Once you have taken the decision to migrate data to the cloud, what does this mean for your legacy storage assets? What steps can you take to recover greatest value from retiring drives and related hardware?
There are an estimated 19 to 24 million HDDs available for value recovery from data centers in North America, according to storage expert Tom Coughlin. That’s a lot of data to wipe securely but also a lot of potential value to extract from those hard drives where they can be remarketed. However, companies are often quick to miss this opportunity and rush to destruction when remarketing is possible.
“Many fully functioning HDDs are destroyed because of data security concerns, even when the data on the HDDs is of low sensitivity or could easily be erased/sanitized,” experts for the International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (iNEMI) wrote in a 2017 report on the important role HDDs can play in developing a circular economy for electronic hardware. “This significant loss of potential value is caused by a lack of understanding and knowledge of the full capabilities of modern data sanitization methods.”
Planning for a data center decommissioning or refresh cycle? Download our eBook to learn more about maximizing value recovery from your storage assets.
To shift industry behavior toward greater consideration of reuse before electing for dismantling or destruction, data center operators must feel confident in the thoroughness of the data sanitization process for hard drives. When reuse is not feasible and destruction of the drive is required, look for accreditations that establish a vendor’s credentials for responsible disposiiion.
There’s a lot to consider when handling retiring IT assets, but with the right level of expert support and guidance you can maximize recovery value and return money to your IT budget. However you structure your IT, you need flexible and agile solutions and the ability to decommission assets securely and fire up new hardware elsewhere.
Horizon offers unparalleled expertise and a range of custom solutions for all of your data center ITAD needs. Download our eBook now and find out how to securely recover value from your IT assets.
