or type of hardware.

 

Verifiability and error recovery for restore.  BRU™ archives are properly and fully verifiable on any OS BRU supports at any time, and is the only backup tool that can recover from errors–if a bad bit is detected on your media, BRU™ advances in device block increments until it can read and restore the data once again without aborting your restore.  And if your archive spans multiple tapes, and you lose a tape to damage or theft, BRU™ will restore all the rest of the data from all the tapes you have, something no other product will do.

 

Accountability.  With BRU™, you have a source for help and a company that has been committed to data backup and restore since 1985.

 

Flexibility.  BRU™ supports almost all tape devices, VTL, cloud, and and disk storage out of the box.  Full support for SAN configurations and live database backup on Linux, Linux Raspberry pi 3/4 32bit ARM ARMv7l,

Linux RockPRO 64 64bit ARM aarch64macOS, Unix, and Windows with the Windows Open File Manager.  BRU™ also provides multiple workflow options for backup/archiving/restore of the same or different data simultaneously.  ArGest® BRU Server™ supports any number of tape drives attached, and up to 99 tape slots in a single library out of the box, for 100+ tape slots enabled on a library, add the 100+ tape slot add on to unlock 100-an unlimited number of tape slots supported.

 

 

Special needs.  All special characters, ACLs, special attributes, permissions, and foreign language characters (including left to right languages) are correctly handled by BRU™.  Integration with major DAM/MAM solutions for our Media and Entertainment Customers.

 

Best Business Practices.  All BRU™ products are fully compliant with best business security practices including those mandated by Sarbanes-Oxley.

 

More helpful ArGest® BRU Server™ information:

 

Questions about workflow?

Here is an example BRU Server™ workflow as used by TOLIS Group, Inc internally in our labs.

 

Questions about

Excluding Specific Files or File Types From Backup?

Here's how to

Exclude specific files or file types from your backup

 

Questions about Executing Tasks Before or After a BRU Server Job Run?

Here is How ArGest® BRU Server™ pre- and -post job scripts are done

 

For those that are looking for a system example: ArGest® BRU Server™ System For Example Purposes

 

Bottom Line. Your organization's data is critical, and how to protect it is an important decision. BRU™  delivers the reliability, functionality, flexibility, scalability and overall excellent value necessary to provide you with backup peace-of-mind.  Download your fully functional 30 day demo here.

 

  • Features at a Glance

     

    Support for LTO, Disk, and Cloud backup configurations

     

    Graphical User Interfaces Control BRU Server from macOS, Linux and Windows systems. Character-Based and Command Line Management Consoles are also Available for Maximum Flexibility

     

    Client-Side - User Initiated Backup for Desktops and Laptops (not dependent on any admin-specified backups) Under Windows, macOS, and Linux

     

    Client-Side - User Initiated Restore (not dependent on any admin action) Under Windows, macOS, and Linux

     

    Client-Side - Update of IP Address for DHCP Environments on Linux, macOS, and Windows

     

    Full Support of ACLs and Extended Attributes on macOS and Linux Clients

     

    Integration with major DAM/MAM for our Media and Entertainment Customers

     

    BRU Server ArGest® Hardware/Software Bundles for single source of help and warranty on all components related to backup/restore

     

    Upstage for Offsite - Expands D2D2T to Allow Copying Staged Archives to Tape for Sending Offsite While Retaining the Local Copy on Disk

     

    Console loads all of the data elements 25-50X faster - archives, tapes, users, and client systems all load much more rapidly to be more productive; more quickly

     

    Support of single archives up to eight (8) exabytes (8,388,608 gigabytes) in size

     

    Live Database Backup (see our Live Database Backup with OFM white paper)

     

    Archives are backwards compatible with all previous BRU Server versions and are also recoverable by any BRU product, on any platform BRU supports

     

    Flexible Disk Staging Provides Disk-to-Disk (D2D) and Disk-to-Disk-to-Tape (D2D2T) Support

     

    Off-Site Storage Services

     

    Comprehensive Native Tape Device Support

    Supported Tape Devices

    :

    Including ArGest® Standalone

    and

    Automation/Library Models

     

    100% Coverage of All macOS Filesystem Attributes Including Resource Forks,

     

    Finder® Information and All Unix Permissions

     

    Backups 100% Verified as a Background Task which can Dramatically Reduce the Backup Window (see more at our white paper Reliable Verification)

     

    Advanced, Error Recovery Algorithms Restore Data When Other Tools Fail

     

    Simple Integration with SAN including Apple's Xsan Technology

     

    Virtual Machine Support (see our white paper Virtual Machines and BRU)

     

  • GUI Console Screen Shots

    Console

    Config Tool

    Agents

  • Operational

     

    Graphical User Interfaces that deliver an easy user experience on
    Mac OS, Linux, and Windows

     

    Clearly defined relationship between Full, Base Job backup definitions and the associated Incremental or Differential backup jobs

     

    Scheduling mechanism with easy access to the defined schedules

     

    Client-level user initiated backup

     

    Client-level user initiated restore

     

    Client-level update of IP addresses for DHCP environments

     

    Access and display of archives and tapes known within the BRU Server environment

     

    Copy identical or different data to two or more drives simultaneously, or perform a restore of data from one drive while backing up to another.

     

    Job summary e-mail reporting with full disclosure of each job available through the job history database

     

    Supports disk-to-disk, disk-to-tape, and disk-to-disk-to-tape backup strategies

     

    Straightforward installation; client systems and tape devices are automatically recognized and configured

     

    Fully scriptable from the command line

     

    Character-based and graphical management consoles provide local and remote control

     

    Headless backup and restore operations can be managed via telnet or ssh sessions

     

    Flexible backup job definitions because very few sites have the same backup requirements.

  • Performance and Speed

       
    High performance tape drive I/O support provides the highest levels of throughput to high-performance devices such as LTO, SAIT, SDLT, and others.

     

    BRU is the fastest software available.  Streaming SAS LTO-7 and LTO-8 at 322MB/sec (see more details about achieving this LTO-7/LTO-8 speed) and LTO-6 at over 160MB/sec with ArGest® hardware, BRU™ software.  Even better performance and lower latency is seen with BRU and Fibre Channel LTO-7 and LTO-8 tape.

     

    Industry's shortest backup window (fully verified backups) by using Disk Staging and BRU Server's zero impact verify (Anytime Verify™) data verification

     

    Low overhead allows multiple BRU processes to write to multiple storage devices simultaneously with very little impact on system performance.

     

    Intelligent cataloging provides a powerful query capability to quickly recover select files contained in archives.

     

    Client system backups are not interleaved, thereby further shortening the time to restore selected files.

     

     

  • Reliability

     

    Ultra-reliable BRU™ engine delivers unparalleled data protection reliability and restorability of the protected data

     

    Backups can be 100% verified without access to the original file systems, either immediately after a backup or even years later.  See more about verification with our white paper Reliable Verification with BRU.

     

    Anytime Verify™ and Inspect Mode backup verification options can be run as a zero impact process, freeing up the client systems faster.

     

    Broad compatibility - backups can be verified and restored on a different system, and even on a different platform

     

    Backups can be committed to a disk staging area at primary storage subsystem performance levels - virtually eliminating perceived backup windows at the client system level

     

    Proven data restorability of BRU technology - corrupt data is reported, circumvented, and the restore continues unless the tape drive is physically unable to proceed

     

    Catalogs copied to tape in addition to the server HDD to provide enhanced availability to backup data should the server system HDD fail.

     

  • Functionality

     

    Full native compatibility with SAN, and other distributed file systems for both backup, and as the disk stage for disk-to-disk (D2D) backup operations

     

    No special tape emulation layer required, however, BRU Server is fully compatible with all VTL implementations (see more at our white paper Tape vs Disk vs VTL)

     

    Live backup of databases and services such as Oracle, Exchange, and Outlook running on Windows client systems using the BRU Server Open File Manager for Windows® (see our white paper about Windows Live Database Backup)

     

    Transport layer agnostic - whether Fibre Channel, SAS, SCSI, iSCSI, Gigabit Ethernet, Wireless LAN, etc.

     

    Provides data backup and restore services within NAS, SAN and wireless environments

     

    Full print (printer or PDF) support of all database information

     

    Scalability limited only by the available network bandwidth

     

    Broadest macOS tape library support available

     

    Lights-out, automated backup operations are easily scheduled from the graphical user interface

     

    Handles files and permissions skipped by other macOS backup utilities

     

    Full support of ACLs and EAs.

     

    Properly backs up so-called "open files" under macOS

     

    Full support of case sensitivity under the HFS+ file system

     

    Single archives of any size can be created

     

    There is no limitation to the size of the catalogs

     

    Data can be restored from any BRU backup data set without dependence on any special files contained on the server hard disk

     

    QFA (Quick File Access) provides fast access to files contained on tape

     

    Client system data is not interleaved with other client system data

     

    Client-side data encryption provides secure communication between client systems and the server

     

    Network traffic data compression is configurable and can provide better utilization of available network bandwidth

     

    Pre and post scripts may be run on a client system to freeze the state of a database running on that machine or export its state to an intermediate file

     

    Files and directories can be excluded from the backup from the client system (excluding mp3 files, for example)

     

    E-mail notification of all operations including interact requirements and job status.

     

     

  • Network Backup Across the Enterprise

     

    BRU Server's "server component" runs natively on Linux, Solaris, IRIX and macOS.

     

    The Agent component is installed on all machines that are to be backed up by BRU Server.  Those machines become clients of the BRU Server Server machine (including that machine itself if it to be backed up).  The BRU Server server component with BRU Server Agents for all Unix-based (including macOS) and Windows systems protects the critical information residing across your client/server based network.

     

    The BRU Server Graphical "console component" can be installed on any number of systems to manage BRU Server's operation. The proven reliability of BRU technology coupled with the proven reliability of a Unix-based operating system creates a backup system of unsurpassed uptime and availability to archived data.

     

    BRU Server's Windows Open File Manager is available to back up live databases such as Exchange Server, SQL Server, FileMaker, Oracle, Sybase, Active Directory and others running on Windows client systems.

     

    BRU Server supports all forms of archive storage including disk, tape, virtual tape libraries, NAS and SAN devices. The built-in architecture supports D2D, D2T, and D2D2T without the requirement of expensive add on licenses.

  • Support for Avid ISIS and Other Media Specific Storage Solutions

     

    Regardless of the filesystem or storage connection type, if your operating system can read and write the files in your storage environment all BRU solutions will properly backup and restore the media data stored on those storage systems.

     

    BRU solutions will support all special attributes, naming conventions, metadata, and application specific typing for both backup and restore.

     

    BRU also acts as an early warning tool.  When the storage subsystem is having filesystem corruption or errors that other applications ignore or don't report, BRU does.  This is because of the way BRU solutions interface with the actual filesystem data.  BRU will report these issues and often identify previously undiagnosed problems with your storage environment that would otherwise not be recognized until it was too late.

     

  • What About Synthetic Fulls?

     

    The concept of Synthetic Backups sounds attractive on the surface—however; the implications for long-term archive storage and recoverability of data are significant. All of our BRU solutions have the ability to perform backups to a user's/organization's requirement, unlike tools that do not provide the necessary flexibility and "force" backups to be done in a manner defined by the software tool. BRU products allow you to easily define full, differential, and incremental backups to meet your organization's requirements. They are easily scheduled, and the frequency is user controlled. So, depending on the particular needs of your organization, backups can be performed at virtually any frequency that makes sense.

     

    The idea of performing a single full backup and then only performing incremental backups for long periods - 12 months or more - may sound good from a backup standpoint, but what happens when you discover that elements of the backup required for a complete recover have become unrecoverable or are simply missing? BRU's 29 years of backup experience with large system environments has shown that performing a full backup only one time in months, or years at worst, dramatically reduces the reliability of the restore—or at a minimum, drastically increases the time to a complete system recovery. Performing full backups on a more regular basis with intervening incremental or differential backups will keep your data fresh and increase the reliability and availability of data for restoration. It is the user's option to perform full backups on any defined schedule; however, BRU's unmatched speed and lightweight process allows those full, incremental, or differential backups to occur without impact to your network.

  • De-duplication Done Right

     

    The concept of Single Instance Backup/De-Duplication is the conservation of backup media — only one copy of a file common across systems is backed-up. The loss of a "single instance" file means that file is forever gone and is no longer available to support the restoring of a system or systems that utilize that particular file. This approach is not consistent with our philosophy to assure the restorability of each and every system's data.

     

    In addition to the fallibility of the Single Instance Backup/De-Duplication concept, there are significant operational issues. The strategy still requires a complete full backup be done initially and that consumes disk capacity without a minimized-use benefit.  Prior to a subsequent backup operation beginning, a lengthy scan of each system must be performed and this process can literally take hours before the first bit is backed-up.  Data restores are also very slow because the data system must work through all of the pointers.  And finally, to write to a tape that is directly recoverable, the de-duped streams must be reconstituted to original form and no economy-of-capacity is realized.

     

    BRU Server handles de-duplication properly and quickly through properly handled incremental backup.  If it's already on a previous backup, and it hasn't changed, BRU won't back it up again until you tell it to, or perform a new full backup.

     

  • No Interdependencies on Data Sets etc...

     

    There are no dependency constraints between full, incremental or differential archives when performing restore operations. Each BRU Server archive is a complete and separate entity from other archives.  Thus, it is not required to have the full archive on-site in order to restore from an incremental or differential backup.

     

    When performing backup operations, once a full backup is completed, the full backup does not need to be on-site in order to perform incremental or differential backups.  This allows you to free up slots inside of your tape library or change hard disks for offsite storage.

  • How Is Hardware Licensed with BRU Server?

     

    BRU Server provides native support of most modern tape drive and library configurations. Because of TOLIS Group's partnership with tape device manufacturers, we have early access to future tape technology. This access assures you of BRU's reliable support before the new technologies hit the streets. BRU Server supports tape libraries with up to 100 slots by default, for larger units the BRU Server Enterprise-class library add-on is required.

     

    There are no additional fee in related to the amount of data that needs to be backed up.

     

    No two organizations are alike, nor do they have the same requirements of a backup system other than the requirement of reliability. BRU Server provides the flexibility to administer the backup strategy via the macOS, Linux, Windows or Solaris graphical user interfaces or by using the character-based interfaces. BRU Server is also fully scriptable from the command line. These interfaces provide access to BRU Server's robust functionality, and backups can be administered locally, or remotely.

  • Comprehensive Tape Support with BRU Server

     

    Compatibility with most modern SCSI, SAS and Fibre Channel tape drives.

     

    Compatibility with most modern tape technologies (i.e. LTO, DLT, SDLT, AIT, SAIT, VXA).

     

    Compatibility with most modern SCSI, SAS and Fibre Channel libraries containing any number of tape drives.

     

    Full support for WORM media–if you have data that needs to be archived in a non modifiable, non erasable manner, LTO WORM (write once read many) tape technology ensures that once data is written to a tape it can only be removed or deleted by physical destruction of the tape itself.  All BRU products recognize and support this technology.

     

    Support any number of tape slots in a library*.

     

    Support of multiple libraries attached to the system running BRU Server - no special licensing is required**.

     

    The ability to define "Destinations" as a fixed set of slots.

     

    The assignment of "Destinations" from a pool of free slots as needed.

     

    The allocation of slots within a tape library in an arbitrary manner.

     

    Ability to define and exclude from use sets of tape cartridge slots.


    Ability to write concurrent, non-interleaved data streams to multiple tape drives within a tape library.

     

    Support of variable block mode to allow modern tape drives to achieve their maximum performance potential.

     

    TapeAlert™ notifications to monitor and report connectivity issues, dirty tape drives, bad tape drives, and bad tapes.

     

    Bar code reader support†.

     

    Unique Drive Autobalancing™ that spreads loads across multiple drives within a library to assure enhanced library hardware uptime, preventing the overuse of a single drive mechanism.

     

    An efficient data layout on tape to optimize utilization of tape cartridge capacity.

     

    Spanning tapes is handled properly on backup and on restore--even if it is a single file that is actually spanning the tape.

     

    By default, tapes are overwritten in a backup destination only when older than the last full backup, assuring retention of the most recent data.

     

    Tape life is extended because erasure is not required like other tools - BRU Server's policy to overwrite renders the existing data on tape irretrievable.

     

    See our white paper about the value of using tape - LTO, Big, Fast, Cheap

     

    *Libraries (single or multiple attached) that have 100 or more slots require the large library support add-on.

    ****Special licensing is not required for multiple libraries unless the total number of slots of all attached libraries is 100 or more.

    †For libraries only and library must have a barcode reader installed.

  • Live Database Backup with the BRU Server Open File Manager

     

    BRU Open File Manager (OFM) for Windows

     

    Certified for use with Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8, 10, as well as Windows Server 2003, 2008, and 2012, 2016.

     

    The BRU Open File Manager (OFM) is a robust open file utility for Windows systems that gives BRU Server and bruAPP™ Backup Appliance the power to backup any open, locked, or in-use files, ensuring that your business will run without interruption twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. BRU OFM was designed to work in high trafficked areas that receive hundreds of thousands of requests per hour. BRU OFM is cost effective and scalable from workstation to server.

     

    BRU OFM's advanced caching methods protect your backups from corruption and keep relational file integrity in tact for your mission critical data stored in databases and email servers such as MS SQL, MySQL, Oracle, Active Directory and Exchange.  This data requires batch caching to keep log files and data synchronized at backup time.  You will no longer need to have users logout of the network, close a program at backup time or have skipped files.

     

    Windows-Based Client Systems

     

    The BRU OFM module for Windows clients allows the BRU Server Agent to backup all open files, regardless of the application currently using them. Platforms such as Exchange, SQL Server, Filemaker, Oracle, Sybase, DB2, Active Directory, and even simple open files used in Word or Excel can be properly backed up transparent to the user and the application. Also, BRU OFM requires no additional disk space for operation. You only need a BRU OFM license for those Windows clients that require open file backup support.

     

    Windows 64-bit Support Intel and AMD 64bit Processors

     

    BRU OFM is compatible with both Intel and AMD 64 bit processors environments, including IA64. Simply install BRU OFM onto any machine and it will auto detect which driver to install.

    Windows Server 2008 R2 Hyper V Supprt

     

    BRU OFM is compatible with the Microsoft Hyper-V Support that is used on Windows Server 2008 for virtual machine support.

    File System, Networked Computer and Mapped Drive Support

     

    BRU OFM was designed to work in a heterogeneous computing environment, by offering support for both Windows file systems (NTFS, FAT32) and network file systems. BRU OFM will also support a networked computing environment by allowing access to open, locked and in-use files over mapped drives and networked computers. Installing BRU OFM on computer A and computer B, would allow computer A to backup exclusive, in-use and locked files residing on computer B.

     

    How it Works

     

    How the BRU OFM Works BRU OFM monitors the file system for any read requests that will come from BRU Server Agent. Once BRU OFM detects a backup to a locked or exclusively opened file, BRU OFM will allow access to the file. The application that has the file locked continues to store the information directly to disk as usual. Once the backup of the locked file has begun, BRU OFM will automatically cache old overwritten data to a temporary location.

     

    At this point BRU Server and the application see the file differently. The application that has the file locked see's all changes that it makes to the file as it would without BRU OFM installed. On the other hand, the BRU Server see's the file as it originally would when the backup first began, without any of the new changes.  See the white paper, Windows OFM and BRU.

     

    Unix-Based Client Systems (includes macOS)

     

    The BRU OFM is only available for Windows systems, however, on Unix systems pre and post scripts may be run before and after a backup operation to freeze the state of a database that is running when the backup is to be executed. This allows you to freeze the tables or export the database content to an intermediate, or flat file for backup. While in a frozen state, most database applications will cache any user changes and then commit them once the backup is completed and the tables are unfrozen. The pre and post scripts may be written in any programming language including sh, python, Applescript, C, and more.

     

    For more information about BRU Server pre and post scripts, please see the Miscellaneous Setup Considerations section in the BRU Server Admin Guide.

How to Choose the Correct BRU Server Software Package

 

As a true client/server product, BRU Server is composed of three distinct components.  The Server Component is installed on the machine that will be attached to the storage device (tape or disk).  The Agent Component is installed on any machines that are to be backed up as clients of the BRU Server server machine, including the machine with the Server Component installed if that machine is to be backed up as well.  The GUI Management Console is installed on any machine, Mac, Linux or Windows that can communicate with the BRU Server server machine on the network and is used to manage and control all operations of BRU Server.  It is not required to run the BRU server console app on the BRU Server server system.

 

BRU Server software packages are identical in operation and are only differentiated by the number of included clients with the initial package purchased.  All BRU Server packages, except for the single system support BRU Server Desktop Edition, may have additional clients added as the need for more systems to be backed up grows.  The client machines may be any OS supported by BRU Server and version of the OS (desktop or server) makes no difference to BRU Server.

 

BRU Server, out of the box backs up an unlimited amount of data with no additional fees.  BRU Server works with existing hardware or cloud services and is also available bundled with tape and disk storage hardware in TOLIS Group's ArGest® Hardware/software bundles for single source shopping, warranty and support help on all items related to the backup/archiving task.

 

For our Media and Entertainment Customers looking for Digital/Media Asset Management options, please visit our DAM/MAM solutions.

 

 

 

 

     Pricing subject to occasional changes, please call 1-480-505-0488 or email brusales@tolisgroup.com for your customized quote.

 

 

Back up any machine on your network

 

BRU Server™ considers any machine on your network to be just that–a machine so all you need to worry about is how many machines (BRU Server™ authorized client count) you will need to have.  BRU Server™ does not make a distinction between client/server versions of the OS or hardware type on the machine you want to back up.  Additionally, the BRU Server™ Agent is an extremely lightweight process.

 

Even if a user is working on the machine when BRU is running its backup, BRU will slow itself down to free system resources up so the user barely, or not at all, knows BRU is running at the time.

 

With special client-side backup and restore operations that are authorized for the client machine by the BRU Server admin, desktop and even laptop users on unusual times connected to the network can back up and restore on their own schedule and never miss being protected by BRU.  The client side backup and user initiated restore is available on Windows, macOS, and Linux.

 

Windows systems running Active Directory, SQL, Exchange, or those that have have any other open files may be backed up at no charge with bruAPP™ BRU Server™ pre- and -post freeze and unfreeze job support, or you may use the add-on Open File Manager for automatic background open file backup for an additional charge.

 

 

Available Client/Agent types for BRU Server™ by OS type:

 

 

Windows

Linux (all distributions)

Linux Raspberry pi 3/4 32bit ARM ARMv7l

Linux RockPRO 64 64bit ARM aarch64

macOS

FreeBSD

 

OpenBSD

Solaris

OpenSolaris

Irix

AIX

HP-UX

Add the BRU Server™ Open File Manager Clients for live file/database backup on Windows systems/all Windows environments.

 

Part# 40015

$299USD each Windows machine, pricing discounts starting at 5+ OFM icenses

Special Open File Manager add on for Windows Machines

 

 

Note to Virtual machine users:  Depending on your configuration, guest systems of the host system may or not need to run a BRU Server™ Agent.

 

Specialized systems not required

 

BRU Server's elegant design allows it to be a very lightweight process, and as such does not require a specialized system in order to perform its assigned duties.  Older hardware right up the bleeding edge hardware of the moment are supported.

 

For those that are looking for a system example: ArGest® BRU Server™ System For Example Purposes

 

Supported Tape Devices: Including ArGest® Standalone and Automation/Library Models

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • System Requirements, macOS (includes BRU Server Server component, Agent component and management console component)

     

    Server on macOS:

     

        –macOS 10.10-10.15

        –G4 800MHz or faster Processor (G4 1GHz or later model, newer Mac Pros Recommended)

        –Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz or faster Intel Processor

        –512MB RAM (4-8GB+ Recommended)

        –Compatible Thunderbolt, SAS or Fibre Channel HBA (if using tape)

        –4GB Disk Space (installation and catalog growth)

        –Additional disk space as needed.  The BRU Server Administrator defines required disk space for Staged (D2D) Backups

     

    Agent on macOS

     

        –macOS 10.10-10.15

        –G3 500MHz or faster Processor

        –128MB RAM

        –20MB Disk Space

        –Virtual machine users–depending on your configuration, guest systems of the host system may or not need to run a BRU Server Agent.

     

    GUI Console on macOS

     

        –macOS 10.10-10.15

        –Network connection to BRU Server Server

     

    Supported Tape Devices

     

     

     

  • System Requirements, Linux (includes BRU Server Server component, Agent component and management console component)

     

    Server on Linux:

     

        –Any major Linux Distribution using GLIBC 2.3 and 2.6.24+ kernel,
        –Linux Raspberry pi 3/4 32bit ARM ARMv7l,

        –Linux RockPRO 64 64bit ARM aarch64,

        –x86 1GHz or better Processor

        –x86_64 (Intel Duo Core 1.83GHz or AMD Athlon/Sempron 2800+ or better)

        –PowerPC 750FX (G4) or better

        –512MB RAM (1GB Recommended)

        –Compatible SCSI, SAS or Fibre Channel HBA (if using tape)

        –4GB Disk Space (installation and Catalog growth)

        –Additional disk space as needed.  The BRU Server Administrator defines required disk space for Staged (D2D) Backups

     

     

    Agent on Linux

     

        –No special requirements–if your hardware supports your OS installation, the BRU Server Agent is supported.

        –Virtual machine users–depending on your configuration, guest systems of the host system may or not need to run a BRU Server Agent.

     

    GUI Console on Linux

     

        –All

     

    Supported Tape Devices

     

  • System Requirements Windows (includes Agent component and GUI management console component)

     

    Agent on Windows

     

        –Windows 7, 8, or 10 and Server 2003 or later

        –20MB Disk Space

        –Pentium® 4 1.3 GHz with 256 MB RAM minimum recommended if using client-side compression or encryption

        –Virtual machine users–depending on your configuration, guest systems of the host system may or not need to run a BRU Server Agent.

     

    Windows Open File Manager Add-on

     

        –All Windows systems running Active Directory, SQL, Exchange etc...only one OFM license per machine running open files is necessary, it is installed on a per-machine basis, not a per-application basis.  For all machines running the Windows OFM, a BRU Server Agent for Windows is also required to be installed.

     

    GUI Console on Windows

     

        –All currently supported Windows OSes.

     

     

     

Click the following links below to download the PDF documentation appropriate for your needs.

 

BRU Server 2.x QuickStart Getting Started Guide

Instructions from download, to install component order, to first backup, to first restore.  As a true client/server product, BRU Server is a three component based product.   The Server Component is installed on the machine that will be attached to the storage device.  The Agent Component is installed on any machines that are to be backed up as clients of the BRU Server Server machine, including the machine with the Server Component installed if that machine is to be backed up as well.  The GUI Management Console is installed on any machine, Mac, Linux or Windows that can see the BRU Server Server machine on the network and is used to manage and control all operations of BRU Server.

 

BRU Server 2.x Complete Administrator's Guide

Everything a system Administrator needs to know about BRU Server's usage.  Chapter one is a duplication of the QuickStart Getting Started Guide.

 

Expanded Tutorials

Excluding Files from Your Backup

Setting up Pre (before the backup) and Post (after the backup) Job Tasks

Example BRU Server™ Workflow

Workflow differences for ArGest® Backup and ArGest® BRU Server

 

BRU Server 2.x Upgrade Guide

This document is for users moving from BRU Server 1.x to 2.x only

 

BRU Server Command Line Tools Guide

A BRU Server CLI Reference Scripting Guide for users who wish to create custom scripts for BRU Server v1.2 and 2.x.

 

BRU Server Datasheet

 

BRU Server EULA

 

Supported Tape Devices: Including ArGest® Standalone and Automation/Library Models

 

General BRU White Papers:

 

The BRU Advantage - Details on the elements that make BRU so effective.

Proving the BRU Advantage - BRU was originally developed because tar fails–see why.

BRU's Unique Availability Characteristics - More details about BRU's unique features.

Reliable Verification - Don't be fooled by foolish verification methods.

LTO — Big, Fast, and Cheap - TOLIS Group is pro-tape, see why.

Tape's Not Dead Tech - Tape is not a dead tech, it is fast, easy to use, and nothing else will protect your stored data as effectively for as long.

BRU Server and Parallels - How BRU and virtual environments such as Parallels and VMWare work together.

Virtual Machines and BRU - Workflow details on using BRU in a virtual machine environment.

TOLIS Group OFM for Live System Backup - BRU backs up open files and databases on Windows.

BRU's Support of Regulatory Governance - BRU ihelps you maintain compliance with government/research/medical regulations for backing up and recovering data.

Implementing Tape Storage on Apple Systems - Special considerations when using tape with Apple systems.

Tape vs. Disk vs. VTL Backup Options - BRU allows you to back up to any device type that works for your environment.

LTFS - One look at why LTFS is not the best choice for long term archival.

Tape Data Formats - BRU is proprietary, and why that is a good thing for your long term data protection.

Case Study: Austrian Film Museum - Why the Austrian Film Museum chose BRU to protect their irreplaceable assets.

Tape Device Fibre Channel Zoning Considerations - Zoning Fibre Channel Devices, older document, still valid in 2020.

ArGest® Backup vs ArGest® BRU Server - Which one should I use?.

 

 

 

FIRST TIME BRU SERVER™ USERS INSTALLATION/CONFIGURATION:
As a true client/server product, BRU Server™ is composed of three distinct components.  The Server Component is installed on the machine that will be attached to the storage device (if using tape or disk).  The Agent Component is installed on any machines that are to be backed up as clients of the BRU Server™ server machine, including the machine with the Server Component installed if that machine is to be backed up as well.  The GUI Management Console is installed on any machine, Mac, Linux or Windows that can communicate with the BRU Server server machine on the network and is used to manage and control all operations of BRU Server™.  It is not required to run the BRU Server™ console app on the BRU Server™ server system.

 

Chapter One of the BRU Server Administrator's Guide is the the QuickStart Guide with all steps from install order, to first backup to first restore.  If you
need assistance with installation/setup/operations that are not clear from the QuickStart Guide, please contact
TOLIS Group Support before continuing
with your setup so we may help.

Any guidance or direction TOLIS Group provides to you will only be based on the information provided by you to us as our customer. Many factors in your environment are unknown to TOLIS Group and can affect advice, problems, outcomes, or recommended solutions. TOLIS Group cannot and will not accept any culpability or responsibility due to potential omissions. Also, be advised that technology changes. As a result of these changes in technology, products you are using might be affected both directly and indirectly. TOLIS Group cannot and will not be responsible or liable for any consequences that can occur due to any change in technology, or in conjunction with the use of information provided by TOLIS Group under these circumstances. Proceeding with communications, orders, and interactions between yourself and TOLIS Group is indication that you understand and agree with this statement.   For complete warranty, legal, and return policy notices, please visit http://www.tolisgroup.com/brulegal.html

 

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